Lawrence Block conveys a narrative using the properties of deception and trickery, and in turn, uses this to conceive a story that leaves the reader in the dark up to the very end. The motives of our main character, who remains unnamed, are concealed from the reader until she acts on them. It is through the perceptions of the characters around our protagonist that we learn what her plan was. As the events unfold, we gradually come to an understanding of her intentions, and the happenings that had occurred prior to the climax of the story begin to piece together. We are purposefully made unaware of what’s happening until it happens, although hints strategically placed throughout the story begin to surface as we are quickly made aware of the protagonist’s objective.
“Upstairs in her room, she took the knife and fork and spoons and returned them to her dresser drawer. They were part of a set, all monogrammed with a capital J, but they had not been her mother’s.
Nor were they sterling.”
The protagonist often speaks within an internal dialogue that she shares with Alfred, a past relationship that seems to have been very important to her, and also seems to be someone who has not only taught this trade to her, but also still carries such a high level of significance even after no longer being present– the departure of this character from her life having severely impacted her. And though it is widely understood that Alfred has long since died, it’s never made specifically clear what has happened to Alfred. As with much of the story, we are left to make our own conclusions.
“Sometimes they came so swiftly, and with such unsparing candor, that she had to wonder at their source. Was she making them up? Or was he no less a presence in her life for having left it?
Perhaps he hovered just out of sight, a disembodied guardian angel. Watching over her, taking care of her.”
Alfred seems
to be acting as a sort of conscious for our main character. His inner dialogue appears as a guide– steering her towards her ultimate goal and keeping her on task when her mind begins to wander elsewhere. The significance of this phantom-like character is so heavily woven into the actions and dispositions of our protagonist that we are left to theorize what has happened to them, and why.
Ultimately, the main character succeeds with their swindling. And although a thief, we are made to sympathize with her. Her actions are deemed justified, as she attempts to make ends meet in a society that feels economically difficult to navigate through, even with the aid of an inner voice.