Foil

Character Role Analysis

Anna/the Narrator

The narrator compares herself to Anna throughout the novel. For example, before she realizes that Anna and David have a crummy relationship, the narrator compares her own failed romances to Anna's marriage and hopes to figure out their "secret trick" to a happy marriage (5.39). At other moments, she draws analogies between Anna and herself—for example, when she sees Anna lying sullenly on the dock and remembers herself at 16, hanging out on in that same spot in much the same pose. The narrator realizes a lot about herself by observing and analyzing Anna, which makes them the perfect foil pairing.