Epigraphs are like little appetizers to the great entrée of a story. They illuminate important aspects of the story, and they get us headed in the right direction.
Strictly Confidential
"I hope I will be able to confide everything in you, as I have never been able to confide in anyone, and I hope you will be a great source of comfort and support."
This epigraph is pretty basic, but it's devastating in its simplicity. This is what Anne Frank wrote at the beginning of her diary on her thirteenth birthday. Anne felt a bit lonely, so she decided to use her diary as a friend. She named her diary Kitty.
And her diary did go on to be a tremendous source of comfort and support. It allowed her to chronicle two years of isolation, claustrophobia, and fear, precisely because she did "confide everything" in the blank pages of her journal.