Brain Damage

As the novel’s protagonist and narrator, Dr. Charlotte (“Charly”) McKenna is a round and dynamic character whose identity is violently fractured and subsequently rebuilt. Before her injury, Charly was a successful dermatologist, defined by her professional competence and financial independence. She lives in a desirable New York City apartment, a self-described “haven,” which represents her one indulgence and the insulated life she has built. Despite her professional success, she harbors deep-seated insecurities about her physical appearance and romantic prospects. She internally criticizes her “short, practical, fine” hair (13) and wishes she could drop “thirty pounds,” anxieties that make her susceptible to external validation. Her initial interactions with Clark Douglas reveal this vulnerability: She’s immediately aware of their perceived difference in attractiveness and dismisses his advances as a joke, believing that men who look like him don’t date women who look like her. This internal conflict between her capable, professional self and her insecure, private self establishes the psychological landscape that Clark later exploits.

The traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the catalyst for Charly’s complete deconstruction and eventual transformation, pushing her from a position of authority to one of utter dependence. Profound cognitive and physical deficits characterize her post-injury experience.