Renee’s room (Symbol)
The room where Renee hides from everybody and where she keeps books, music records, and films stands as a symbol of her soul. It’s a kind of that shell where a woman saves all the most valuable things she has. Her soul is there hidden and locked with a key, which she doesn’t give anybody, except Kakuro and Paloma, who became her true friends.
Philosophical reflections (Motif)
All the narration takes the form of thoughts and reflections of two protagonists: Renee and Paloma. The story is perceived as if from the inside of the characters; the reader sees not events themselves, but just the heroes’ points of view on them. And these points are opposite to each other: one side of the narrating, Renee’s story, tells about the life of the poor in the house, and Paloma’s story tells about the rich people, all their whims and extravagance.
Hedgehog (Symbol)
Paloma names Renee “the hedgehog” in talking with Kakuro about the woman. The animal is prickly from outside, but it is soft and tender on the inside. Thus it stands as a symbol of Renee: she seems to be barbed, but having get to know her better, the others understand that she is exactly not that person they have thought before. Rather, she is kind and delicate.
