Jan 3, 2010

Lust | Themes

One of Minot's major themes is the gradual disintegration and devaluation of women's souls as they progress from childhood into puberty. As a child, the protagonist had non-sexual characteristics on which to base her self-esteem. Yet this sense of self-confidence erodes as the protagonist reaches puberty. She explains later that

I could do some things well . . . But the second a boy put his arm around me, I forget about wanting to do anything else, which felt like a relief at first until it became like sinking into a muck.

Sex, even more than a...