Identity and the Self

The novel explores the complexities of claiming and inhabiting one’s identity within the contexts of both Abel’s and the defendant’s storylines. In Abel’s portion of the narrative, Abel is societally taught that the life he has lived and the experiences he has had are insignificant in the context of the collective. At the courthouse, he learns that “[t]his is not [his] regular life” and that he should set aside reminders of his past in order to serve the proverbial state, which is primarily referred to as “our community” (14, 59). The courthouse officials want him to void his true self so that he can inhabit the defendant’s head, perpetually reminding him, “You’re in their head. You’re not in your head, you’re in their head” (83). These dynamics are metaphors for how a governmental system might control its...