Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Memory and Meaning
Love and Vulnerability
Freedom
Art, Creativity, and Expression
Wonder and Knowledge
Summary
Analysis
London, England. March 26, 1827. Addie loves the National Gallery. Though she hasn’t found Matteo’s original sketch of her, she sees its influence on The Muse, his masterpiece. Suddenly, Luc is behind her. “How clever you are,” he observes, referring to the painting. Addie hasn’t expected to see him—it’s months before their anniversary. She hadn’t thought that Luc could appear at whim—that his visits were a choice rather than a necessity. But she won’t give in to him. She tells Luc that if he destroys any of her art, she’ll just create more. Luc is unfazed; none of the art matters—because Addie doesn’t matter. Hearing this stings, but Addie has learned not to entertain Luc when he’s in a bad mood.
This scene shows that Addie has had a lasting impact on Matteo. Though her identity has faded from his memory, the idea of her—the way she inspired him—has persisted through the years, clear proof that Luc was right when he claimed that “Ideas are wilder than memories.” That Addie uses art as a vessel to prove this theory highlights art’s power to convey ideas, shape reality, and create meaning. This scene also marks a major development in Addie and Luc’s relationship: she’s starting to entertain the possibility that Luc is choosing to visit her—that he enjoys spending time with her and isn’t simply obligated to pay her visits as part of their deal. Could it be that their relationship has become personal as well as transactional?
Themes
So now, Addie offers that maybe the reason Luc visits her is because he’s lonely. Addie once thought that gods were fearsome, all-powerful creatures, but Luc has taught her that they are just as flawed and insecure as humans. With this, Luc decides to teach Addie a lesson. He drags her with him into the darkness.
Luc’s apparent vulnerability—not to mention his defensive response to Addie calling him out on it—further supports the theory that something romantic is developing between Luc and Addie. Still, Luc’s action to drag Addie into the darkness to teach her a lesson reminds Addie that, however vulnerable, Luc’s supernatural power far exceeds her own, and this uneven distribution of power complicates whatever romance may exist between them.
Themes
Addie emerges to find herself and Luc in a stranger’s bedroom. A man is on the floor, surrounded by sheet music. He is pleading with Luc in German. “Not yet. I need more time.” But Luc ignores the man’s—Beethoven’s—pleas. Instead, Luc morphs into a fearsome monster. Black hair sprouts from his face, and he becomes “the night itself.” Luc orders Beethoven to surrender. Beethoven cries for help, but it’s too late: Luc plunges his hand into Beethoven’s chest and rips out his soul. Beethoven collapses to the floor, dead. For the first time in a long time, Addie feels pure terror. Having taught Addie her lesson, Luc transforms back into a human. Then he pushes lightly at the wall behind Addie. The scene dissolves around them, and Addie is back in England.
Ludwig von Beethoven was a composer of Western classical music. The novel is suggesting that he sold his soul to the devil/the darkness to be able to write his masterpieces. Notably, Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, one of the most widely recognized pieces of classical music, begins with its famous Schicksals-Motiv (fate motif), a recurring four-note motif that symbolizes Fate knocking at one’s door. Luc’s visit to Beethoven to collect his soul seems to allude to this famous motif. Regarding the novel’s thematic development, this scene underscores just how uneven the distribution of power is between Addie and Luc, and how Luc’s superior power underlies every interaction they have with each other.
Themes
