Genre
Gothic Fiction
Setting and Context
The novel is set in the fictional Essex town of Aldleigh, spanning from 1997 to 2017.
Narrator and Point of View
The novel is told primarily through a third-person omniscient narrator.
Tone and Mood
The tone is introspective, philosophical, dark, and reflective. The mood is eerie, melancholic, and contemplative.
Protagonist and Antagonist
Thomas Hart is the protagonist. The antagonist is represented by internal conflicts, rigid religious structures, and the looming presence of the past.
Major Conflict
The major conflict lies in Thomas's struggle between faith and doubt, love and duty, as well as the personal search for meaning within the historical and cosmic mysteries surrounding Maria Văduva's disappearance.
Climax
The climax occurs when Thomas uncovers the letters and documents about Maria Văduva.
Foreshadowing
Thomas’s recurring dream about a woman from the past foreshadows major revelations about the characters' fates.
Understatement
When Thomas says, “I’m not particularly interested in astronomy,” despite his growing obsession with the stars.
Allusions
The novel alludes to biblical scripture, particularly in Thomas’s reflections on the apocalypse and the comet as a symbol of doom.
Imagery
The novel is rich with imagery, particularly when describing nature and the sky. For example, the comet is described as rising “like something from the depths of the sea.”
Paradox
Thomas’s simultaneous yearning for faith and his rejection of religious dogma present a central paradox in the novel.
Parallelism
The novel mirrors the inner conflicts of Thomas with cosmic events, such as the comet and the moon’s phases.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
The chapel, described as a “sealed container for God,” acts as a metonym for the restrictive religious community.
Personification
The comet is personified when Thomas refers to it as though it were a living entity influencing the town.
