Collector (Fowles)

Discussion Questions
1. Miranda considers herself an aesthete and often discusses her fondness for beauty in her journals. Why do you think art and beauty are so important to her? What did you make of Miranda’s frequent references to literature, art, and pop culture throughout the novel? Did these cultural touchstones help establish the novel’s timeframe and setting? Were any of them unfamiliar to you? What were some of your favorites?

2. Why do you think John Fowles decided to alternate between two narrators in The Collector? How might the novel have been different if told from just one point of view? Who do you think is a more reliable narrator, Frederick or Miranda?

3. In reference to the kidnapping, Frederick says that a lot of people would do the same thing, given the money and the opportunity (page 20). Do you think this is true? Do you think that money can change the way a person behaves within society? Or is Frederick delusional?

4. What do you think happened to Frederick to makehim the way he is? Do you think he was born a sociopath? Is Frederick evil, or just misguided?

5. Clegg finds it easier to fantasize about Miranda when she is asleep or not in front of him, and finds it especially difficult when she is talking to him. Why do you think this is?

6. How do you think Clegg’s experiences with women before he kidnaps Miranda affect the way he treats her while she is his captive? Why do you think Clegg is so confused about his sexuality?

7. Feminism was a burgeoning social issue at the time that John Fowles wrote The Collector. How do you think it infl uenced him?

8. Miranda relates in her journals a somewhat stormy relationship with an older artist whom she refers to as G.P. He never becomes a larger part of the plot, though. Why do you think Fowles chose to include him in the narrative?

9. Clegg and Miranda are often struggling to gain power over each other, even though she is his prisoner. What do you think this says about their respective personalities?

10. Miranda is convinced that, should she escape, she should like to “be somebody” and make something of herself in the world. Do you feel that this makes her death ultimately more poignant?

11. There are a few points in the novel where a reader might reasonably think Miranda would be rescued. Did you imagine that she eventually would be?

12. Do you think Frederick will kidnap the girl he alludes to near the end of the book? Were you upset that Miranda did not see her family again before she died? If you could write a postscript to The Collector, what would it be?
(Questions issued by publisher.)

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