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When God Laughs · Theme
Art and the Artist
How When God Laughs develops Art and the Artist.
The character of Carquinez, an artist who comes alive through wine and embodies paradox, represents the tension between creative vitality and societal norms, as well as the artist's unique perception of life.
Where it surfaces
- When God Laughs
Carquinez is described as an artist whose thought-processes are elevated by wine, and the chapter itself is a philosophical and artistic meditation on love and desire.
- Semper Idem
Bicknell regards his surgical work as an artistic creation, taking pride in the case rather than the person, and viewing Semper Idem's successful suicide as a 'properly done' piece of work.