66 pages • 2 hours read
Liars: A Novel
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Pages 3-30Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Pages 3-11 Summary
Content Warning: This section of the guide contains depictions of emotional and physical abuse, sexual content, illness, substance use, and gender discrimination.
Jane introduces her unsatisfactory marriage and reflects on an earlier moment in her relationship with John. While housesitting, she goes to a film festival, where she meets John, a filmmaker from Canada. They have a couple drinks then go to John’s hotel room, which is filled with items he has collected over the last few days, including pieces of birch bark, which John later uses to send notes to Jane. They sleep together and share their goals—Jane wants to write and teach, while John wants to succeed financially and artistically and to win the Akadimia Prize—a prize that comes with a paid year of life and work in Athens, Greece.
John wants to keep his relationship with Jane private because his ex-girlfriend, Naomi, lives near him and is still emotionally dependent on John. John insists Naomi is “unstable” and has frequent thoughts of self-harm. Jane, however, does not accept John’s explanation, arguing that he should not be prioritizing Naomi over her. After Naomi finds out about Jane, she and John cease communicating, and John says he will change his social media relationship status from “single” to “relationship.” Jane sends John a message that she wants to make their relationship work, lovingly calling him “Mumbun,” their pet name for each other.
One morning, Jane receives a letter notifying her that she has won the Akadimia Prize. She knows she must temper her excitement to appease John, but John congratulates her and takes her out for brunch. Jane describes an old, rotting fur coat she had in college. She used marker to make the coat look nicer, and she worked multiple jobs to get by. She was once complimented for her ability to make herself appear wealthy.
John attends a meeting about the Akadimia Prize with Jane, sitting at the winners’ table instead of along the wall with the other spouses. This embarrasses Jane; however, she does not say anything to him, knowing it would be pointless. John goes out drinking, which bothers Jane because John behaves badly when he drinks—“he’d probably gossiped about his colleagues again while the students tittered” (11).
Pages 11-20 Summary
Jane moves to Athens while John stays in New York for a while. She is stressed when she thinks about John “brooding” in New York, but she falls into a routine, visiting a coffee bar each morning. Jane realizes that the gruff man who works the counter approves of her when he gives her back extra change one morning. John joins Jane in Athens in late fall. He sulks, and Jane becomes more disillusioned about John’s true nature as she realizes she is smarter than he is—“Next to him, I was brilliant” (12)—though she also believes that he is more attractive. Their relationship continues to develop, although Jane notices she is careful about what she writes in her diary.
Jane and John babysit together, and John is great with the child. John talks about wanting to marry Jane but says he fears being unsuccessful compared to her. He cries when Jane takes extra Greek lessons, and he stays out late at a party. Jane later sees photographs of John with another woman. John admits that if Jane had been acting as he has, he would be hurt. Jane, however, focuses on John’s humorous personality. Hannah, Jane’s best friend, divorces her husband of thirteen years while Jane is living in Athens. After speaking with Hannah, Jane realizes her relationship with John is “normal.”
John goes out with a group and emails Jane where to meet them all for dinner, but she doesn’t have internet access and is worried. John comes home in the middle of the night, and they quietly fight.
The Akadimia fellows celebrate Jane’s birthday, which angers the director, but the staff don’t mind because they like John. That night, they decide to get unofficially engaged, and John says they will be officially engaged after he can afford a ring; however, he orders custom-made shirts shortly after. John and Jane fight on their last day in Athens, but they make up after Jane climbs into a fountain.
Jane and John move back to New York and host a party. Naomi attends in a sexually suggestive dress, and she stays close to John. When Jane confronts him about it, he argues he doesn’t have feelings for Naomi, and he wants Jane to feel secure.
Jane describes herself and her family as “half-crazy,” and she says that she stayed with John because she feels she doesn’t deserve anyone better than him. While traveling for a poetry reading, Jane realizes she is happier when John isn’t around. When she returns home, John accidentally slaps her too hard while they are sleeping together, which makes Jane cry. Later that night, she tells John he is the “best thing” to have happened to her. One night, John takes Jane to an oyster bar, where he officially proposes, and Jane accepts. She loves the ring, though it is too big.
Pages 20-30 Summary
As Jane is moving out of her apartment, John makes a comment about how annoying it is to be an adult after they have to clean up some broken glass. After moving in with John, Jane cleans and organizes for him. John hears from his friends, Felix and Victoria, who found someone to provide financial capital for a production company named Cloudberry in Calgary. Jane starts to feel like a “real wife,” as John becomes an entrepreneur. She looks forward to having financial security and to having two lives: one as a wife and one as a writer.
Jane sets her expectations: She wants to share the housework, have one date a week, sleep together twice a week, to be with friends twice a week, and to have John pay her back the money he owes her. John books his first solo art show. He struggles to properly prepare, and as a result the museum expresses their disappointment in the show.
When Jane tries to plan their wedding and honeymoon, John refuses to discuss money. When they finally are finally on their honeymoon, people notice that they are newlyweds. John wears a handmade white gold ring, while Jane wears a basic band she ordered online. Jane writes to Hannah that she feels like a “fortress” of rage because John is treating her like a “stupid maid.” One day, John agrees to do the dishes and sleep with Jane, but he comes home late then taunts Jane when she can’t follow his confusing explanation. She yells at him, and he shoves her and kicks her out. After taking a tranquilizer and sleeping, Jane makes up with John. Then, he says he can’t add to their joint account that month.
