64 pages • 2 hours read
Tana FrenchThe Likeness
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2008A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Facing the Doppelgänger
Humans have long been intrigued by the idea of an unknown twin roaming the earth living a parallel lifeline. The term doppelgänger is German for “double goer” and in literature refers to the idea of a character who bears a strong or identical resemblance to the protagonist without being biologically related. The concept can also refer to a shadow self or evil twin borne of the protagonist who exemplifies a sinister side of their personality. Tana French examines the concept of the doppelgänger through Detective Cassie Wilson’s discovery of her undercover alias Lexie Madison in the flesh as a stabbing victim. The journey to uncover the dead woman’s identity finds Cassie reborn into her ghostly double, causing her to lose touch with her professional and personal identity and putting her life in danger.
Cassie’s twin first appears as an undercover identity created by her and Frank. “When I was Lexie Madison for eight months she turned into a real person to me, a sister I lost or left behind on the way; a shadow somewhere inside me, like the shadows of vanishing twins that show up on people’s X-rays once in a blue moon” (52). Cassie’s twin does not fit the traditional mold of an evil double roaming the earth with sinister aims. She is in full control of her replica and even relishes the escape of assuming her parallel identity. However, when she discovers a flesh and blood human has inhabited her invention, her relationship to her other self changes dramatically. Lexie Madison becomes an identity into which Cassie can escape, causing her to lose touch with reality.
The more layers of Lexie’s deception she uncovers, the more distant she feels from the double. “I had this insane vision of more and more doubles popping out of the woodwork, matching mes vanishing and reappearing all over the world” (243). The person who took Lexie’s name may be dead, but her legacy lives on in the decisions she made and the people she hurt along the way. Cassie feels responsible for the carnage since she created the identity, and in the end, it must be her to finally put the idea of Lexie to death. In the end she realizes Lexie was just one name in a long string of false identities used by a young woman on the run from her life. The experience of temporarily living her double’s life teaches Cassie to remain firmly grounded in and committed to her reality.
Gothic Atmosphere
The gothic tradition of literature, birthed out of the Romantic movement of the late 18th century, features decaying landscapes, curses or bad omens, and elements of the supernatural. These elements set an eerie tone for the narrative and often mimic the mood of the characters. Detective Cassie Maddox views her stay at Whitethorn as an enchanted escape from her unfulfilling life, but as the drama intensifies, her fascination turns to fear. Constantly looking over her shoulder and keenly aware of the chills running down her spine, Cassie’s undercover mission turns into a haunting nightmare: “I followed the faint double trail of whispers weaving between the bat shrills and the rolls of wind” (119). Tana French incorporates elements of the gothic tradition in her novel The Likeness to highlight the murder mystery at the heart of the plot and as an examination of darker themes underlying the setting and story.
The use of gothic elements in a text is less about jump scares or grotesque horror and more about an exploration of the depths of human depravity and the evils that plague society. Authors like Mary Shelley, Edgar Allan Poe, and Stephen King use gothic elements in their texts to explore deeper issues that affect society and a person’s subconscious. As Cassie’s mental health disintegrates under the strain of her past trauma and the stress of the mission, she begins to experience paranormal activity in the house. Whether the stirrings are just figments of her imagination or a haunting presence, the author leaves the reader to discern. The house may be haunted by the ghost of Lexie or the young girl murdered by the father of her unborn child many years ago, or Cassie may be experiencing profound hallucinations brought on by her anxiety. The effect on the reader is the same either way; the terror is in the unknown. Each time Cassie sees a shadowy figure, feels a strange gust of wind, or hears an unintelligible sound, the mood further darkens, and a chilling pall falls over the narrative.
Beyond Cassie’s internal struggle, the darkness running through the narrative is an examination of the sorrowful history of Ireland. Wrought by famine, oppressive rule by the British, and the most recent internal strife of “The Troubles,” the Irish people have long history with pain and suffering. French infuses the narrative with elements of her Irish history, uncovering the deep wounds that still affect the Irish people. Whitethorn House is haunted by its sinister past. The anguish of the past is felt in every insult hurled at the home by John Naylor. From the grim moody weather to the spine-chilling moments in the house, the novel is suffused with darkness that casts a haunting glow over French’s mystery narrative.
Dynamics of Friendship
Observing the nuances of friendship and connection reveal the complicated dynamics of human psychology. French’s detective drama is set amid a reclusive group of friends who are harboring the answers to the mystery at the center of the novel. Daniel, Abby, Rafe, and Justin discover each other at a time when they could not find their place in the world. Under Daniel’s leadership, they decide to create a new way to exist outside the conventional rules of society and the trappings of modernity. When a new friend enters their world, they welcome her into their Bohemian commune but are unaware they are inviting in their demise. Through the friends at Whitethorn, the author reveals the potential pitfalls of interconnection between flawed individuals.
Drawn together by their lack of familial ties, the Whitethorn friends live in the harmony of the present, choosing to forgo adulthood and the responsibilities that come with maturing. At first glance, their experiment is seductive, and it lures Cassie into their world of perpetual academia and conviviality: “I had moments of envying them before, but this was something too deep for envy; something like awe” (304). There is a monotony to their lives that lulls them into believing the piety of their behavior. However, once Cassie begins to see into their individual pasts, she sees a string of broken humans lost in Daniel’s pretentious dream of perfection. Daniel believes his rule of not discussing their pasts to be healthy for his friends and their unity, but in fact it is quite damaging. To ignore Abby’s mother’s struggle with addiction, the intense homophobia of Justin’s parents, and Rafe’s alcoholism is to discount a part of what makes them human and prevents them from addressing the issues in a productive manner that would allow them to grow and heal.
The circle of friends comes together in the innocence of connection and a shared vision, but they become lost in self-absorption. “There had been love there. It had looked solid and simple as bread; real. And it felt real to live in, a warm element through which we moved easily and which we breathed in with every breath” (307). As the scorn of the community presses in and their repressed personal pain rises to the surface, Daniel intensifies his control. Rafe is the first to break from the group. A normal nightly visit to the local pub is viewed as treachery by the others, which reveals the depths of their dissociation with reality. However, when Daniel asks them to do the unthinkable in covering up the murder of Lexie, the stress and anxiety fragments their once impenetrable bond.
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