Leah Stein answers “Am I the only numb nuts that didn't get...”

Angie Annetts asked this question about The Vegetarian:

Am I the only numb nuts that didn't get the ending?

Leah Stein I don't think there's a clear thing to "get" here. It's purposely open for interpretation, while it's also a very open ending; we don't know what happ…moreI don't think there's a clear thing to "get" here. It's purposely open for interpretation, while it's also a very open ending; we don't know what happens next. But the story, I felt, was more of an allegory than the character's story, and they were used to portray a certain conflict that exists within all humans. In part 1 we see the process of one giving in to a deep calling within themselves, one they can't quite put into words. In part 2 we see a more 'wrong' side of that giving in to our animalistic, or primitive, desires - when it affects those around us and harms them. And finally in part 3, I felt like the sister was much like the reader, trying to piece the two parts together and begin self-reflection. How much can I relate to these characters who have succumbed to their impulses? Are they 'wrong' just because they don't act as society says they should? Should we suppress our deepest desires? Is that a life worth living? There is also a big question about responsibility, I felt, how the sister confesses that she also has these crazy ideas sometimes, and she has had suicidal thoughts in the past, but in the end, she didn't act upon these feelings or impulses. And that's why I think the ending is left hanging - kinda feels like mid-sentence almost - because there is a big question here and it doesn't have an answer. Each of us can answer for ourselves. This book is like a case study at the beginning of an interesting debate, in my opinion.(less)

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