Strange Pictures

“Like they say, ‘Painting is a mirror of the soul,’ and a drawing can often offer valuable insight into the mind of its artist.”

Hagio’s comment to her class in the opening of the Prologue immediately establishes one of the narrative’s central themes: Artistic Creations as an Opaque Window into the Mind. Hagio metaphorically compares art to a mirror that clearly reflects the truth inside its creator. She does not doubt the accuracy with which an interpreter can understand the interior life of an artist simply by looking at the artist’s work. Much later in the narrative, she will have cause to revise this opinion.

“Deep inside Little A’s thorny, aggressive exterior beat a kind heart. If we gave her a chance to interact with animals or small children, we could foster that kindness and possibly overcome her aggressive spirit.”

Hagio suggests that the thorny tree represents Little A’s (Naomi’s) “aggressive exterior” and that the bird nestled in the tree’s hollow represents the child’s desire to nurture and protect. Later events prove that this interpretation is accurate to a point but that the conclusion Hagio draws from the interpretation is badly mistaken. Naomi’s initial crime—the murder of her mother—is motivated by a threat to an animal. Her subsequent murders are all motivated by her desire to be a mother and perceived threats to children she considers her own. In other words, giving her “a chance to interact with animals [and] small children” dangerously increases her aggression, demonstrating The Violent Contradictions of Parental Love.