Solitude

The central theme of the novel is solitude, beginning early when the narrator explicitly states “[s]olitude: it’s become my trade” (27). The narrator grapples throughout the novel with the extent to which she wishes to have solitude in her life, simultaneously feeling as though it is her greatest asset and a great shortcoming. She states that “it plagues me, it weighs on me in spite of my knowing it so well” (27), which solidifies her aloneness as both a comfort and a burden. She generally despises crowds, such as the one at the work conference, using dramatic language like “besieged” (51) to describe the crowd in the hotel. The narrator is so entrenched in her solitude that crowds can, at times, cause her to react physiologically as well, such as at the baptism of her friend’s child when she “[feels] separate from the group” (91) and her...