51 pages • 1-hour read
The Lady in the Lake
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Symbols & Motifs
Hair
An important motif that develops the theme of Identity and Deception is hair, specifically the hair color of women who live in southern California. There are many women with blond hair who can be mistaken for one another. In Kingsley’s life, his telephone operator is a “blonde,” and is only referred to by her hair color, and his wife Crystal is a blond. The Mildred/Muriel character has blond hair and is mistaken for Crystal. When Bill Chess and Marlowe discover the corpse in the lake, the only identifiable feature is the long, blond hair. Marlowe describes the moment of discovery: “I saw a wave of dark blond hair straighten out in the water and hold still for a brief instant as if with a calculated effect, and then swirl into a tangle again” (40). The blond hair moves around dramatically in the water, taking on a life of its own, while the body’s decomposition in the water has erased any other identifying features. The corpse’s “watersoaked blond hair like his wife’s hair and almost no recognizable face” (207) causes Chess to identify the corpse as Muriel, when it is actually Crystal. This image literalizes the sexist objectification of women that pervades the world of the novel, in which young, blond women are treated as interchangeable.
Brown hair is also part of the theme of Identity and Deception. When Mildred contacts Kingsley for money, pretending to be Crystal, she changes her hair color. After talking to Mildred on the phone, Fromsett says, “She’s dyed her hair dark brown” (159). Fromsett has brown hair as well, but it seems to be her natural color. On Fromsett, brown hair represents her beauty and is associated with her being intelligent and ethical. When Marlowe meets Mildred in her disguise as Crystal, he notes that she is “A girl with a clear empty face and dark brown hair that had been blonde” (173). The hair color is noteworthy as a change, unlike Fromsett’s consistent brown hair. In contrast with the women in the novel, Marlowe himself has many gray hairs. His hair changes, in that it gets more gray over the course of Raymond Chandler’s series, and he doesn’t dye it.
Memory
Memory and its limits function as a motif throughout the novel. Marlowe is continuously aware of the fallibility of memory: People who are lying remember too much; recalling too many details suggests that the story is not a genuine memory but a work of imagination. On the other hand, Marlowe believes people are honest when they admit to not remembering every little detail.
Marlowe mentions a lack of memory as a positive thing when he talks to a hotel employee, Les, about Crystal. Les saw her outfit and bags when she checked into the hotel. The bags “had initials on them but I’m sorry I can’t remember the initials” (77). Marlowe replies, “I’m glad you can’t […] It would be too good” (77). It would be too convenient, like a setup, if Les remembered such a small detail—one set of bags from a large number of guests. If someone is being framed, supposed witnesses “remember” the specific details that will convict them.
When Marlowe shows Kingsley a gun that may have belonged to Crystal, Kingsley isn’t sure if it is Crystal’s gun and doesn’t remember the serial number of the gun she did own. He says, “Nobody remembers the serial numbers of guns” (98), and Marlowe replies, “I was hoping you wouldn’t […] It would have worried me very much” (98). It would be very odd and suspicious if Kingsley had the serial number memorized. Marlowe believes Kingsley is telling the truth because he doesn’t remember a long string of random numbers.
There is one innocent person who remembers so much that it could be considered suspicious: Adrienne Fromsett. When she is able to relay a long conversation, she worries that it will make her seem like a liar. Fromsett tells Marlowe, “If you think I remember it too well, it’s part of my job to remember conversations” (108). As Kingsley’s assistant, the person who takes his calls, she has to remember details that other people who are not in her position may forget.
Memory also comes up in a conversation between Patton and Andy. They argue about how long ago the solitary murder they investigated in Little Fawn Lake took place. In other words, the two men remember the same event differently. This is a testament to the fallibility of human memory. To be able to recall a large number of details with complete certainty is unnatural.
Scarf
Marlowe uses Kingsley’s scarf as a tool of misdirection to trick Degarmo. The scarf’s bold, unique pattern makes it impossible to mistake for any other scarf, symbolizing the human individuality that both Degarmo and Mildred seek to erase by making one identity interchangeable with another. The scarf is “an affair of fat green kidneys laid down on an egg yolk background” (159). Kingsley gives it to Marlowe so Crystal (that is, Mildred in disguise as Crystal) can identify him. It is a very distinctive scarf. Later, Marlowe shows Degarmo the scarf, offering it as a piece of evidence from the scene of Crystal/Mildred’s murder that proves Kingsley is the killer. Degarmo remarks on its distinctiveness: “You wouldn’t forget that too quick” (184) and believes Marlowe suspects that Kingsley is the murderer. Later, Marlowe reveals his lie of omission: “I might have added that I had later worn the scarf myself” (205). By withholding this information, Marlowe keeps Degarmo’s violence pointed away from him and toward Kingsley. Shortly after Marlowe admits this, and that he knows Degarmo is the killer, Degarmo is killed by a military sentry at the Puma Lake dam.
Anklet
Mildred’s anklet is a symbol of her true identity and develops the theme of Identity and Deception. Marlowe describes this piece of jewelry in terms of its permanence: “the chain is an anklet. Some women never take them off, like wedding rings” (67). When Patton initially finds the anklet, he only finds the chain, not the charm. Marlowe later finds the missing charm, a “little gold heart” (71). It has the inscription “Al to Mildred” (71). This helps Marlowe realize that Muriel (whose cabin the anklet is hidden in) is the same person as Mildred, and Muriel is just a disguise. Marlowe later learns that Degarmo’s first name is Al, and this charm represents the marriage between Degarmo and Mildred. A metal chain worn around the ankle, the anklet evokes images of shackles, chaining Mildred to the true identity she has sought to escape.
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