Price Of Lies

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter is the debut novel of American modern femalewriter Kim Edwards. Once published, it immediately gains wide popularity amongreaders. It is an editorial delicate, rich and deeply moving page-turner, whose themesare love, lie and loss. In the novel, an originally good-intended lie alters the lives ofDavid, Norah and Caroline. David, the lie-maker as well as the guardian of the secret,is haunted by the lie, and bothered by the secret the rest of his life. Norah, the oneDavid intends to protect at the very beginning, finally is reduced to be the directvictim of the lie, and shrouded by the loss and grief. Because of the lie, Caroline isinvolved into the lives of David and Norah, firstly helps to keep the secret due to herlove to David, finally chooses to confess to Norah.Applied with Freudian psychoanalysis theory, the thesis focuses on exploring thepsychological process of David, Norah and Caroline in order to explore their innerworld. Firstly, the thesis analyzes the unconsciousness of David, Norah and Carolinebased on Freudian unconsciousness theory. David, born in a poor, uneducated family,has a little sister who is born with Down’s syndrome, and brings the family so muchpain and grief. Growing up in such home environment, in unconsciousness David is aman lack of security, but eager to break out of poverty to live a decent life and wishesto control his life. In Norah’s childhood, her father is taciturn while mother querulousbecause of her dissatisfaction with her husband. Influenced by her parents, Norahturns into a woman with a compulsion to compensate for others. On the other hand,affected by her sister, a strong headed girl, who is always sure of herself, Norah longsto be independent. As Caroline is brought up by an old couple with hope and love, inher unconsciousness, she is full of love and responsibility. She is also eager to connectwith David, as she secretly loves him. All of them are directly and decisivelyinfluenced by their unconsciousness, reflected in their choice and behaviors.Secondly, the thesis analyzes the defense mechanisms applied by David, Norahand Caroline to resist anxiety. After sending Phoebe away, David is lost in deep guilt and anxiety. Then he represses his love and guilt for Phoebe as if she had neverexisted. Additionally, he rationalizes his anxiety by locking himself in the world ofphotography which is full of secrets. Meanwhile, he successfully displaces hisremorse for Norah, his love for Phoebe onto Rosemarry. Only with Rosemarry, he isable to pour out his secret and story; he could be true to himself without any burdenand compunction. Norah throws herself into drinking and her busy work in order todisplace her sorrow and frustration. At the same time, she rationalizes herdisappointment for David’s alienation by having affairs with other men. Carolinedisplaces her love for David by considerately looking after Phoebe. Sometimes she isfrustrated by the difficulty in raising Phoebe, so she greatly misses her mother. Thenshe rationalized her missing to Sandra, a calm, firm and determined woman, who alsohas a child with Down’s syndrome.Finally, the thesis tries to analyze why David, Norah and Caroline confront thesame problem, the existence of Phoebe but come to different ends. In the end, Daviddies in hesitation but Norah and Caroline both respectively start their fresh life. Norahfinds her true love and remarries while Caroline chooses to bravely confront the toughreality by telling Norah the existence of Phoebe. All of this is due to their innerinstincts which drive them to different roads.