Themes Anita de Monte Laughs Last Xóchitl González

Haunting and Legacy: Reclaiming Erased Art in Anita de Monte Laughs Last

Thematic Claim: Haunting as a Force for Legacy, Not Mere Vengeance

In Anita de Monte Laughs Last, haunting is not a simple supernatural punishment but a complex process through which a silenced artist reclaims her place in cultural memory. Anita’s ghost physically alters Jack’s art, inspires Raquel’s research, and ultimately chooses forgiveness over vengeance. The novel argues that true legacy is forged not by posthumous fame alone but by the vitality that remains embedded in one’s work—and that this energy can be preserved, transmitted, and even transformed by those willing to see.

Three Key Plot Movements That Trace the Theme

1. Early Haunting: Powerlessness and the Erasure of Art

After her death in 1985, Anita’s ghost is initially unable to influence the living. She can only observe the world from the ceiba tree, hearing names and emotions but rarely able to act. Her power is directly tied to the presence of her art in the world. When Jack conspires with Tilly to buy up and hide Anita’s work—locking it in storage crates or private collections—Anita feels “buried alive.” Her spectral abilities shrink: “I could barely move an envelope in Jack’s house.” This early phase reveals that haunting is not innate; it requires a conduit. Anita’s legacy is vulnerable because her work is physically inaccessible. Only when the old woman’s auction brings her pieces back into public view does she regain strength, enough to sabotage Jack’s shows “with my little spiritual fingertips all over each and every piece.”

2. The Resurgence: Raquel’s Research and the Rebirth of Artistic Energy

The pivotal shift occurs when Raquel Toro, a Puerto Rican art history student, discovers Anita’s work. Raquel’s honors thesis on Jack and Anita wins a prize and leads to a coauthored feature in Art in America. As Raquel studies the land piece photograph, Anita feels her “babies” coming back to life: “my work, my name, my art! Oh, my babies! And also, my power.” The novel draws a direct link between academic recovery and supernatural agency. Anita begins to actively help Raquel—flipping pages, nudging address books, guiding curators to forgotten pieces. This section shows that haunting can be collaborative. Raquel’s ambition (“she throbbed with wild ambition! Of wanting to change things”) mirrors Anita’s own drive, creating a cross-generational bond. Legacy becomes a living dialogue between the dead artist and the living scholar.

3. The Choice: Forgiveness Over Vengeance at Tilly’s Party

The climax of the haunting arc occurs in spring 2000 at Tilly’s loft party. Anita, now powerful again, terrorizes Jack by transforming into a bat and playing “Graceland.” She chases him toward a staircase with the clear intent to push him to his death—a mirror of her own fatal fall. Yet at the last moment, she flies away. Her rationale: “I couldn’t push him. Because once there was so much love there. And because, well, since my work was back in the world, I guess I’ve just been a lot less pissed off.” This decision redefines haunting. It is not a cycle of eternal punishment but a path to release. Once her legacy is restored, Anita can let go of vengeance. She transitions from vengeful ghost to protective guardian, bringing Raquel a mouse as thanks and occasionally visiting Tilly. The haunting ends not with destruction but with quiet care.

Character and Symbol Connections

  • Anita de Monte: The haunting subject. Her power waxes and wanes with the visibility of her art. She is both a victim and an agent, capable of cruelty (terrifying Jack with her bloody phantom) and tenderness (watching over Raquel).

  • Raquel Toro: The living inheritor of Anita’s legacy. She literally recovers Anita’s work from storage and gives it new life in the academic press. Their relationship is symbiotic: Raquel needs a subject for her thesis; Anita needs a champion to free her art.

  • Jack Martin: The antagonist who murders Anita and attempts to erase her legacy. Haunting is his punishment, but the novel ultimately denies him the satisfaction of being haunted forever. Anita’s choice to forgive leaves him alive but diminished.

  • Tilly Barber: The complicit art dealer who helps Jack bury Anita’s work. She feels guilt and is haunted not by apparitions but by her own conscience. Anita later visits her “almost grateful for the company,” suggesting that even complicity can be transformed through time.

  • Symbols:

    • The Ceiba Tree: A portal between life and death. Anita descends it to reach both happy memories (Havana, Rome) and painful ones (Jack’s jail cell). It is the anchor of her ghostly existence.
    • The Bat: Anita’s physical form during haunting. It represents her ability to swoop, disrupt, and observe. The bat is both terrifying and fragile—a creature of darkness that nonetheless yearns for light.
    • Silver Sequins: The iconic image of Anita dancing, her sequins flying like “feathers of a molting bird.” They symbolize her vibrancy and the fragmentary nature of legacy—small, bright pieces scattered across memory.
    • “Graceland” by Paul Simon: The song that triggers Jack’s panic. It reminds him of Anita’s last night alive and becomes a tool for her haunt. The song’s connection to Graceland itself evokes a promised land of artistic redemption.

Complexity and Contradiction

The novel does not present haunting as a simple moral tool. Anita’s anger is justified—she was murdered and then erased—but her vengeance nearly consumes her. The contradiction lies in the fact that her power to haunt depends on the very system that silenced her: the art world. Jack and Tilly control access to her work for years. Anita’s ghost can only act when her art is visible, which means she is at the mercy of curators, collectors, and academics like Raquel. The novel suggests that legacy is never fully autonomous; it requires living hands to preserve it.

Another complexity is forgiveness. The novel could have ended with Jack’s death, but Anita’s refusal to push him complicates the revenge narrative. Her love for Jack, now distant but real, makes her stop. This humane choice rescues the novel from nihilism. Haunting becomes a process of grief and healing, not endless torment. Yet Anita still admits, “There is nothing like being alive.” Her ghost exists in a state of incompleteness, her only solace the knowledge that her art survives.

Study Questions and Answers

1. How does Anita’s power as a ghost fluctuate throughout the novel, and what external factors control her abilities? Anita’s power is directly proportional to the public visibility of her art. When her work is hidden in storage or private collections, she can barely move an envelope. When her pieces re-enter the art market or are studied by Raquel, she gains strength—enough to sabotage Jack’s exhibitions, change CDs, and even appear as a bat. The novel implies that artistic legacy fuels supernatural presence.

2. Why does Anita finally choose not to kill Jack at Tilly’s party? Anita stops because “once there was so much love there” and because her work has been restored, lessening her anger. She is tired of the cycle of vengeance. The decision marks her transition from vengeful ghost to protective guardian, proving that haunting can evolve toward forgiveness.

3. What role does Raquel play in reclaiming Anita’s legacy? Raquel is a living conduit. Her academic research—the honors thesis, the Art in America feature—brings Anita’s name and work back into public discourse. She physically recovers a lost photograph from Nick’s mother and makes it a daily reminder. Anita herself guides Raquel subtly, flipping pages and moving objects. Together, they restore the erased artist.

4. How does the ceiba tree function as both a portal and a symbol of rootlessness? The ceiba tree connects Anita to places of memory—Havana, Rome, Varadero—but never to the United States. It is a rooted symbol of her Cuban heritage and a means of transcending death. Yet it also isolates her: “The ceiba never sent me down to America. Only to places that made me happy.” It represents a chosen homeland of the spirit.

5. In what way does the novel complicate the idea of a “haunted” artist? Rather than presenting haunting as a passive condition, the novel shows Anita actively curating her own legacy. She sabotages exhibitions, guides scholars, and ultimately chooses mercy. The haunting is not something that happens to her; she directs it. At the same time, her power is contingent on others—a paradox that questions whether any legacy can exist without a community to sustain it.