Chapter 13: The Gala Revelation

⚠️ 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 13 returns to the “Now” timeline at the gala, directly after the narrator and Professor Abara have rejoined the crowd. Richard delivers a brief, reluctant speech that Monika likely wrote for him, championing science as the means to preserve humanity and push human evolution forward. The audience toasts and applauds as he leaves the stage. Then Bosq, wearing a gown made of foraged banana peels, climbs onto the platform with the help of his latest assistant/girlfriend. He grabs the microphone, but instead of speaking, a piercing shriek—initially mistaken for feedback—turns out to be Bosq himself crying hysterically into the mic. Monika tries to take the microphone away, but he refuses to let go, forcing the crowd to endure an agonizing silence.

Eventually Bosq announces that Mathilde Wojnot‑Cho, one of his “closest friends and dearest mentees,” is still missing and may no longer be alive. He dedicates every artwork at the show to her memory. The narrator reflects on Bosq’s exaggeration of his relationship with Mathilde, comparing it to how he has co‑opted his own Ketumbe ancestors. She feels repulsed by his performance yet jealous of his ability to express grief so publicly—something she believes women are rarely permitted to do without being called hysterical. Bosq continues, shouting “Presumed dead!” and the crowd gasps. Logan appears beside the narrator, and she collapses into his arms.

Bosq then draws attention to a small object he is holding, which causes a giant screen to descend behind him. On the screen appears a video of Mathilde: her lesioned face, her unnaturally high‑pitched laughter, an eerie thumping sound, her greasy hair, and a frayed rope hanging from her frail wrist. The narrator finds the image unbearable, magnified ten times larger than it had been on Polina’s phone. But the increased size reveals something she had missed before: behind Mathilde, slightly out of frame, a shimmering, raised, skewered structure—a tower. The narrator’s body recognizes the snaking circular forms before her mind does, and she remembers drawings she saw years ago. The words “This part of my life is just for me” come to her last. Suddenly, she knows where Mathilde is.

Key Events

Richard delivers a short, scripted speech about science and human evolution.
Bosq takes the stage, crying hysterically into the microphone.
Bosq announces Mathilde’s disappearance and presumed death, dedicating the exhibition to her.
The narrator feels conflicted: repelled by Bosq’s co‑optation yet jealous of his public emotional release.
Bosq plays a video of Mathilde, and the enlarged image reveals a tower in the background.
The narrator’s bodily memory connects the tower to earlier drawings, and she realizes she knows Mathilde’s location.
The chapter ends on this moment of recognition, setting up the next stage of the plot.

Character Development

The Narrator: Her internal conflict deepens—she is both disgusted by Bosq’s appropriation and envious of his emotional freedom, reflecting her lifelong struggle with self-consciousness as an artist. Her body memory proves a more reliable guide than her conscious mind, hinting at a suppressed history.
Bosq: His public display of grief is performative and self‑serving, as the narrator notes his habit of exaggerating relationships. The video of Mathilde, however, also reveals his genuine distress.
Richard: He remains a figurehead, speaking words written by Monika, and does not show independent emotion.
Mathilde: Though absent, her image on the screen dominates the chapter; her vulnerability is contrasted with Bosq’s theatricality.
Logan: Briefly appears to support the narrator, reinforcing their closeness.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs Actually Evidenced Here

Performance vs. Authenticity: Bosq’s hysterical speech is both a real outpouring of grief and a calculated artistic performance. The narrator questions whether women are ever allowed to be hysterical in public, linking gender to emotional expression.
Co‑optation of the Dead/Missing: The narrator explicitly notes that Mathilde is already being co‑opted by other artists, just as Bosq co‑opted his ancestors. The missing person becomes a symbol to be used.
Body Memory: The narrator’s physical reaction to the tower image—her body remembers before her mind—suggests that trauma or knowledge is stored somatically, a recurring motif in the novel.
The Tower: A shimmering, skewered structure behind Mathilde acts as a visual clue, linking the present scene to the narrator’s past drawings and her secret life.
Self‑Consciousness and Artistic Inhibition: The narrator’s jealousy of Bosq’s emotional release highlights her own belief that holding back makes her a “lesser” artist.

Why This Chapter Matters

Chapter 13 is the turning point of the “Now” timeline. The narrator finally pieces together information from her past (the drawings) with the present (the video) to deduce Mathilde’s location. This discovery launches the next phase of the narrative—active search and confrontation. The chapter also deepens the novel’s critique of the art world’s exploitation of suffering and the gender dynamics of public emotion. The vivid sensory details of Mathilde’s video make the stakes visceral, and the tower becomes the central object of mystery.

Study Questions & Answers

Why does the narrator feel both repulsed by and jealous of Bosq’s performance?
Answer: She is repulsed because Bosq is exaggerating his connection to Mathilde and exploiting her disappearance for artistic effect, much like he did with his Ketumbe ancestors. Yet she is jealous because he is able to express his grief so publicly and without shame, whereas she has always held back, believing women are not permitted such displays without being labeled hysterical. This reflects her internal conflict about her own artistic identity.
What is the significance of the “body memory” that helps the narrator recognize the tower?
Answer: Her body recognizes the snaking circular structure before her conscious mind can place it, suggesting that she has encountered this image or a similar structure before—likely in the drawings she saw years ago. This motif reinforces the idea that physical sensations can hold knowledge that the mind has repressed or forgotten, and it aligns with the novel’s exploration of how the body stores trauma.
How does the video of Mathilde function differently on the giant screen compared to Polina’s phone?
Answer: The larger screen reveals additional visual information—specifically, the shimmering tower in the background that was previously out of frame. This enables the narrator to connect the video to her old drawings and realize Mathilde’s location. The magnification also makes the details of Mathilde’s suffering (lesions, greasy hair, frayed rope) more unbearable, heightening the emotional impact on the crowd and underscoring the theme of voyeurism.

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