Analyzing the Power Dynamics at Play Within No One’s a Mystery

Within No One’s a Mystery, Elizabeth Tallent chronicles the relationship between a young girl at the ripe age of 18 and an older married man by the name of Jack. While the story may only be a few pages long, the piece is narrated in such a way that the reader is able to entirely visualize the relationship that is being painted between the two characters, not a word being wasted. Tallent uses first-person narration, metaphorical or symbolic language, characterization, parallels, and repetition to drive home the narrative that the story is attempting to portray, this being: the differing power dynamics at play.

The story revolves around three main characters; the unnamed 18-year-old girl, Jack, and his wife, who also remains nameless. Tallent chooses to only name Jack in order to make it that much more apparent who holds power within this text. This power Jack has is further reiterated within the first few lines when Tallent says, “...he thought he saw his wife’s Cadillac in the distance, coming toward us. He pushed me down onto the dirty floor of the pickup and kept one hand on my head while I inhaled the musk of his cigarettes in the dashboard ashtray..” (Tallent 1). Here, it is apparent that there is a seemingly unhealthy power dynamic between Jack and the young girl that she is not yet aware of. The way that Jack is so quickly able to push the girl's head down with little resistance shows his true intentions in the relationship, wanting to have fun with this girl but wanting no one else to know nor wanting to label their relationship. Yet, there is another power dynamic at play as well, this being the power Jack’s wife holds over him. While the young girl is painted as naive and innocent, thinking that her relationship with Jack has a future, the wife is painted in a rather negative and irritating light, seemingly unaware of the fact that her husband has been cheating on her. The power dynamics created in this story are very much dependent on both gender and age, yet who holds power is continuously changing within this story between the three characters. While Jack may have physical power, which he exerts, the young girl holds some aspect of psychological power over Jack, and finally, the wife is able to lord some sort of cerebral power over Jack that we do not fully understand. These power dynamics are set up quickly within the piece and foreshadow what will follow in the story moving forward.

Tallent tells the story from the point of view of a first-person narrator this being, a naive 18-year-old girl in the past tense. Through the use of first-person narration, Tallent can call upon the reader to realize the truth behind the characters’ relationship that the young girl is unable to see with her own eyes. Her love for Jack blinding her of his lack of reciprocity but also of any and all common sense. By utilizing first-person narration, it sets the tone for the piece to create a much more intimate setting for the narrator and the reader, giving you the sense that you are in the room with the narrator while they are telling you their story as if you are able to provide the narrator with advice or feedback - this is the relationship Tallent creates. The reader feels this need to tell the young girl that this relationship is ‘wrong’ or how evident the power Jack looms over her is, yet you are unable to do so. This feeling that the author incites causes the reader to be somewhat frustrated that they cannot communicate with the young girl. Thus as the story progresses, the narrator can initiate a dialogue within the reader. Tallent chooses to use first-person narration over any other form of point of view because it allows for the text to be more accessible to the reader while also allowing for the reader to be placed inside of the narrator's mind, creating an immediate connection between the reader and the narrator and an intimate portrayal of the narrator’s emotions. Through this medium, the narrator is able to more effectively communicate every scene, from the sights and sounds to the expressions of love and hope. First-person narration is the most effective way to invoke empathy in the reader, which Tallent is attempting to do in this work.

Tallent’s use of metaphorical language further reiterates the ideas of power dynamics and the weakness of their relationship within the text that I mentioned earlier. For example, when Tallent uses the phrase “light as a dime” in reference to the birthday gift that Jack gives her, it can be interpreted as means to describe their relationship, shallow and short-lived not worth much more to Jack than the cheap diary, which he gifts her. Tallent then goes onto say, “I was sitting beside him scratching at the lock, which didn’t seem to want to work…” (Tallent 1). This line is even more powerful and symbolic of a bigger picture. The scratching of the lock representing the young girl’s attempts to gain Jack’s love, locked away from her. But the tackiness of this lock makes the reader question if his love is genuinely even worth it. Moreover, this concept of a lock and key that is brought forth is reminiscent of the title, No One’s a Mystery, every person being compared to a lock with their own personal key, no one is a mystery because everyone can be read or ‘opened’ if the right key were to come along. Moving forward in the story, Tallent uses more symbolic language in order further drive home the age gap between Jack and the young girl when Tallent says, “I knelt on my side of the seat and craned around to look at the butterfly of dust printed on my jeans.” (Tallent 2). Here it is driven home even harder how young this girl is. The butterfly dust is meant to symbolize the purity and innocence of an 18-year-old girl, still bright-eyed and bushy-tailed with her whole life in front of her. Seemingly being dragged down by the relationship between her and Jack. By utilizing this language amongst the metaphorical language, I described earlier, Tallent is able to drive a wedge between the characters, distinguishing them to the reader as different aspects of people in real-life scenarios. Thus reaching towards her goal of describing the differing power dynamics at play can be compared to modern-day power dynamics between your average man and woman.

