The Revenant as Copy: Identity and Mourning in Summer Sons
The Revenant as a Distorted Copy of Eddie Fulton
In Summer Sons, the revenant that haunts Andrew Blur is not Eddie Fulton returned from the dead. It is a copy—a spectral remnant that mimics Eddie’s form, voice, and memories, but operates as a hungry, jealous, and manipulative entity. The novel uses this copy to interrogate what survives death and what does not. Andrew’s grief is complicated because he must learn to distinguish the authentic Eddie he loved from the distorted reproduction that wears Eddie’s face. The thematic claim is that mourning requires letting go of the copy, not clinging to it, because the copy is a perversion of the person, not the person himself.
The revenant first appears in the opening chapter as a spectral figure in the driver’s seat of Eddie’s Challenger. It touches Andrew’s wrist, leaving frost-burn blisters—a physical mark that signals the copy’s invasive, harmful nature. This is the third visitation in fifteen days, establishing that the copy is persistent and escalating. The car itself, a symbol of Eddie’s identity and the site of his death, becomes the copy’s preferred stage. The revenant does not speak or comfort; it only touches, burns, and later forces Andrew to relive Eddie’s final moments. This initial encounter frames the copy as a source of pain, not solace.
The copy’s distortion becomes explicit in Chapter 12, when the revenant drags Andrew into a forced memory of Eddie’s death. Andrew experiences the agony of the knife cutting into Eddie’s forearm, the blood spilling, and Eddie’s desperate attempt to reach out with his power. The narrative emphasizes the doubling: “Eddie’s forearm, he knew without thought, Eddie’s wrist, without question.” The copy forces Andrew to inhabit Eddie’s body, but it is a body that is “not his.” This memory is not a faithful reproduction; it is a weaponized replay designed to make Andrew feel guilt and responsibility. The copy uses Eddie’s authentic trauma to manipulate Andrew, twisting grief into self-blame. The revenant’s accusation is implicit: if Andrew had been there, Eddie might have lived. This is not the voice of a loving friend; it is the voice of a jealous remnant that wants to consume Andrew’s attention and energy.
The copy’s hunger becomes unmistakable in Chapter 26, when Andrew, overwhelmed by loneliness, deliberately eases his control over the power inside him to summon the revenant. He sits on Eddie’s bed, and the ghost settles spine to spine with him, but the encounter quickly turns violent. The copy invites Andrew to give more, and when Andrew puts on Eddie’s ring—a symbol of their bond—the ring throbs with brutal power, and the revenant seizes control of Andrew’s body. Andrew’s arm lifts without his consent, his heartbeat stutters, and he hears a toneless repetition: “come home I’ll be waiting.” The copy is not Eddie; it is a starving, jealous entity that wants to possess Andrew entirely. The ring, which Andrew hoped would be a keepsake, becomes a conduit for the copy’s aggression. This scene demonstrates the central contradiction: the copy carries Eddie’s memories and even his ring, but it is not Eddie. It is a hollow imitation that feeds on Andrew’s grief.
The climax of the novel forces Andrew to confront the copy directly. In Chapter 29, Jane Troth reveals that she killed Eddie to steal his power, but the power passed to Andrew instead. She forces Andrew to swallow a ritual paste and cuts his forearms, attempting to unite Eddie’s revenant with him. Andrew resists until Mark threatens Sam, then releases his resistance, and the revenant fully possesses him. In this merged state, Andrew animates Mark’s corpse and consumes Troth’s power—an act that is both monstrous and necessary. The copy, now fully inside Andrew, is indistinguishable from him for a moment. But afterward, in Chapter 31, Andrew makes a deliberate choice to separate himself from the copy. He uses a ring Riley took from Sam’s house to transfer Eddie’s ghost into the band, says goodbye, and throws it into a sinkhole. This act is the culmination of the theme: Andrew recognizes that the copy is not Eddie, and he must release it to mourn the real person. The sinkhole, a recurring symbol of the cavern where Eddie and Andrew’s bond was forged, becomes the grave for the copy, allowing Andrew to begin healing.
