What's Become of Her
Page 32
RHRC: Edgar Allan Poe has a strong presence in the book and heavy influence over many characters. What inspired you to weave the poet into a modern story, and what were some of the challenges you faced in putting a fresh spin on his classic work? How did this alter your writing process?
DC: I knew I wanted to write something with contemporary gothic shadings. With both the crow-raven element and the revenge theme, Poe was a natural consideration in terms of a tie-in. My mother had a book of Poe’s poetry and stories that I read as a teen, and back then, I loved the melodramatic horrors and florid language of his work. I was an avid reader of Hitchcock stories and Agatha Christie, haunted anything, gloomy-castle-plus-heroine paperbacks on up to Du Maurier’s Rebecca, and the southern gothic classics of Faulkner, Capote, Eudora Welty, and Flannery O’Connor.
When I started thinking about What’s Become of Her, I returned to my mother’s book of Poe (with its pink cover and raven on the front), which I still have on my shelf. In rereading these poems in light of the book, I was most struck by Poe’s complex relationship with women. What leapt out at me was the lost woman, the idealized woman, the attractive yet passive and helpless damsel, the dead beauty on a pedestal, the woman-as-object. Reading once again about Poe, the man, was also enlightening. His vast, unrelenting ego and his terrible, tormenting insecurity jumped out at me, too, because, while I remembered these things about him and his work, all of this looked different to me now. As someone who, like Isabelle, followed the siren call of the past right smack into an abusive relationship, I felt quite certain that I knew what I was seeing. Although I am not a Poe scholar, I at least recognized warning signs—idealization, objectification, controlling criticism, rigidity, and possessiveness. Poe seemed to share these traits with Henry (and with most abusive men), and this was my “fresh spin.” It did not alter my writing process so much as enhance it. That the same personalities (and personality disorders) have existed over time—it was a piece that added layers, I felt, to the idea that people from the past can go on haunting us.
RHRC: While reading, there were many times when our predictions about the ending were totally upended by new plot twists, which made the actual ending even more satisfying. Can you discuss why you chose the ending you did, and how you imagine Isabelle’s life will unfold after the final page?
DC: In spite of all the heartbreak and horrors and tough stuff and too-real plot twists a life can bring, I guess I am still an optimist. I want to believe that we can summon the power to go from victim to hero, from tragedy to triumph, in our own stories. I chose this ending because I think it’s the ending Isabelle earned and Weary earned and that they both deserved.
And while that might be lofty and novelistic, I do more realistically believe in our own personal evolution, in our ability to learn from our past, even if true change remains a bit of a daily struggle. I am a believer in one-step-back, two-steps-forward toward peace and joy. So, I guess I imagine Isabelle doing just this, but in her new environment now: evolving, learning, still in the daily struggle. One-step-back, two-steps-forward, in that beautiful place where she can finally exhale.
Questions and Topics for Discussion
1. Even though Isabelle’s mother is dead before the story starts, she still maintains a strong presence as a character in the book. How did her presence affect your perception of Isabelle in the present?
2. At what point in the book did you start to distrust Henry, and what were the biggest “red flags”? What advice would you have given to Isabelle in that circumstance?
3. The raven is a commonly used archetype throughout literature and folklore; discuss any potential impact that had on your reading experience.
4. Discuss the main themes of the novel. Which did you find most thought provoking?
5. Weary’s motives are often unclear; at what point did you know Weary was a trustworthy character? At what point did you have the most doubt?
6. Discuss the significance of the title as it relates to both Isabelle and Weary.
7. Though he is not a fully developed character, Edgar Allan Poe is referenced many times throughout the story, and his work adds layers of depth to Henry and Weary. How do you think the story would be different if Poe was replaced by Robert Louis Stevenson or H. G. Wells?
8. Who is your favorite character? Why?
9. What’s Become of Her alternates between Isabelle’s and Weary’s points of view; in your opinion, how did this enhance the story? How would the story have differed with only one narrator?
10. Isabelle processes anger in many different ways throughout the novel; discuss which ways were effective, and which were destructive.
11. Discuss the significance of the closing scene. What were your primary emotions as you turned the final page?
12. In chapter 16, Weary discusses how he is perceived by the people in his neighborhood in New Caledonia; did their perceptions match yours? How did these rumors alter your opinion of Weary?
13. As Isabelle and Henry’s relationship progresses, his jealous side becomes more and more apparent. Isabelle reflects, “Maybe all men have a jealous streak. Do they? She has no idea. Jealous streak—it sounds almost fashionable, like those people with black hair with a swath of white in front.” What does this line of thinking tell us about Isabelle? About Henry?
14. In the final chapter, Isabelle “feels like she could tell the story a thousand times, and it wouldn’t be enough.” What do you think she means?
15. Who would you cast to play each character in a movie of What’s Become of Her? Why?
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