Chapter summaries Sleepwalk Dan Chaon

Chapter 17 “Oubliette”: Summary, Analysis, and Key Themes

⚠️ 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 still trapped in slow-moving traffic in heavy rain, having advanced only two miles in the hour since his last call with Cammie. He is boxed in between two semis and feels like he is in a pit. When Cammie calls back, he turns on his recorder. She apologizes for the delay. He asks her to describe herself, and she reluctantly gives a rundown: dyed auburn hair, pale freckled skin, a slightly upturned nose, a round face, and a height of five foot three. She claims she has his eyes, which unsettles him. He presses her about her biological mother. Cammie reveals that the egg donor, Rosalie, died by suicide about twenty years ago, hanged in a closet in Baltimore. She explains that she was conceived from Rosalie's egg, carried by a surrogate in Tibet named Poso Pemba, who also died, supposedly by suicide, and then adopted by Marsha, whom she calls her mortal enemy and hopes to see imprisoned. The narrator, trying to provoke a reaction, asks if she might be losing her mind, mentioning his own past breakdown. As they talk, a giant robot drone lumbers past on the interstate, carrying a sign that reads 'DO IT TONIGHT! DON'T WAIT FOR ARMAGEDDON!' Cammie mentions that she has been tracking his location near Nashville and notes flooding in the area. She laughs in a way that echoes his mother's laugh, giving him a mix of warmth and terror, and then disconnects after less than fifteen minutes.

Key Events

  • The narrator remains stuck in traffic for an hour, progressing only two miles.
  • Cammie calls back and he records the conversation.
  • She describes her appearance, including dyed auburn hair and freckles, and says she has his eyes.
  • She reveals that her egg donor, Rosalie, died by suicide in Baltimore about twenty years ago.
  • She explains her conception via Rosalie's egg, a surrogate in Tibet (Poso Pemba) who also died, and adoption by Marsha, whom she hates.
  • The narrator asks if she might be losing her mind, referencing his own past mental breakdown.
  • A large robot drone passes by on the interstate, carrying a sign.
  • Cammie reveals she has been tracking his location near Nashville and mentions flooding.
  • She laughs like his mother and disconnects after under fifteen minutes.

Character Development

The narrator continues to display a calculating, defensive personality. He records the call and deliberately tries to provoke a range of vocalizations, believing that the 'music' of a person's intonations reveals more than their words. This shows his manipulative approach and his need to control the interaction. He also reveals a vulnerability: he admits he lost his mind when he was about Cammie's age, though he claims he 'escaped.' His reaction to Cammie's laugh—which he initially dismissed as a trick of his mind but still feels deeply—shows how his past and his mother's memory continue to haunt him.

Cammie, for her part, shifts between a nervous, coltish tone and a harder, more icy one. Her hatred for Marsha is unmistakable, and she describes her adoptive mother as a 'mortal enemy' she hopes to imprison. She also distances herself from the other women in her origin story, rejecting the term 'biological' and emphasizing that 'there's nothing biological about any of this.' This suggests she is constructing her own identity, possibly in opposition to the women who failed her, and seeking a connection with the narrator as her only remaining parent.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

  • Oubliette: The narrator compares the traffic jam to a medieval dungeon where the only exit is above, a barred manhole. This symbolizes his feeling of being trapped—physically in the storm, emotionally in the conversation, and perhaps in his own past.
  • Identity and genetic vs. biological family: Cammie's complicated lineage—egg donor, surrogate, adoptive mother—raises questions about what makes a family. She rejects the term 'biological' and seems to be searching for a different kind of connection.
  • Manipulation and trust: The narrator's recording and probing questions, and Cammie's evasiveness and tracking, highlight the mutual suspicion and manipulation in their relationship.
  • Surveillance and tracking: Cammie reveals she has been tracking the narrator's location, which unsettles him and underscores the theme of being watched.
  • Mental illness and escape: The narrator's admission of a past breakdown and his claim that he 'escaped' suggests a recurring motif of mental instability and the desire to break free.
  • Imaginary daughter: Cammie suggests she could be his 'imaginary daughter,' a term the narrator rejects, but the idea lingers as a symbol of his uncertainty about her reality.
  • Emotions as bodily: The narrator reflects that emotions are 'cooked into the elder parts of our brain' and are part of our bodies, suggesting that feelings are not easily dismissed.
  • Robot drone: The giant robot drone, with its cartoon cat head and sign about Armageddon, represents technology out of control and the absurdity of the world around them.
  • Storm and flooding: The heavy rain and flooding serve as a backdrop of danger and instability, mirroring the emotional turbulence of the conversation.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter deepens the central mystery of Cammie's identity and her connection to the narrator. It provides crucial backstory about Rosalie's death and the unusual circumstances of Cammie's conception, while also revealing the narrator's own past mental illness. The chapter also introduces the theme of surveillance, as Cammie admits to tracking his location, and it heightens the tension between them. The image of the oubliette and the robot drone reinforce the sense of entrapment and a world spinning out of control, setting the stage for the next phase of their relationship.

Study Questions and Answers

  1. How does the narrator's use of recording and his focus on vocal intonations reflect his approach to the conversation?
    He records the call and tries to provoke a range of vocalizations, believing that the 'music' of a person's intonations reveals more than their words. This shows his manipulative, analytical approach and his desire to control the interaction.

  2. What does Cammie's description of her family history reveal about her motivations?
    She describes a chain of mothers—egg donor, surrogate, adoptive—all of whom she distances herself from, except Marsha, whom she hates and wants imprisoned. This suggests she is seeking a connection with her biological father (the narrator) and may be driven by anger and a desire for revenge.

  3. How does the image of the oubliette relate to the narrator's situation?
    The narrator compares the traffic jam to a medieval dungeon where the only exit is above, a barred manhole. This reflects his feeling of being trapped, both physically in the storm and emotionally in the conversation with Cammie, from which he cannot easily escape.

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