The complexity of the copy lies in its dual nature. It is both a faithful record of Eddie’s memories and a distorted, hungry entity. The copy can replay Eddie’s death with visceral accuracy, but it also lies, manipulates, and seeks to possess. Andrew’s struggle is to hold onto the authentic Eddie—the boy who protected him, who shared secrets, who left him a house and a fortune—while rejecting the copy that wears his face. The matching wrist tattoos, which Andrew and Eddie share, symbolize their connection, but the copy’s touch leaves blisters and cuts, perverting that bond. The Challenger, once a source of joy and speed, becomes a trap where the copy manifests. The ring, meant to signify eternal love, becomes a tool of control. These symbols are all corrupted by the copy, forcing Andrew to redefine what they mean.
The novel ultimately suggests that mourning is not about preserving a perfect replica of the dead, but about accepting the loss and moving forward. Andrew’s final act—throwing the ring into the sinkhole—is a rejection of the copy and an embrace of the real Eddie’s memory. He tells Sam he wants to do better, and Sam asks him to prove it. The copy is gone, but Eddie’s influence remains in Andrew’s choices. The theme of the revenant as copy thus becomes a meditation on identity and survival: what survives death is not a person but a legacy, and that legacy must be shaped by the living, not by a ghost’s hunger.
Study Questions and Answers
1. How does the revenant’s behavior in the opening chapters establish it as a copy rather than Eddie himself?
The revenant appears as a spectral figure that touches Andrew’s wrist, leaving frost-burn blisters, and later forces Andrew to relive Eddie’s death. It does not speak or offer comfort; it only inflicts pain and manipulates Andrew’s guilt. This behavior is inconsistent with the Eddie Andrew knew, who was protective and loyal. The copy’s actions are invasive and harmful, signaling that it is a distorted remnant, not the original person.
2. What role does the Challenger play in the copy’s manifestations?
The Challenger is the site of Eddie’s death and the copy’s preferred stage. In Chapter 1, the revenant appears in the driver’s seat; in Chapter 20, it manifests in the garage while Andrew is in the car, and later in the trunk, forcing Andrew to experience Eddie’s final moments. The car becomes a symbol of the copy’s attachment to the trauma of death, and Andrew must learn to separate the car’s value as a memory from its role as a conduit for the copy.
3. How does the forced memory of Eddie’s death in Chapter 12 complicate Andrew’s mourning?
The memory makes Andrew feel responsible for Eddie’s death, as the copy implies that if Andrew had been present, Eddie might have survived. This guilt complicates mourning because Andrew must process not only the loss but also the false accusation. The copy uses Eddie’s authentic trauma to manipulate Andrew, turning grief into self-blame. Andrew must recognize that the memory is a weapon, not a truth, to move forward.
4. What does the ring symbolize in the context of the copy?
The ring, which Eddie wore and Andrew later puts on, symbolizes their bond and Andrew’s desire to hold onto Eddie. However, when Andrew wears it, the ring becomes a conduit for the copy’s power, nearly killing him. The ring’s corruption shows that objects associated with the dead can become tools of the copy, and that clinging to them can be dangerous. Andrew ultimately uses the ring to transfer the copy into it and then discards it, reclaiming the symbol as a means of release rather than possession.
5. Why does Andrew choose to throw the ring into the sinkhole, and what does this act signify?
Andrew throws the ring into the sinkhole after transferring Eddie’s ghost into it, saying goodbye. This act signifies his rejection of the copy and his acceptance of Eddie’s death. The sinkhole, which recalls the cavern where Andrew and Eddie’s bond was formed, becomes a grave for the copy, allowing Andrew to mourn the real Eddie without the distortion of the revenant. It is a deliberate choice to let go of the past and begin healing, as evidenced by his subsequent desire to do better and his tentative new relationship with Sam.