“Native Speaker” by Chang-rae Lee (post 2): Four more clues to the possibility of multiple personality in the protagonist

Extraordinary Memory

The memory gaps of multiple personality—occurring when one personality doesn’t remember what happened when another personality had been in control—may be especially surprising to discover, if you ask a person about this, because persons with multiple personality may, generally, have extraordinarily good memory, as does the protagonist:

“I was always good at memory games, and as a boy I annoyed my father by beating him if he slipped just once. But now…my memory is fantastic, near diabolic. It arrests whatever appears before my eyes. I don’t memorize anymore. I simply see” (1, p. 178).

Mirror Doubles

As discussed in many past posts, persons with multiple personality may sometimes see alternate personalities when they look in a mirror.

“When I was young I’d look in the mirror and address it, as if daring the boy there; I would say something dead and normal, like, ‘Pleased to make your acquaintance,’ and I could barely convince myself that it was I who was talking” (1, p. 180).

“My Alter Identity”

In discussing his work as a spy, in which he would have to use a false identity, the protagonist refers to “my alter identity” (1, p. 181). His use of the word “alter,” the standard abbreviation for alternate personality in the multiple personality literature, raises the possibility that the author had been interested in reading about multiple personality. “My alter identity” suggests he might have been interested in understanding himself.

Inconsistent Life History

One reason to suspect multiple personality is if a person gives an inconsistent life history, which may be due to different personalities remembering things differently.

The protagonist had once spied on a psychoanalyst by becoming his patient. In the course of presenting his life history to the psychoanalyst, “Inconsistencies began to arise in crucial details, all of which I inexplicably confused and alternated” (1, p. 181), which you wouldn’t expect in a person who had an extraordinarily good memory (see above), unless different personalities were telling different stories.

1. Chang-rae Lee. Native Speaker. New York, Riverhead/Penguin, 1995/1996.