The Elegance of the Hedgehog

In The Elegance of the Hedgehog, the two main characters, Renée and Paloma, reject human society and enclose themselves into their minds. They do this in part as a defense mechanism against society’s negative influences. While this serves them well in some ways, ultimately they learn that turning away from society means turning away from people who can brighten their lives and make their existences more meaningful. Thus, despite the novel’s emphasis on philosophical introspection, a major theme of the novel is the importance of human connection.

Paloma is annoyed by the people in her life. Her sister is superficially interested in philosophy, her mother is consumed by her own self-importance, and her father is a construct of a man. Paloma sees the lives of her family members as carefully curated farces. She sees through their veneer of wealth and sophistication and observes how they don’t live authentic lives. For the majority of the book, this annoyance inspires Paloma to consider suicide because she refuses to live in the fallacy-driven world of her family. However, after much contemplation and meeting Kakuro and Renée, Paloma starts to see her family in a new light. Rather than blame them for contributing to society’s ills, Paloma recognizes that her true fear of living is that she can’t help her family. Without having this ability or purpose, Paloma is saddened to discover that it’s actually her love for her family that annoys her. Paloma believes that people should live for a purpose and do well with their minds and hearts, but she fears she is unable to apply her mind in her relationship with her family. Instead of projecting her social anxieties onto her family, Paloma learns how to consider them with more humanity. This transition is thanks in large part to meeting Kakuro and Renée, two adults who demonstrate the values Paloma would like to live for. If Kakuro and Renée can do it, then so can Paloma. Renée and Kakuro serve as the role models Paloma’s family cannot be because they are the antithesis of the Josse family. However, Paloma learns that just because her family members aren’t like Kakuro and Renée doesn’t mean that she’ll be prevented from developing into her own version of Renée and Kakuro. She deviates from her plan to kill herself because her plan involves burning the family’s apartment, which is a symbol of their bourgeois lifestyle. In meeting Kakuro, who moves into the apartment below her, she realizes that destroying her family’s home would also harm Kakuro. In realizing that her actions can harm others, Paloma second guesses her plan, thus demonstrating the importance of human connection. Sadly, Renée’s death teaches Paloma to embrace the people in her life because a lost life can never be regained.

Despite the difference in their age and upbringing, Renée goes through a similar character development. She spends decades believing that she is the antithetical answer to popular society. She sees herself as a reject of society because she is poor and ugly. What’s more, Renée’s relationships have not significantly inspired her to find beauty in other people. Her relationship with her husband was strong but devoid of the passionate intellectualism that brings her and Kakuro together. Her friendship with Manuela is also important to her, but Manuela is Renée’s exception to the rule that people are not worth connecting with. Renée changes her mind about the importance of human connection when she meets Kakuro, who truly and authentically sees her for who she is. They strike up a deeply meaningful friendship that implies romance, a shocking twist in Renée’s planned-out single and solitary life. With Kakuro, Renée experiences the sublimity of not having to hide or explain all the layers to herself. She finds an ally in Kakuro—an ally she sorely lacks. Then, Renée is visited by Jean Arthens, a former resident of the building who struggled with drug addiction. He tells her that her camellias helped save his life, which is the first experience Renée has in understanding that her presence in other people’s lives is important. When Renée meets Paloma, she sees a kindred soul. These three experiences fundamentally change Renée’s understanding of human purpose. Rather than turn away from people she assumes will reject her, Renée embraces human connection. She dies saving another person’s life when she throws herself into the street. This death is symbolic of the theme that human connection is vitally important to a life worth living.