Images from Literature

Being a writer herself, it is not surprising that the narrator uses a good deal of imagery from literature in describing the situations in which she finds herself. A good deal of this imagery is focused on mythology but there are some references to more recent literature as well. The Bible is mentioned frequently, too.

A good deal of the references in the novel come from Greek mythology. These include references to the Fates that determine when one’s life will end. Most of these references come at the end of the novel when Emerence dies. For instance, the narrator compares herself to Atropos in that she believes she is the one who caused Emerence’s death.

Earlier in the novel the narrator describes her trek to Emerence’s house after Emerence had tried to entertain a special guest. “And off we went, like...