Analysis of The Main Character’s Anticipatory Grief in Patrick Ness’s Novel A Monster Calls (2011)

Abstract

This study examines anticipatory grief experienced by Conor O’Malley in Patrick Ness’s A Monster Calls (2011) through a literary psychology perspective. Using a qualitative descriptive method, the analysis focuses on narrative events, characterization, dialogue, monologue, setting, dreams, and symbolic elements associated with Conor’s response to his mother’s terminal illness. The findings show that Conor’s anticipatory grief is constructed through changes in family life, social isolation, emotional suppression, symbolic encounters with the monster, and increasing awareness of impending maternal loss. His responses can be interpreted through denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance, yet these categories do not occur in a fixed or linear sequence. Instead, they overlap, recur, and change according to Conor’s emotional condition and the progression of his mother’s illness. The monster and the yew tree function as symbolic mechanisms that externalize suppressed fear, guilt, hope, and inner conflict. Ultimately, Conor’s journey reflects psychological adaptation and meaning reconstruction, showing that acceptance involves acknowledging loss while maintaining emotional attachment to his mother. The novel therefore demonstrates literature’s capacity to represent the complex emotional realities of children confronting anticipated parental death.