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Part 3
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Collector, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Power and Control
Class and Snobbery
Painting vs. Photography
Gender Roles
Summary
Analysis
When Clegg wakes up the next day, he feels better, and it is a beautiful day outside. Additionally, he starts feeling less bad about what happened with Miranda. He wonders whether he could dispose of her body and tells himself that he is not responsible for her death because he did not directly kill her. Still, for the time being, he is set on committing suicide. Because he plans to kill himself with pills, Clegg drives to a drugstore and picks up flowers for Miranda, as well as pills for himself. There, he sees a young woman working as a drugstore clerk who reminds him of Miranda. Suddenly, Clegg does not feel like killing himself anymore.
When Clegg wakes up feeling better and observes the beauty of the day, there is a stark contrast between the external world and his internal moral decay. His rationalization that he is not responsible for Miranda’s death, because he did not directly kill her, highlights his lack of accountability. Meanwhile, his abandonment of the suicide plan in favor of a new fixation shows his pathological need to control and possess, rather than genuinely connecting with another person.
Themes
Clegg returns home and sets the flowers down around Miranda. While doing so, he spots Miranda’s journal, which he reads in its entirety. After discovering that the journal does not provide a flattering image of him, Clegg gives up on his suicide altogether. He is also annoyed that Miranda was in love with G.P. for the entirety of her stay, making him feel like he was set up to fail. With attention to detail, Clegg disposes of Miranda’s body in his backyard. He buys her a coffin and buries it deep under apple trees in his yard where he feels no one will ever find it. He feels proud of himself for managing to pull off Miranda’s burial so smoothly and does not think anyone suspects the truth.
Reading Miranda’s journal and discovering her negative view of him devastates Clegg’s fragile ego. His decision to give up on suicide after learning of her love for G.P. indicates that his actions were driven by a desire for control, not genuine remorse. His meticulous disposal of Miranda’s body and the pride he takes in his ability to conceal his crime further emphasize his lack of empathy and remorse. He hides Miranda away in his backyard just as he hides his pinned butterflies away in a drawer.
Themes
A few weeks later, Clegg receives a letter from his Aunt Annie, saying that she and Mabel intend to live in Australia permanently. She suggests that Clegg come to live with them, but Clegg has no desire to do so. Instead, Clegg focuses on his new obsession: Marian, the drugstore clerk. Although Marian is not as pretty as Miranda in Clegg’s opinion, she has the same essence of innocence he associates with Miranda. Additionally, Marian and Clegg share the same social class, leading Clegg to believe they will be more compatible. Clegg is not sure that he will kidnap Marian, but he starts preparing his cellar just in case.
The letter from his Aunt Annie, suggesting he move to Australia, presents an opportunity for Clegg to escape and start anew. However, his disinterest in this option and immediate fixation on Marian show he is unwilling to change. Clegg’s preparation of his cellar “just in case” he decides to kidnap Marian indicates that he has learned nothing from his experience with Miranda. It suggests a cyclical pattern of behavior, where he is likely to repeat his actions with another victim.
Themes