Jane must ask repeatedly for John’s itinerary for his upcoming trip to Calgary, and she must step in and find a lost package when John fails to manage the situation. John says he can’t afford living expenses and art expenses. He finds a job in Los Angeles, and they plan to move out west. John then drinks too much at a party, later arguing with Jane, saying he doesn’t want to be a “footnote in someone else’s biography” (28)—Jane has recently written and sold an autobiographical novel.
At the beginning of their relationship, Jane loved quietly creating alongside John, but as time progresses, Jane learns more about his true nature and begins to feel trapped. In the days before moving to Los Angeles, they pack their belongings, and John stays out drinking.
Pages 3-30 Analysis
The first thirty pages of Liars introduce the prominent theme of Deception in Marriage. Jane and John have a marriage built on layers of deception, both external and internal. Through Manguso’s blunt, vignette-like structure, the narrative explores how Jane deceives herself about her relationship with John, while John’s actions reveal a pattern of manipulation and insincerity.
From the outset, Jane’s inner thoughts reveal her tendency to suppress doubts and prioritize an idealized vision of her life over reality. For example, her reaction to winning the Akadimia Prize shows her need to diminish her achievements to maintain harmony: “I went cold, knowing I’d have to conceal my pride when I told John” (9). This moment highlights her internalization of societal expectations about a wife’s role in supporting her husband’s ego, even at her own expense. Similarly, Jane’s willingness to loan John significant amounts of money, despite his lack of financial reliability, underscores her self-deception regarding his character. She convinces herself that her sacrifices are normal or even necessary, ignoring the warning signs. Jane’s diary serves as a metaphor for this self-deception, as she represses knowledge of her own feelings when these feelings do not align with societal expectations. When she notes, “Without meaning to, I began to restrict the material in my diary. I had become unable to articulate certain feelings. And so my body became their cultivation dish” (13), this symbolizes how the emotional dishonesty she practices in her marriage manifests as physical and psychological strain. Her inability to write freely parallels her broader failure to confront the truth about her relationship.
While Jane suppresses her doubts, John’s behavior actively perpetuates deception. His seemingly romantic gesture of leaving birch-bark notes serves as an early instance of characterization, demonstrating the showy, superficial nature of his emotional labor. This gesture initially appears meaningful, but soon reveals its emptiness. Jane’s observation that “it was everywhere” (4) implies that the gesture lacks substance—it is performative rather than meaningful. This early symbol sets the tone for John’s broader tendency to manipulate appearances to his advantage. John’s casual disregard for financial and emotional commitments further demonstrates his deceptive nature. His refusal to repay the money he owes Jane and his lavish spending on unnecessary items, such as a $200 lamp, highlight his self-centered priorities. Even as he positions himself as a devoted partner, his actions consistently undermine this image. For instance, when John protests that he doesn’t want to be “a footnote in someone else’s biography” (28), it becomes clear that his resentment toward Jane’s success is rooted in insecurity. This incident serves as an early instance of foreshadowing, as Jane will later realize that John expects his wife to remain in the background while his own achievements take center stage.
Manguso uses symbolism throughout her novel to reinforce the themes. For instance, the “country dark” Jane fears—“It was dark, and I was afraid of the dark—the real dark, the country dark” (4)—symbolizes the oppression that comes with traditional values, contributing to The Impact of Societal Expectations on Identity. Jane’s fear highlights her discomfort with the roles and expectations placed upon her, particularly within the framework of marriage. The darkness also reflects her inability to see the truth about John and the deeper dysfunctions in their relationship.
Foreshadowing further deepens the exploration of deception in marriage and the impact of societal expectations on identity. Jane’s reflections after John’s proposal— “I wanted this part of my life to be over already, and I was so glad that it finally was” (20)—hint at her latent dissatisfaction. Even in moments that should signify happiness, she is uneasy. This line suggests that Jane recognized, on some level, that her marriage would not fulfill her; yet she moved forward regardless, driven by societal pressure and her own idealized vision of partnership.
Manguso’s choice to structure the narrative as a series of vignettes emphasizes the fragmented and nonlinear nature of Jane’s narration. The episodic format mirrors the selective way in which Jane processes her relationship, focusing on specific moments while avoiding a cohesive confrontation with the truth. The vignettes also highlight the mundane aspects of Jane’s life. Small details deepen the characterization and reveal how everyday moments contribute to the larger narrative of deception.
The opening pages of Liars, establish prominent themes, including Deception in Marriage and The Impact of Societal Expectations on Identity. The layers of self-deception and John’s manipulative actions reflect the emotional complexities of their relationship, while the pervasive symbolism and fragmented structure reinforce the idea that Jane’s identity is shaped—and constrained—by the expectations placed upon her. As Jane navigates her marriage, she must contend with both her self-deception and the societal pressures that influence her decisions. This lays the foundation for a further exploration of how individuals struggle to reconcile personal desires with the roles they are expected to play.
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