The Blind Owl

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of sexual assault, substance misuse, and still birth.

Part 2 of The Blind Owl opens with the unnamed narrator explaining that he is covered in blood and waiting to be arrested. While he waits, he wants to “bring out on paper these pains [that] have devoured [him]” (28). He is writing only for himself and his shadow. His appearance has changed radically; the day before he looked like an ill young man, but today he looks like an old man with white hair and a harelip. He is afraid to look in the mirror.

He is cut off from the rest of the world, which he calls the “rabble.” This is why he is so focused on memories. He is in his room, which has a closet and two windows that look out on to the city of Rey. One of the views out of his window is that of the butcher. The narrator watches every morning as the butcher selects two dead sheep brought by carriage and butchers them. He can also see an old man wearing a scarf with a random assortment of goods for sale on the ground in front of him, although no one seems to buy them.