Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in I Am the Messenger, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Circumstance vs. Choice
Heroism, Sainthood, and Ordinariness
Purpose, Success, and Meaning
Hope, Caring, and Beauty
Summary
Analysis
Ed wants to tell the reader about his life. He plays cards with his friends a few times a week. His friends are Marv, who never shuts up, Ritchie, who is quiet and has an awful tattoo, and Audrey, who is beautiful and also a cabdriver like Ed. Before Ed describes himself, he explains that at the age of 19, Bob Dylan and Salvador Dalí had begun their groundbreaking careers and Joan of Arc was already leading a revolution. Ed at 19 is just an underaged cabdriver.
Ed’s comparisons of himself to famous figures express a view of success that depends upon an individual’s fame and career prospects relative to their age. By this definition, only a few historical figures could be considered successful. Because Ed believes this very narrow definition is the only marker of a successful life, he views himself as a failure.
Themes
Ed became a cab driver because Audrey was one, and Ed is in love with Audrey. She does not love him back, however, and he constantly questions his life and his lack of accomplishments. Whenever he tries to talk about his insecurities with his friends or his Ma, they all dismiss him.
Ed’s loved ones’ dismissal of his concerns suggests that not everyone shares his incredibly high bar for success, and that there are other options for defining personal meaning.
Themes
Ed rents a cheap shack for a house. He works for a sketchy taxi company that didn’t question him when he lied about his age. His describes his suburban town as average, with good and bad neighborhoods. He grew up in one of the bad neighborhoods. Ed stayed in his childhood home until his younger brother, Tommy, left for college. Ed was too lazy to get accepted into college, so now he drives a cab.
Ed’s description of his bad community suggests that he believes the circumstances one grows up in influence their future success. He also speaks of laziness as if it is an inherent trait beyond his control. This suggests that he believes individuals are set up by fate to be either successful or unsuccessful.
Themes
Ed’s one roommate is a 17-year-old named the Doorman who spends all day warming his fur in front of the door. The Doorman is an incredibly smelly mutt who used to belong to Ed’s father, before his father died six months ago. The dog’s happiness at simple things like sunbathing makes Ed happy. Ed knows he’ll be sad when the dog finally dies.
Ed’s dependency upon his dog suggests a lack of human connection in his life, suggesting that when one is as pessimistic and preoccupied as Ed, they struggle to connect with others. Meanwhile, the happiness the dog brings Ed suggests that if one looks for the positive elements in life, they will feel more optimistic.
Themes
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Ed’s other possessions include a TV and a family photo. The photo shows Ed’s Ma, his father, his two sisters, and his younger brother. Only half the people in the photo are smiling. Ed describes his father as a kind and reserved man who was also a lonely and lazy alcoholic. He was a furniture delivery man who died from liver failure. Ed’s brother, Tommy, is in college in the city. His two sisters, Leigh and Katherine, have also moved to the city, leaving Ed the only sibling still in town.
The fact that Ed is lonely and lazy like his father, who lived a short and unsuccessful life, further emphasizes the idea that Ed is doomed to be unsuccessful due to some inherent quality. However, Ed’s siblings rose above their circumstances, exposing a flaw in Ed’s argument that his life is predetermined by his family or his town.
Themes
Ed has dark hair and an average build. He likes to walk the Doorman around town or to his father’s grave. He imagines Audrey walking beside him. Unlike Dylan or Dalí, he has accomplished nothing and enjoys spending his time playing cards and driving his taxi from the city to the town.
Ed indulges in fantasy as he imagines dating Audrey, suggesting that it is not a lack of motivation or imagination holding Ed back, but instead a lack of action.
Themes
Ed restates that he is hopelessly in love with Audrey. Audrey, on the other hand, is busy having sex with many people who are not Ed. She tells Ed she won’t have sex with him because she likes him too much. Ed is too shy to make a move on her anyway, because he knows from past relationships that he is horrible at sex. He wishes sex were like math, where he could openly admit being horrible at it, but instead society expects men to be good at sex.
Ed’s lamentation at not being good at sex, when society supposedly expects men to be good at sex, shows how he views himself as a failure because he does not live up to society’s expectations. Meanwhile, Audrey’s comments about how she likes Ed too much to have sex with him shows how she views sex and intimacy as completely separate.
Themes
Audrey comes over to Ed’s home whenever she feels sad. They drink and watch movies together until she falls asleep. Ed knows she comes from an abusive family, which is why she refuses to let herself love anyone. Ed longs to be with her anyway.
Ed views Audrey’s current problems with personal relationships as controlled by her past family circumstances. He also views their connection as somehow lacking because they do not have sex, which he views as a symbol of a successful relationship.
Themes
