I Love Dick Literary Elements

Biography, Fiction, Feminist Novel.

The setting of the novel is the late 20th century Europe. It has been written in the context of repressed feminine desires.

The narrator of the book is Chris and the book has been narrated from her point of view. She has given an account of her married life and her obsession with another man, named Dick.

Feminist, Anxious, Provocative, Delusive.

The protagonist of the novel is Chris, who is a married women and owing to the problems in her married life, she looks for comfort elsewhere. The antagonist in the novel is Chris's obsession with Dick.

The major conflict in the novel is between Chris and her repressed desires. Instead of resolving her issues, she complicates them and makes Dick the sole object of her desires.

The climax in the novel comes when Chris meets Dick and later she becomes so much obsessed with this man that she keeps on thinking about him more than anything else.

Dick does not give any response to Chris or her husband, which foreshadows that he will not make any kind of relationship with them. It also foreshadows that Dick has no interest in both the husband and Wife.

The understatement in the novel is that one should not escape from his/her problems instead the problems should be resolved in order to live a normal and happy life. The escapist attitude can lead to further deterioration. Another understatement is that we should not try to find outward sources to solve our inner conflicts because a person can be his/her own savior. We should trust and love ourselves more than others.

There are allusions to Eric Rohmer’s film My Night At Maud’s, marriage, obsessions, delusions, mental illness, repressed desires, feminism, childhood ,betrayal, claustrophobia, Christmas eve, night and self-hatred.

The images of running water, blooming flowers, fruits, vulnerability, cracking of shell, childhood, patriarchy, desperation, sexual fantasies, moon, blood tangerine, Christmas eve and feminism.

The paradox in the story is that Chris meets Dick only once but he becomes the sole object of his desires but she completely ignores her husband. Dick does not respond to Chris and he is not willing to do anything for her but despite of all that she yearns for him instead of her husband who wants to do everything in order to make his wife happy. Another paradox in the novel is that the letters are written to communicate with someone but Chris writes the letters but does not send them.

There is a parallelism between Sylvere's attempts to make his wife happy and Chris's efforts to avoid her husband. Sylvere does everything to save his relation with Chris, he even writes letter to Dick and at the same time Chris does everything to leave Sylvere and to live with Dick. Sylvere loves Chris and she hates herself and her husband.

An example of metonymy is 'Chris' because she says that she represents all the women who repress their desire and who remain silent. An example of synecdoche is 'April'. Chris says, 'It was April' to tell about her sprouting emotions and sadness which are usually associated with this month.

Chris's emotions have been personified in the novel.