The Book of Laughter and Forgetting Setting & Symbolism

The Book of Laughter and Forgetting Objects/Places

Writer's Club

Where the student goes to talk and listen in on a number of the country's greatest minds, including "Goethe," "Boccaccio," "Voltaire" and "Lermatov"

Tamina's Cafe

The place where Tamina works day after day, it is here where the seed is planted that she might get her notebooks back, where she listens patiently to her regular customers and where she lives her life being as silent as possible. It is also here where Raphael will pick her up to take her away finally.

Golden Ring

Kundera's symbol for Tamina's silence, it represents her past and her desire to hold onto the peace that comes with her memories. When she sees the mute ostriches at the zoo, she later dreams of them in relation to this golden ring—her greatest possession that she holds in her mouth.

Mama's Poem

Although a simple, revolutionary poem at the time, Mama's poem takes on new meaning when she tries to recite it...
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