The Witch Elm

The Witch Elm’s narrative structure plays with time. The inclusion of two seemingly unrelated crimes gives the story two expositions with different timelines. Even Toby, the primary connection between the two plotlines, looks and acts like a different character at his apartment and at Ivy House. Arriving at Ivy House, he reflects on the location’s “own micro-climate, dim and cool and packed with a rich unassailable silence that comes as a shock after the boil of city noises” (92). The transition to Ivy House changes Toby in many ways. While at his apartment, the limitations on his everyday activities due to his physical injuries hinder his composure, enraging him to the point of violence. The physical evidence of his attack (bloodstains, broken cabinetry, etc.) worsens his PTSD symptoms. By contrast, Ivy House’s sounds, sights, and smells cause Toby to reflect on his childhood and adolescence. Even though he grieves the loss of this innocence, he begins to cope with his injuries and symptoms as he assists Hugo. He finds happiness again with Melissa and Hugo, something he couldn’t achieve at his apartment. The novel’s transition from Toby’s apartment to Ivy House establishes a conversation about How Trauma Influences Identity, one of the novel’s central themes.

Additionally, the narrative structure foreshadows events to come with Toby’s retrospective perspective. While describing the happiness he finds at Ivy House, he flashes forward to foreshadow more trauma: “and I only see it now, really, for the rare and inexpressibly precious thing it was—mutual, grave, tender and careful kindness” (146). In pointing out the brevity of his happiness with Melissa and Hugo at Ivy House, he builds anticipation for the novel’s rising action. Tana French also incorporates foreshadowing through Toby’s remembrance of his cousins and their ambiguous changes in youth. While Toby lacks the empathy necessary to investigate the cause of his cousins’ troubles, Susanna’s and Leon’s changes in personality build suspicion. Moreover, Susanna foreshadows the discovery of a human skull—one part of a hidden skeleton belonging to Toby’s old friend Dominic—by warning her son not to climb the wych elms.

Toby begins smoking cigarettes to cope with his PTSD symptoms; cigarettes come to symbolize choosing the lesser of two evils to feel in control. As strong smells irritate Toby and cause flashbacks, he reasons “the awful warnings about smoking always waxed ominous about how it destroyed your sense of smell, I figured it was worth a try” (106). He knows the dangers of smoking but chooses to do so anyway to prioritize managing his symptoms. Still, he conceals his smoking from Melissa, knowing she would disapprove. Cigarettes will continue to appear in the narrative as characters justify their harmful actions. For example, Susanna smokes while telling Toby about murdering Dominic in self-defense; Detective Rafferty smokes while trying to force Toby to confess to Dominic’s murder. Often the characters smoke socially, sneaking cigarettes as they share family secrets. As these secrets come to light, the characters worry less about hiding their smoking habits. Toby considers being judged for smoking easier to accept than facing criticism from his family for his arrogance during adolescence.

Toby’s interactions with Susanna and Leon highlight his ignorance and inability to empathize with others less privileged than him. Toby and Susanna’s argument about Hugo seeing a fourth doctor reveals Toby’s luck and privilege in receiving medical care and emphasize How Luck and Privilege Limit Empathy. After accusing Susanna of being blinded by “social-justice-warrior shite” (142), Toby is challenged by her lived experiences as a once pregnant woman struggling to be heard by medical professionals: “[The doctor] could do whatever he wanted to me, whether I agreed to it or not, and it would be totally legal. Did you seriously not know that?” (144). Even though Susanna presents Toby with multiple examples of injustice in healthcare, he still struggles to accept a reality in which doctors are anything but trustworthy. His limited experience with injustice prevents him from understanding Susanna’s perspective. Only when Toby experiences harmful situations firsthand can he empathize with others in similar circumstances.

Having experienced trauma himself, Leon sees through Toby’s façade of wellness. After Toby defends his lack of appetite and conversation, Leon asserts, “‘Just because you can slip it past them’—[with a] toss of his head towards the house—‘that doesn’t mean you’re actually doing an amazing job of hiding it’” (109). Toby continues to struggle with accepting the severity of his ailments. Knowing his family and friends can identify his injuries and symptoms bothers him, as he wants to be recognized as a capable, fortunate man. It never occurs to him to question why Leon can see through his façade and empathize with trauma, even when he recalls Leon’s social withdrawal as a teenager. Toby’s failure to show sympathy to Leon, even retrospectively, demonstrates how he never grew out of his egocentric tendencies.