Chapter 7 Summary, Themes, and Analysis
⚠️ 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
The chapter opens with the narrator slipping back into the city at four in the morning after a stolen hot shower, feeling the familiar rhythm of early commuters. She checks the living room for one of Charlie's many laptops and finds one under a couch cushion. Because Alice has too many trust issues for Charlie's devices to have passwords, the narrator can log in without difficulty. She considers using Charlie's social media accounts but decides against it, instead opening a private tab to search for information.
Her first search is for Lilith, the mysterious woman she met the previous day. She finds only an old mention of a journalism student at a private women's college, a person who bears little resemblance to the Lilith she encountered. She then searches for Lilith's father's last name, Victor, and begins reading his extensive online presence.
The narrator discovers countless profiles of Victor, all telling variations of the same rags-to-riches story: an impoverished childhood with an absent father and a constantly pregnant mother, a hard-won path to Caltech, and a revolutionary suturing technology that made him wealthy. He invested in many sectors, funded Saje's Organic Provisions when he was twenty-eight, and later became one of the richest men in the world. His wealth funds museums, arts foundations, and medical research, and he even financed the Conservatory concert hall where the narrator grew up performing.
She reads scientific papers about Holistik, the beauty company, with some denouncing and others exalting its procedures and ingredients. She learns about allegations of fearmongering as a marketing scheme and sees that celebrities are split between warning against Holistik and flying in for its treatments and the Zoo. She fast-forwards through a documentary about the Zoo, Organic Provisions' collection of animals raised for research and skin care. She takes a virtual tour of the farm in the Shawangunk Mountains, where the farmers are all beautiful, blond, and dressed in minimal clothing. She skips through a promotional video of Sloane, the head of fragrance, picking lavender.
The narrator then encounters a flood of other content: dissertations on farming techniques, photos of Victor with pop stars and heads of state, right-wing blogs speculating about a sex cult or illegal activities, and a podcast series claiming the farm sits on sacred Native American burial grounds. She reads about internet users who believe Victor descends from the Vanir, Norse deities, and an old photo of him with two blond children sparks debate about reincarnations of Freyja and Freyr. She also reads about lawsuits by ex-wives who claim Victor pursued legal ownership of their bodies while married. His first wife died in a car accident, and he destroyed a small forest of ancient trees to preserve her in amber.
The narrator bookmarks pages and opens tabs, but the information seems endless. She stops knowing what, if anything, she can believe. She finally resurfaces when she hears Alice yawning in the next room, followed by the pinging of her phone.
Key Events
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The narrator returns home at 4 a.m. and finds Charlie's laptop under a couch cushion.
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She opens a private tab and searches for Lilith, finding only an old mention of a journalism student.
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She searches for Victor and reads his extensive online profiles, learning about his rise to wealth and his many business ventures.
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She reads about Holistik, the Zoo, and the Organic Provisions farm, including allegations of fearmongering and sacred burial grounds.
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She encounters internet speculation about Victor's divine ancestry and an old photo of him with two blond children.
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She reads about lawsuits from ex-wives and the death of Victor's first wife, who was preserved in amber.
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Overwhelmed by the volume of information, she stops knowing what to believe.
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She resurfaces when she hears Alice in the next room.
Character Development
The Narrator: This chapter reveals the narrator's investigative side. She is willing to use Charlie's laptop without permission, showing a growing disregard for boundaries as her curiosity intensifies. Her initial search for Lilith stems from a desire to understand the woman who seems to hold power over her. She also confronts her own envy of mixed-race individuals, recalling her grade-school and Conservatory feelings, and works to rid herself of that resentment. As she reads about Victor, she becomes increasingly skeptical, recognizing the unreliability of internet information. Her journey from curiosity to confusion mirrors her broader struggle to discern truth in a world where appearances are manufactured.
Charlie: Though not physically present, Charlie's character is implied through his laptop and his lack of passwords, which the narrator attributes to Alice's trust issues. This suggests a relationship dynamic where Charlie accommodates Alice's anxieties, and it also gives the narrator access to information she might not otherwise have.
