Chapter 26 Summary and Analysis – Anita de Monte Laughs Last

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

Chapter 26, titled “Anita,” is narrated from the perspective of the deceased artist Anita de Monte. She describes her post‑death existence as boring and depressing, comparing it unfavorably to the dullness of a party thrown by her former rival Tilly. Anita reflects that Jack, her former lover and fellow artist, never thinks of her; she characterizes his heart as cold except during sex.

One day Anita hears a name from “the tree” – a mysterious conduit between the dead and the living – and feels a surge of energy. She climbs the tree quickly and finds herself in a marble‑floored penthouse overlooking Central Park. She is positioned behind an unnamed woman with bright red hair, dressed in stereotypical Upper East Side attire (Chanel flats, shift dress, pearls). The woman enters a room filled with art bins and cabinets, pulls out a drawer containing the pieces that “the old lady” (presumably a collector) purchased, and flips through them with complete indifference.

Anita recognizes the woman as one of Tilly’s sycophants, a lackey who used to buy images for Jack. She realizes that her own art has ended up in another storage space – a slightly better location than the locker in Parsippany that her sister obtained. The woman replaces the drawer, and Anita feels her spirit sink back into death’s monotony, returning to her beach to eat guavas.

Key Events

Anita laments the boredom of death and Jack’s cold disregard for her.
She hears a familiar name from “the tree” and experiences a surge of energy.
Anita climbs the tree and materializes in a penthouse behind a red‑haired woman.
The woman retrieves art pieces bought by “the old lady” (a collector) and examines them without emotion.
Anita identifies the woman as one of Tilly’s associates and a former lackey for Jack.
The art is returned to its drawer; Anita feels depressed and returns to her usual afterlife routine.

Character Development

Anita de Monte – This chapter deepens Anita’s character as a restless, bitter spirit trapped in a stagnant afterlife. Her depression reveals unresolved grief over her lost art and her failed relationship with Jack. The brief burst of energy when she senses her “babies” (her artworks) shows that her creative passion still survives, but the indifference of the red‑haired woman crushes that hope. Anita’s resentment toward Tilly and Jack remains raw, and she feels invisible in a world that has moved on without her.

The red‑haired woman – Although unnamed, she functions as a symbol of the art world’s shallowness. Anita describes her as a “sycophant” and a “lackey,” someone who used to buy images for Jack. Her complete indifference to the art she handles reinforces the novel’s critique of the commodification of art.

Jack – Mentioned only in Anita’s thoughts, Jack is portrayed as cold and selfish, never haunted by guilt despite his actions. His heart, Anita says, only warmed during sex.

Tilly – Referenced as the host of boring parties and as a figure around whom the red‑haired woman used to cluster. Tilly represents the social circle that Anita resents.

Themes, Symbols, and Motifs

Death’s stagnation – Anita explicitly calls death “boring” and says she has become depressed. The afterlife, she implies, is a prison of repetition.
The tree as a conduit – Anita climbs a tree to reach the living world. The tree may represent a spiritual passage or a connection between the dead and the material realm; it responds when she hears a name and feels energy.
Art storage as neglect – Anita’s pieces end up in a drawer in a penthouse – a slightly better storage than the locker in Parsippany. The indifference of the woman handling them mirrors how the art world disregards an artist once they are gone.
Class and sycophancy – The Upper East Side setting and the woman’s stereotypical wealth markers (Chanel, pearls) contrast with Anita’s earlier life. The term “sycophant” and “climbing” underscore the theme of social ambition.
Guavas and the beach – These recurring images from earlier chapters return here as part of Anita’s quiet, lonely afterlife routine, emphasizing her isolation.

Why This Chapter Matters

Chapter 26 provides a direct window into Anita’s consciousness after death, a perspective not explored in earlier chapters. It confirms that the afterlife is not a realm of peace but of unresolved longing and bitterness. The fate of her art – stored away and handled without care – echoes the novel’s broader critique of how the art establishment treats marginalized or deceased artists. The chapter also introduces the idea that Anita can still interact with the living world through “the tree,” a supernatural mechanism that may become important later in the story. Finally, it deepens Anita’s resentment toward Tilly, Jack, and the sycophantic circle that surrounded them, laying groundwork for potential future interference from the dead.

Study Questions and Answers

1. Why does Anita refer to the red‑haired woman as a “lackey”?
Anita recognizes the woman as someone who used to buy images for Jack, meaning she acted as a subordinate, performing tasks for him rather than making independent artistic choices. The term “lackey” reflects Anita’s contempt for those who catered to Jack’s ego and Tilly’s social circle.

2. What does the storage of Anita’s art in a penthouse drawer symbolize?
The drawer represents the commodification and eventual neglect of art after the artist dies. Even in a prestigious location (a penthouse overlooking Central Park), the pieces are treated as inert objects, flipped through with indifference. This mirrors the locker in Parsippany that Anita’s sister used – both are tombs for her creative legacy.

3. How does Anita’s view of death change during this chapter?
Initially, she finds death utterly boring and depressing. But when she hears a name from the tree, her spirits lift momentarily; she climbs quickly and feels energy from “her babies.” The glimpse of her art rekindles hope, but the woman’s indifference plunges her back into the same stagnant routine. Death remains monotonous, but the chapter reveals that small sparks of connection to her past work can still stir her.