The Life Impossible: Chapter 87 – Islands Don’t Exist
⚠️ 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
In this reflective and spiritually charged chapter, the narrator looks back on their former sense of isolation, describing themselves as an “island.” Now, thanks to the influence of Christina and La Presencia, they understand that no true islands exist. Geographically, Ibiza and Lincoln are connected by the same earth; mentally and emotionally, all beings merge and converge. The boundaries we perceive—gender, age, nationality, even species—are imaginary. Feelings such as love, fear, grief, guilt, and forgiveness are universal standards that everyone experiences, like “cover versions” of the same song. Loneliness arises not from actual separation but from blind spots to these connections. The narrator concludes that the purpose of life is simply to live as part of all life and to care for others. Therefore, one must act: accept invitations, send emails, share one’s authentic truth. The chapter ends with a vivid metaphor: “To swim in the ocean, we sometimes have to make a splash.”
Key Events
- The narrator experiences a profound shift in perspective, realizing that “there are no islands.”
- They explicitly credit Christina and La Presencia as the catalysts for this breakthrough.
- The narrator articulates a vision of universal interconnectedness that cuts across geography, mind, emotion, and even species (cockroaches are included).
- They reframe loneliness as a form of blindness and propose that deliberate action—such as accepting an invitation to Ibiza or contacting a lonely old maths teacher—is the remedy.
- The chapter echoes the book’s broader themes, using the ocean as a metaphor for the unity of life.
Character Development
The protagonist (narrator): This chapter marks the climax of the narrator’s internal evolution. Earlier in the story, they felt isolated and cut off, like a solitary island. Now they have fully internalized the lesson that separation is an illusion. Their identity expands beyond the personal to encompass all life. The narrator’s voice shifts from one of introspection to one of conviction and shared truth.
Christina and La Presencia: Although they do not appear directly in the chapter, they are acknowledged as essential guides. Christina likely represents human friendship and compassion, while La Presencia embodies a spiritual or natural force that reveals deeper realities. Together, they have led the narrator to this transformative understanding.
The lonely old maths teacher: Mentioned only as an example of someone to reach out to, this figure symbolizes the broader community of isolated individuals whom connection can save. The chapter implies that the narrator themselves may have once been such a person.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Interconnectedness: The central theme. All life is joined beneath the surface. The phrase “no islands” directly counters the common metaphor of loneliness.
- The Illusion of Separation: The chapter dismantles boundaries between people, places, and species. The “walls between us” are called imaginary.
- Action as Connection: Inaction breeds loneliness; active reaching out—making a “splash”—is necessary to remember our unity.
- The Ocean as Symbol: The ocean represents the vast, continuous whole of existence. To swim in it requires courage and effort, but it is the only way to truly live.
- Universal Emotions: Love, fear, grief, guilt, forgiveness are presented as a shared repertoire, emphasizing that no feeling is unique to one person.
Why This Chapter Matters
Chapter 87 is the philosophical heart of The Life Impossible. It synthesizes the novel’s core message: that genuine connection with others—and with life itself—is the antidote to isolation and despair. The narrator’s journey from an “island” to a being who sees the underlying web of existence mirrors the reader’s potential transformation. This chapter also provides a practical takeaway: when you feel alone, you must do something to reconnect. It validates the emotional and relational risks the narrator has taken throughout the book and offers a hopeful, unifying vision. Without this chapter, the novel’s deeper meaning would remain implicit; here it is stated with clarity and passion.
Study Questions and Answers
1. What does the narrator mean by “I had been an island,” and how does the chapter refute that idea?
The narrator previously felt completely isolated from others, as if they existed alone and self-contained, like an island separated by water. The chapter refutes this by asserting that everything—land, people, minds, emotions—is connected under the surface. There are no real islands because all life shares the same continuum. The loneliness the narrator felt was not actual separation but a failure to perceive these deep connections.
2. How do Christina and La Presencia contribute to the narrator’s realization?
Although they do not speak or act within this chapter, the narrator explicitly states that it is “thanks to Christina and La Presencia” that they now see the truth. Christina likely provided a human bond of friendship and trust, while La Presencia may represent a transcendent or natural force that opened the narrator’s awareness. Together, they function as catalysts, moving the narrator from intellectual understanding to lived experience of interconnectedness.
3. According to this chapter, what action must people take to overcome loneliness?
The chapter argues that passivity reinforces loneliness. When we feel truly alone, we must actively do something to “remember how we connect.” Specific actions include accepting an invitation (the narrator presumably did this to go to Ibiza), sending an email to someone who seems lonely (like the old maths teacher), or sharing one’s own “ridiculous truth.” The final metaphor—“make a splash”—emphasizes that reconnection requires deliberate, sometimes uncomfortable effort. The point is not to remain in a shell but to enter the shared ocean of life.