The Friend

The narrator meets Wife One, who lives abroad. While studying together, they had described themselves as a “literary Manson family” (75), who held their teacher in the highest possible esteem. The narrator tells Wife One about the “loss of conviction in the purpose of fiction” (76) the deceased man found in later life. The internet allowed him to view the opinions of many readers, many of whom misread or misinterpreted his work. He became “dismayed by the ubiquity of careless reading” (78). Wife One says “oh dear.”

Wife One and the narrator discuss Apollo. Wife One cannot believe that “they dumped a monster like that on you” (79), but the narrator cannot bear the thought that the large dog is unwanted. The narrator has the feeling that “if I don’t keep him something bad will happen” (81). She acknowledges the connection between her feelings for the deceased friend and her new dog, wondering whether she will “wake up one morning to find [Apollo] gone and [her friend] in his place” (81).

Hector feels bad that he reported the narrator to the landlord. A second warning has come and gone. The narrator tries not to leave the dog alone and feels anxious when she does.