Parental Influence

This theme is first shown in the very beginning of the book. Lenka is discovering her love of art through Lucie’s intervention. When Lenka is later going through storage, she’s surprised to find drawings that must have come from her mother. She has no idea what made her mother stop pursuing her art, but she knows that she must have inherited it from her.

When Lenka has a daughter, she discovers that her daughter has a passion for art as well. Just like her mother, Lenka has stopped drawing by this point, but she still encourages her daughter to draw.

The theme is shown once again through the character of Josef. At a younger age, Josef felt like he was being forced to become a doctor simply because it was what his father had done. Josef wasn’t interested because he wanted to...