Loss In Tana French's In The Woods

In the Woods is obsessed with searching – It focuses on the loss that causes the search, and in particular what that loss is. Many different things are lost in, In the Woods, but no loss is more surprising than when Rob loses Cassie at the end of the novel. Tana French demonstrates the role of what the loss is through Rob’s thoughts, “I never knew, not then, not now, whether Cassie thought she hung up or whether she wanted to hurt me, or whether she wanted to give me one last gift, one last night listening to her breath” (425) the moment he realized he had lost Cassie for good. Through this quote, the author illustrates the loss of Cassie to Rob by exposing Rob’s feelings and emotions to the reader. Rob is shown feeling both longing and confusion. The confusion Rob displays is shown through Rob not recognizing what Cassie’s motives were. Rob displays longing in the last part of the quote “listening to her breathe” (French 425). This is a tie-in to many of the times in the book where Rob talks about being in sync with Cassie and how well they work together. Longing and confusion are often displayed in a period of deep loss to a person and Tana French uses these feelings as a tool to emphasize the loss Rob felt. The repetition of the words “one last” (French 425) in the final sentence also highlight the loss of Cassie. The syntax of the quote places an emphasis on the words one last, revealing that Rob doesn’t want it to be the last gift or the last breath he receives from Cassie. The different desires that are longed for by the character is another tool Tana French uses to show loss throughout the