“Money” by Martin Amis: Why is protagonist named “John Self”? Why does he have memory gaps (a cardinal symptom of multiple personality)?

“Self” is a synonym for “personality,” as in multiple selves or multiple personalities. Intentionally or inadvertently, the author has named the protagonist his John self or John personality.

John, the first-person narrator, is a movie director, who is in New York to arrange a film. He has been drinking continuously, and mentions on two occasions, in passing, that he has had a “blackout.”

On a third occasion, he is on his way to keep a 9 a.m. breakfast appointment, when he discovers that the time is 9 p.m., and he is twelve hours late.

His reaction to these three episodes is more annoyance than alarm, which implies that memory gaps are nothing new to him. Moreover, since he does not attempt to stop drinking because of these episodes, it is possible that he has had memory gaps even when not intoxicated.

I am only fifty pages into this 363-page novel, and will continue reading.

1. Martin Amis. Money: A Suicide Note [1984]. New York, Penguin Books, 2010.