Genre
Novel
Setting and Context
Set in the context of traveling
Narrator and Point of View
First-person narrative
Tone and Mood
Adventures, insightful, sanguine, heartening
Protagonist and Antagonist
The central character is Olga Tokarczuk.
Major Conflict
The major conflict is that the members of the old sect believe that the soul's salvation is only possible through isolation from the public. Therefore, the characters from the text are trying to run away from the world's troubles by travelling to different destinations.
Climax
The climax comes when the narrator freezes in a hotel while making endless journeys, and her purpose is to record all the events that are unfolding.
Foreshadowing
The realities of the world foreshadow Tokarczuk’s passion for traveling.
Understatement
The problems of the world are understated. The reader realizes that characters are ready to leave their homes behind and go away, never to return with the hope of finding peace of mind.
Allusions
The story alludes to the urge of exploring new places with the hope of finding tranquility.
Imagery
The imagery of Stockholm airport depicts sight, helping readers comprehend its physical appearance. For instance, the narrator says, "I met her at the Stockholm airport, the only in the world with wood floors: a pretty, dark oak parquet with carefully matched slat-a low estimate would put it at about ten acres of northern woods…As I stared at her more openly, her gaze slid away from mine and down onto that polished floor.” Through this imagery, the reader learns something new not known before.
Paradox
The paradox is that Annushka leaves her home searching for medicine, and she never returns because she hopes that new destinations will take her.
Parallelism
N/A
Metonymy and Synecdoche
Anatomy is a metonymy for discoveries.
Personification
Traveling is personified as a healer.