This wedge that Tallent creates between the characters brings me to the developing characterization she utilizes within this piece. Because Tallent is attempting to paint this overarching picture of power dynamics between men and women, her characterization is vital to supporting this theme. One of the most potent tools Tallent uses is contrast by characterization; this is riddled throughout the writing from beginning to end. The first instance of this is when Jack is talking negatively about his wife, saying, “Why does she need to be safer? She’s driving exactly fifty-five miles per hour.” (Tallent 1). Then Tallent goes onto say, “...he was driving easily eighty miles an hour.” (Tallent 1). So much can be read into this scene through the comparison of the wife’s speed to Jack’s speed without any more needing to be said. The differences between how the two drive shows the cautiousness and carefulness of the wife in contrast to the recklessness of Jack. Jack is meant to be painted in this light, so he becomes even more villainized; now, Jack is not only cheating on his wife but also going far above the speed limit, both of these become character clues that the reader takes note of. From here, even more, contrasts are made to paint Jack in such a light, the next arising between the young girl and Jack when Tallent states, “There are about a hundred pop tops on the floor, did you know that? Some little kid could cut a barefoot on one of these Jack.” (Tallent 1). Then Jack goes on to say, “No little kids get into this truck except for you.” (Tallent 1). This interaction between Jack and the girl urges the reader to villainize Jack even more. Once again, Jack capitalizes on the unhealthy power dynamic that persists within his relationship with the girl, merely dismissing her as a child. On the contrary, she is painted as even more innocent and naive, reiterating the characterization that Tallent has built up for her. Overall developmental characterization plays a significant role in Tallent’s ability to forge power dynamics and distinguish her characters as either ‘powerful’ or ‘weak.’

The last way that Tallent is able to create such a meaningful and powerful piece in such a short amount of words is through the use of parallels and repetition. One of the instances of this that stood out to me the most was when Jack and the girl are discussing what she will write in the diary, ‘“How do you know?” “I just know,” he said. “Like I know I’m going to get meatloaf for supper. It’s in the air. Like I know what you’ll be writing in that diary.”’(Tallent 2). Here Tallent utilizes the repetition of the word ‘know’ to transition into the new theme surrounding the diary more powerfully. In doing this, she further pushes this power dynamic, Jack acting as though he knows more about the girl than she knows about herself, talking down to her as if she knows nothing. A dynamic we often see in relationships in real life and one that is repeatedly brought forth in this work. We see a similar technique used later in the text; however, a parallel structure is brought forth along with the repetition this time. The parallel structures begin with the repetition of the opening lines of three paragraphs of dialogue when Jack says, “Tonight you’ll write…”, “In a year you’ll write…”, “In two years you’ll write…” and then the dialogue switches to the girl saying, “Tonight I’ll write…”, “In a year I’ll write…”, and “In two years I’ll write…” (Tallent 2). These two blocks of parallel constructions allow the story to be directed into clashing ideations about their future together. While Jack chooses to downplay their relationship, saying that the girl will soon forget about him within the next three years, the girl has an utterly different ideation about their future together. Believing that in three years' time, they may be married with a kid or two. Again, this reiterates the young girl's naive nature and moreover the power dynamic between the two, showcasing Jack’s genuine emotions and feelings - which will most likely ring true - and the girl's false ideas of reality which only further recapitulate her age. This section of parallels and repetitions are used as devices of delaying. Delaying the inevitable, delaying the truth, delaying reality. For the reader knows that this relationship is doomed to end sooner or later, whether that be at the hands of the toxic power dynamic between the two, Jack’s marriage, or the legalities of the entire situation.

Elizabeth Tallent uses few words to capture No One’s a Mystery, instead choosing to capitalize on robust literary devices like first-person narration, metaphorical or symbolic language, characterization, parallels, and repetition. In doing so, Tallent can drive home the narration and lesson that she is attempting to teach, this being the differing power dynamics at play in this story and within real-life relationships. It is getting across to the reader that so much can be said using literary devices rather than the actual written word.