Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Gone Girl, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Secrets and Lies
Marriage
Misogyny
Writing, Storytelling, and Narrative
Summary
Analysis
Amy ecstatically declares herself “a happy, busy bumblebee of marital enthusiasm.” She is shocked by her ecstatic transformation into a wife, and though she slightly laments the forfeiture of her “Independent Young Feminist” identity, she says she truly doesn’t care—she is just too happy to be married to Nick Dunne. Nick has helped Amy to put her life into perspective and see that the little things don’t matter—all that matters is their love, and the fact that they have found one another.
Nick and Amy’s life together as a married couple is blissful, fun, and uncomplicated. They do things like drive to Delaware to have sex, simply because neither of them have ever had sex in the state of Delaware. They live in a large, gorgeous Brooklyn brownstone that Amy’s parents purchased for them, and spend time decorating the space with knick-knacks and trinkets. One night, as they relax in their cozy living room, Nick tells Amy that he is living the life he always imagined.
As Amy paints a portrait of her happy, carefree marriage, it’s impossible to tell what’s fact and what’s fiction. Her idyllic portrait of marital bliss has an undercurrent of imbalance and blame: she seems to be suggesting that Nick was happiest when they were rich, setting up their long slide into financial ruin and misery.
Themes
As their one-year anniversary approaches, Amy constructs a scavenger hunt filled with clues to celebrate their traditions and inside jokes. She plans for the treasure hunt to take them on a “grand tour of New York,” culminating in a lobster dinner, an exchange of gifts, and sex on the living-room floor. Amy writes that she thinks everyone who says marriage is difficult is absolutely ridiculous.
There are some parts of Amy’s tale of wedded bliss that ring true, but even the happiest memories and grandest traditions she creates are laced with the sense that she’s leading Nick along, pulling him towards something.
Themes
