Music and Radio Symbol Analysis in One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

The Literal Symbol: Cassettes, Radios, and 90.9 FM Music and radio in One Last Stop are not just background texture; they are a concrete, recurring symbol that carries memory, connection, and hope across the boundaries of time. The symbol takes three primary physical forms: Jane's collection of cassette tapes and her portable cassette player, the portable radio that August obtains from Myla's repair shop, and the Brooklyn radio station 90.9 FM, where Jane calls in song requests. Each form is tied to a different stage of August and Jane's relationship, and together they trace the arc of their love story from curiosity to intimacy to separation and reunion. Jane's cassettes are described as a mix of eras—Diana Ross, Michael Bolton, the Jackson Five, the New York Dolls, Run-DMC—each one well-loved and kept safe from scuffs, suggesting they are among the most valuable things she owns. She explains that she prefers cassettes because they are like vinyl but portable, and she has no idea how the player works, which underscores her displacement from the modern world. The portable radio, which August buys from Myla's shop after learning that music is a powerful memory trigger for Jane, becomes the vehicle for the 90.9 FM ritual. Jane texts August to tune in, then calls the station to request songs, and they listen simultaneously—August on her phone's FM tuner app, Jane on the radio she carries with her on the train. This ritual transforms the radio from a simple device into a shared space where two people in different times can meet. ## Recurrence and Evolution of the Symbol Music appears early in the novel as a way for Jane to share her world with August. In Chapter 3, Jane upends her backpack to reveal her cassette collection, and August picks through the tapes, noting that they are from different decades. Later in the same chapter, when the train loses power, Jane starts an impromptu dance party using her cassettes, and August dances with her—a moment that marks a turning point in their connection. In Chapter 6, August helps Jane identify a song she half-remembers, “Oh Girl” by the Chi-Lites, and plays it for her on her phone. Jane is overwhelmed by the memory it unlocks—hearing it for the first time in a semitruck while hitchhiking—and this becomes the first of many sensory experiments. The radio ritual begins in Chapter 7, after August gives Jane a portable radio. Jane texts August to put on 90.9 FM, and August downloads an FM tuner app to comply. The first request is “Lovers” by the Runaways, and Jane texts a cheeky note about dating a girl in Spanish Harlem. From then on, the ritual becomes a constant: Jane requests songs, August listens, and they share the experience even when they are not physically together. The radio also becomes a way for Jane to apologize. In Chapter 12, after a fight, Jane texts August to put on the radio, and the DJ plays “Oh Girl” as a request “from a frequent caller” with a message: “Jane says she’s sorry.” This moment reconnects them and leads August to return to the train. After Jane disappears in Chapter 16, August keeps the radio on constantly—at home, at work, on her commute—as a way to feel Jane's presence. She hears “Love of My Life” by Queen, which Jane had requested in advance, with the message “Just in case.” This becomes a final gift, a reassurance that Jane is still thinking of her. The radio thus evolves from a memory aid to a love language, and finally to a symbol of enduring connection that survives even when Jane is gone. ## Meaning Shifts: From Memory Aid to Love Language Initially, music functions as a practical tool for Jane to recover her fragmented memories. August notes that sensory experiences—smells, tastes, sounds—can trigger memories, and they experiment with songs, foods, and objects. Jane's cassette collection is a curated archive of her past, and the songs she remembers are tied to specific moments: a protest in 1975, a girlfriend in Spanish Harlem, a semitruck ride. Music is a way to access a life that has been erased by her displacement in time. As the relationship deepens, the meaning of music shifts. The radio requests become a shared ritual that creates intimacy across the boundaries of time and space. August describes the feeling as “under-the-same-moon”—listening to the same song at the same time, even though Jane is on a train that exists in a different era. The radio becomes a bridge, a way for two people who cannot be together in the same moment to share an experience. This is especially poignant because Jane is literally stuck on the Q train, unable to leave the line, while August can move freely. The radio allows them to meet in a liminal space of sound. After Jane's disappearance, the radio takes on a new meaning as a source of comfort and proof. August keeps it on because hearing the songs Jane requested makes her feel that Jane was real, that their love happened. The radio becomes a relic of their relationship, a tangible link to a person who has vanished. When the DJ plays “Love of My Life” with the message “Just in case,” it is a final declaration of love and a promise that Jane will always be with August in some form. The radio thus transforms from a tool of memory to a symbol of hope—hope that Jane might return, and hope that their connection can transcend time. ## Character and Theme Connections The music/radio symbol is deeply tied to August's character arc. August begins the novel as someone who avoids emotional attachment, describing herself as a “scholar” who prefers podcasts about murder to music. Her friendship with Myla introduces her to Joy Division and the idea that music can carry meaning. Through Jane, August learns to embrace vulnerability and connection. The radio ritual forces her to be present, to listen, and to feel—something she initially resists but eventually craves. For Jane, music is a lifeline to her own identity. She is a woman out of time, and her cassettes and songs are the only stable elements of her past. The radio requests allow her to assert agency, to choose what to share with August, and to communicate emotions she struggles to express directly. Myla plays a crucial supporting role: she provides the portable radio and later helps with the plan to free Jane, and her own artistic work—a sculpture that she realizes is a “nerve” of electricity and emotion—mirrors the way music connects people. The symbol also reinforces the novel's themes of time displacement and liminality. The radio broadcasts across time, just as Jane exists in a liminal space between decades. The songs themselves are artifacts of different eras, and the act of listening together creates a shared temporal space. This connects to the theme of memory and identity: music is a way to preserve and reconstruct the self. It also speaks to found family and queer community, as the radio ritual becomes a private language between August and Jane, and later a way for August to feel connected to the broader community of listeners who share the station. Finally, the radio is tied to home and belonging. August's apartment becomes a home when she fills it with a writing desk and a bed, but it becomes a true home when she shares it with Jane. The radio is part of that domesticity—it plays in the background of their life together, and after Jane leaves, it fills the silence. ## Study Questions 1. How does the radio ritual differ from the earlier use of cassettes and songs as memory triggers? The earlier use of music is primarily functional: August plays songs for Jane to help her recover specific memories, like “Oh Girl” or the Runaways track. The radio ritual, by contrast, is a shared, simultaneous experience. Jane requests songs and August listens at the same time, creating a sense of co-presence that transcends their physical separation. It is less about unlocking the past and more about building a present connection. 2. What does the radio symbolize for August after Jane disappears? After Jane vanishes, the radio becomes a source of comfort and proof. August keeps it on constantly, and hearing the songs Jane requested makes her feel that Jane was real and that their love happened. The radio also becomes a symbol of hope—the pre-requested “Love of My Life” suggests that Jane anticipated her own disappearance and wanted to leave August a message of enduring love. 3. How does the radio connect to the theme of time displacement? The radio broadcasts across time, just as Jane exists in a liminal space between decades. The songs themselves are artifacts of different eras, and the act of listening together creates a shared temporal space. The radio allows August and Jane to meet in a moment that is neither fully in the past nor the present, mirroring Jane's own displacement. 4. In what ways does the music/radio symbol reinforce the novel's exploration of queer community and found family? The radio ritual becomes a private language between August and Jane, a way to express love and apology without direct words. It also connects them to a broader community of listeners who share the station, and to the queer history embedded in the songs—like the Runaways, a pioneering all-female rock band, or the protest songs of the 1970s. The act of sharing music becomes a way of building intimacy and belonging, both within their relationship and within a larger cultural lineage.