Identity and the Self

The novel explores themes of identity and the self in the context of the narrator’s attachment to and search for Moon. Indeed, the narrator’s pursuit of the international K-pop star acts as an allegory for the narrator’s search for an authentic way to be and live. Before the narrator sees Moon in concert in Chapter 1, she maintains an insular life because she fears “the everyday capitulations that [might chip] away at the monument of seriousness that [is] a soul” (2). She tries to protect what she believes is her unique sense of self by barricading herself from the world. When she attends the concert, however, she becomes obsessed with Moon, desperate to meet him, and convinced that they share a connection and a past. However, the narrator does not realize that her longing is unrelated to Moon the celebrity, and inspired...