Trouble in Paradise: A Psychoanalytic Interpretation of "The Lie"

Raymond Carver's short story, "The Lie," provides an opportunity to identify a husband and wife's core issues and defenses. The story starts in a conflict between the narrator and his wife over her actions. It's unknown what his wife did, but it's implied to be bad based on her reaction. As the events of the conflict unfold, we are given a chance to see the unconscious motives and desires of the narrator and his wife, allowing us to identify the characters' core issues and active defenses.

The narrator has a couple core issues, the first being he unconsciously believes he is worth less than his wife. He displays this when he learns his wife betrayed him, and he still cares for her the same. In paragraph fourteen: "I held the lighter for her and was momentarily astonished by the sight of her," (Carver). He continues to light her cigarettes and he still thinks she's astonishing, even after finding out what she did. Shortly after, in an attempt to change the subject, his wife asks, "And how was your day today, sweet," (Carver). The narrator then tells her all about his day, causing me to wonder: why does he think she is worth more than him? Obviously, the narrator has the core issue of low self-esteem. Another core issue is present when his wife undresses while they talk. In the text, "She held the cigarette between her lips and stood up for a minute to step out of her skirt," (Carver). And, "She'd slipped out of her underthings by now," (Carver). It's possible this is a regular habit, but it's odd that she says, "Here, put your head on mommy's breast," (Carver). It's weird his wife refers to herself as (his) mommy, but it's even weirder she is naked. This reveals the narrator has an oedipal fixation, which was likely caused by a dysfunctional relationship with his mother when he was a child. To protect himself from these issues he uses defenses.

The defenses the narrator uses can be identified based on his actions. His first defense presents itself when he is informed of his wife's wrongdoings. Of course, his wife denies everything, dismissing the allegations as lies due to the informant's (made-up) jealousy. This plants the idea that the informant is lying in his head, causing him to think about an old friend. He thought of a friend who was a "chronic, unmitigated liar" in an attempt to deny that the allegations against his wife hold any truth. The narrator is in denial, however denial isn't the only defense present in the text. The narrator also uses avoidance, occurring when he answers his wife's prompt and begins talking with her about his day. He allows himself to take his mind off the news he just learned, keeping himself from addressing the situation he and his wife are in. Backtracking a little, the wife undressing while they talked brings another defense to light. The narrator thought to himself, "My fingers tingled and the blood was beginning to move faster. But I felt weak, too," (Carver). His wife undressing seems to get him aroused, possibly giving him an urge to express his feelings through sex with her. Although it's not clarified if there is any sexual activity, evidence points to something of that nature; thus the narrator uses the defence displacement. However, he isn't the only one with core issues and defenses.

The wife doesn't want to lose her husband, so she lies about the infonnant and her own actions. She said the informant-who's her friend-is "jealous" and "a bitch." But why is she so worked up over this accusation if it isn't true? And why does she later admit it's true? Both are answered knowing the narrator's wife has a fear of abandonment. She is worked up over the accusation because it's true and she doesn't want her relationship to end. Lying is her attempt to protect herself from rejection. But when she succumbs to the guilt of lying she tells the truth, which is a common pattern in individuals who share her fear. On top of this, she may have another core issue. While it isn't stated what she did, it can be inferred that she cheated because of the shame she has for her actions. Going with this, she unconsciously thinks that getting too close to someone will result in heartbreak. This is why she would have an extramarital affair behind her husband's back; she doesn't want to get too close to him and end up being hurt. Similarly, she lies to keep herself from experiencing the hurt that would result from their break-up.

To protect herself from those fears, she unconsciously uses several defenses. Like the narrator, she uses avoidance and displacement. The narrator displacing his feelings onto his wife means she used displacement as well; especially because she was the one who instigated it by undressing. She uses avoidance when she talks to her husband about his day and ignores the situation they are in. Another defense she uses is projection. Right after being ratted on, she blamed everything on the infonnant, saying it was all fabricated. Later on, she shifts to blaming the narrator for believing their friend's lies, telling him, "How could it believe such a thing? I'm disappointed in you. Really, you know me better than that," (Carver). She is obviously trying to project her feelings of guilt onto her husband, causing him to feel guilty for believing lies. She does this to avoid dealing with her feelings herself. Also, projection is often intertwined with another defense called selective memory; projecting can influence her to use selective memory because it affects how memories are prioritized. When she projects her guilt onto her husband, she is pushing the memory of her actions to the back of her mind and avoiding a memory that would cause her pain.

This reading allows us to recognize patterns in characters' behavior to identify their core issues and defenses. From there, it's discovered that the narrator has a low self-esteem and an oedipal fixation, and the defenses he uses are denial, avoidance, and displacement. His wife has a fear of intimacy and fear of abandonment, and she uses avoidance, displacement, projection, and selective memory. Both the narrator and his wife unconsciously use these defenses to protect themselves from recognizing the patterns in their behavior, thus preventing them from confronting their core issues.