What Was Lost

9/14/11

Throughout the novel What Was Lost by Catherine O’Flynn the point of view affects the narrative by providing contradicting voices; showing the enthusiasm, aspirations, and dreams; that are often forgotten in adulthood. During the novel, the plot reveals the lives of two individuals named Kurt and Lisa, whose lives have been consumed by their 9-5 routine and a secret that binds them together. Kurt and Lisa, have both been working at Green Oaks shopping mall for years, where it seems they have lost all their dreams and aspirations amidst their unbearably normal jobs. All their feelings, relationships, and personalities have increasingly diminished with their time at Green Oaks. Their rather tragic lack of motivation and complete loss of self-importance is not displayed through the plot of the novel, but rather through the juxtaposition of ten-year-old Kate Meaney’s point of view.

The interactions between Lisa and Kurt help unfold an interesting and twisted tale throughout the novel, but their point of views also influence the plot in a crucial way. Lisa is a store clerk in a record store, who finds her life to be meaningless and lacking purpose. Lisa’s feels that her life is predetermined and out of her control. She has forgotten her dreams and aspirations, and feels stuck working at the record store. For example, Lisa and Kurt casually discuss pandas, “’They have a terrible existence you know? They spend their lives looking for leaves and bamboo to eat, but they have no energy. They have to lie down and rest all the time. Just talking about it makes me sad. There so…lost. They spend their whole lives in this pointless pursuit that just saps them.’ ‘that sounds familiar’ ‘I know, I think that’s why I got so depressed. Wasting their life lives looking for bamboo when what they need is a Mars bar (O’Flynn 150). “ Here, we see ironically describe her own life by criticizing pandas. Lisa expresses compassion for Pandas and their seemingly purposeless...