Alice: Alice appears only at the end, yawning and then receiving a barrage of phone notifications. Her presence pulls the narrator back to reality, interrupting her deep dive into Victor's world. This suggests Alice's role as a grounding force or a reminder of the immediate, personal stakes.
Victor: Through the narrator's research, Victor emerges as a larger-than-life figure: a self-made billionaire, a patron of the arts, and a controversial businessman. The conflicting narratives—philanthropist, cult leader, descendant of Norse gods—paint him as an enigma. His actions, such as preserving his first wife in amber, reveal a disturbing obsession with control and preservation, which aligns with the novel's themes of body ownership.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
Assimilation and Racial Identity: The narrator's envy of Lilith's mixed-race appearance and her reflection on her own feelings of not fitting in highlight the ongoing theme of assimilation. She acknowledges that being half Asian does not guarantee belonging, complicating her earlier assumptions.
Wealth and Corporate Power: Victor's vast wealth and influence are depicted as both awe-inspiring and sinister. His ability to fund concert halls, museums, and medical research while also facing lawsuits about body ownership shows the double-edged nature of corporate power.
Internet Misinformation: The chapter is a meditation on the unreliability of online information. The narrator encounters scientific papers, conspiracy theories, and personal anecdotes, but cannot determine what is true. This reflects the novel's broader concern with truth versus fabrication in the beauty industry and beyond.
Body Ownership and Control: Victor's lawsuits from ex-wives, who claim he sought legal ownership of their bodies, and his preservation of his first wife in amber, underscore the theme of controlling bodies. This connects to the narrator's own experiences with Holistik's treatments and the commodification of the body.
Death and Preservation: The destruction of a forest to encase his wife in amber symbolizes an attempt to halt decay and preserve beauty artificially. This motif echoes the novel's exploration of beauty as a form of stasis and the lengths people go to avoid aging and death.
Privacy Invasion: The narrator's use of Charlie's laptop without permission and her deep dive into Victor's personal history raise questions about privacy. She is both a consumer and a violator of information, mirroring the way the beauty industry collects and exploits personal data.
Nature Commodification: The Organic Provisions farm and the Zoo are presented as places where nature is cultivated and packaged for profit. The farmers' beauty and the animals' care are part of a marketing strategy, turning living things into commodities.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter serves as a crucial turning point in the novel. It shifts the narrative from the narrator's personal experiences at Holistik to a broader investigation of the forces behind the company. By having the narrator research Victor, Huang deepens the mystery and raises the stakes. The chapter also develops the theme of misinformation, preparing the reader to question everything that follows. The narrator's inability to discern truth from fabrication mirrors her own uncertain position within Holistik, where she is both an employee and a subject. Additionally, the chapter introduces key details about Victor's past—his first wife, his lawsuits, his controversial practices—that will likely become central to the plot. It also highlights the narrator's growing isolation and her reliance on digital sleuthing, setting up potential conflicts with Charlie and Alice.
Study Questions and Answers
1. Why does the narrator decide to use Charlie's laptop instead of her own social media accounts?
The narrator has given up on her own social media, feeling embarrassed by the imbalance of followers. She also wants to search for information without leaving a trace, so she opens a private tab. Using Charlie's laptop allows her to conduct her research anonymously and without alerting anyone, reflecting her desire to uncover secrets discreetly.
2. How does the narrator's perception of Victor change as she reads more about him?
Initially, she is impressed by his rags-to-riches story and his philanthropic efforts. However, as she encounters lawsuits, conspiracy theories, and the disturbing detail of his wife's preservation in amber, she becomes increasingly skeptical. By the end, she stops knowing what to believe, indicating that her initial admiration has been replaced by confusion and distrust.
3. What role does the internet play in shaping the narrator's understanding of Holistik and Victor?
The internet serves as both a source of information and a source of misinformation. The narrator finds scientific papers, promotional videos, and personal testimonials, but also right-wing blogs and baseless theories. The sheer volume of conflicting content makes it impossible for her to form a clear picture. This highlights the theme of truth versus fabrication and suggests that the narrator must rely on her own experiences rather than online narratives.
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