“I Called You by Name,” Analysis Essay
The absence of love is a vital theme in the story “I Called You by Name,” drawing
attention to how delusion and imagination take over during the absence of love. In the story, the
main character can be seen fighting her inner turmoil. She thinks back on her relationships,
including her ex-boyfriend and the “three-dot-faces” that both haunt and charm her.
Pareidolia is used to draw a connection between absence and delusion. Throughout the
story, the narrator makes out faces from three dots, a phenomenon that is easily seen as a simple
phobia, yet it foreshadows the human tendency to seek love in other places when absent. The
narrator looks for faces everywhere she goes, including the curtain that she states is a figment of
her imagination. This foreshadows the idea that the absence of love can lead to desperation, as
the gap between fantasy and reality is bridged to fill the void of absence.
In our world, this idea can be seen in a situation where an individual interprets the
neutral actions of others in a romantic way, in hopes to validate one’s feelings and search for
connections where there might be none.
In both the story and our world, the absence of love results in a serious consequence: the
act of seeking love from others and bridging the gap between reality and fantasy in times of
desperation.
The emotional effect of absence creates a sense of anxiety exacerbated by self
consciousness. The narrator continues to doubt her ability to tell reality from imagination,
keeping silent as she does not want to be seen as a fool. She also believes that her entire life is
pointless without her ex-boyfriend in the picture, as she compares herself to the woman he
cheated on her with. The emotional burden of absence in the story leads the narrator to ease her
pain with delusion, as the story emphasizes the fragility of the heart and the consequences of
heartbreak.
The absence of love is a vital theme in the story “I Called You by Name,” drawing
attention to how delusion and imagination take over during the absence of love. In the story, the
main character can be seen fighting her inner turmoil. She thinks back on her relationships,
including her ex-boyfriend and the “three-dot-faces” that both haunt and charm her.
Pareidolia is used to draw a connection between absence and delusion. Throughout the
story, the narrator makes out faces from three dots, a phenomenon that is easily seen as a simple
phobia, yet it foreshadows the human tendency to seek love in other places when absent. The
narrator looks for faces everywhere she goes, including the curtain that she states is a figment of
her imagination. This foreshadows the idea that the absence of love can lead to desperation, as
the gap between fantasy and reality is bridged to fill the void of absence.
In our world, this idea can be seen in a situation where an individual interprets the
neutral actions of others in a romantic way, in hopes to validate one’s feelings and search for
connections where there might be none.
In both the story and our world, the absence of love results in a serious consequence: the
act of seeking love from others and bridging the gap between reality and fantasy in times of
desperation.
The emotional effect of absence creates a sense of anxiety exacerbated by self
consciousness. The narrator continues to doubt her ability to tell reality from imagination,
keeping silent as she does not want to be seen as a fool. She also believes that her entire life is
pointless without her ex-boyfriend in the picture, as she compares herself to the woman he
cheated on her with. The emotional burden of absence in the story leads the narrator to ease her
pain with delusion, as the story emphasizes the fragility of the heart and the consequences of
heartbreak.
