Bret Easton Ellis: ”Letters from L.A.

”, The Informers, study questions – KB

Letter 1

1. “I really feel this hostility toward me” (p. 1) Comment on Anne’s feelings after a few days in L.A.

2. Comment on Anne's social life and her relationship to Mr. and Mrs. Wang.

3. Why has Anne taken off a term and gone to L.A.?

4. What is Anne supposed to do in L.A.?

Letter 2
1. What is Camden - check the Internet.

2. Why does Anne write Sean? How well does she know him?

3. What does "sp?" mean?

4. Has Anne changed since the last letter five days ago?

Letter 3

1. Comment on the house in Palm Springs and the people Anne meets there.

There is a pool and palm trees. The house is very luxcery

Obnoxious suntanned people fills me with dread. Really, the most mindless people are at the
house right now: middle-aged studio execs with joints hanging from their lips and gold lighters
they have for just these occasions. Dumb blond bunnies reeking of suntan oil and sex. Old rich
women with gorgeous young boys (who for some reason are all gay).

The way Anne describe the people: they are very aware of the way they look. She is prejudice.
Anne has double standers: Dumb blond bunnies reeking of suntan oil and sex - but she wants to
get a tan herself.

2. What is it that Anne finds "kind of comforting" (p. 4)?

She is at a night club on her third tonic, she realizes:

She is always at the same places: Camden, New York, Palm Spring, LA. She likes to be the
same places.

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Bret Easton Ellis: ”Letters from L.A.”, The Informers, study questions – KB

3. After a month in L.A., how does Anne feel? Has she "reverted back to the wholesome, idealistic
little girl" (p. 4) she says she was five years ago?

“I can't say that I’ve reverted back to the wholesome, idealistic little girl I was five years ago,
but I'm a lot less depressed and I feel a lot less desperate and confused.”

 She feel like there is something missing from her life.

 “wholesome”, but she feels better => she has something to fill her hole in her life.

 She is a lot less depressed, confused and desperate

She may have had a depression, so she need to take a break in NY. Sean told her to get the hell
out of here and go to LA. She might have been obsessed with him, but Sean want to get rid of
her.

4. What information do we get about Sean?

Sean told her to get the hell out of here and go to LA. She might have been obsessed with him,
but Sean want to get rid of her.

“Are you still painting? I am curious about your impressions of the place now. What do you
see? What is your mood like after three terms there?”

Letter 4

1. Anne's grandfather gets drunk and tells her that "everything is decaying" (p.5). Is he sincere?
What might he be thinking of?

2. What makes Anne "agree with him to a certain extent" (p. 6)?

“And looking around and seeing on TV about those poor boys in Beirut or Lebanon or wherever
the hell they are and hearing about these drug dealers who were all stabbed to death in the hills
last night, I have to agree with him to a certain extent.

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Bret Easton Ellis: ”Letters from L.A.”, The Informers, study questions – KB

She can see all the bad things happing around the world and she can agree on that things are
decaying.

3. What is she referring to when she says that "people are becoming less human and more
animalistic" (p. 6)?

“They seem to think less and feel less so that everyone is operating on a very primitive level.”
p.6

4. Compare her last remark with the entire letter.

“Still having fun in the sun!“ Anne can acknowledge that bad thing are happing but they do not
affect her

- superficial

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Bret Easton Ellis: ”Letters from L.A.”, The Informers, study questions – KB

Letter 5
1. What positive result has Anne obtained by moving to L.A.?

2. "I don't think I could stand being here forever" (p. 6). Anne’s reasons for not staying in L.A. are?

3. Sean once said Anne was a "sad affected girl" (p. 7). What does `affected' mean? How does that
characterization fit Anne?

4. Comment on Anne's last remarks: "I hope you are as happy and healthy and as fulfilled as I am" (p.
7).

Letter 6
1. Comment on Anne's use of Dalmane.

2. Comment on the information we get about Sean in this letter.

3. Comment on Anne's use of language in letters 5-6.

Letter 7
1. "I feel like this is how I want to live forever." (p. 8) Why does Anne feel like this?

2. Is her life always wonderful now?

Letter 8
1. Comment on the following remark: "I could be telling you all the details of my sexual adventures
and bragging about my latest conquests" (p. 9).

2. What does she think of life in L.A. in this letter?

3. Characterize Randy from what Anne says about him.

4. Comment on "this fabulous screenplay. A remake of Camus' The Stranger" (p. 9) that Anne has read.

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Bret Easton Ellis: ”Letters from L.A.”, The Informers, study questions – KB

Letter 9
1. Is there a "psychological explanation" for Anne feeling "so mellow, peaceful, so relaxed" (p. 10)
when with Randy in Palm Springs?

2. Does Anne help Randy when he feels "hollow and lost" (p. 10)?

3. Comment on Randy's "constructive criticism" (p. 10) of Anne's stories.

4. How come Anne is still desperately trying to make Sean contact her when she is feeling "so relaxed"
(p. 10)?

Letter 10
1. Comment on Anne's sleeping problems.

2. What do you think of Anne lying about her age?

Letter 11
1. Try to analyze and interpret Anne's dream.

2. Why is Anne unable to go back to New York and Camden and "'deal with it"' (p.12).

3. Characterize Anne's new friends:

 Scotty

 Christie

 Carlos

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Bret Easton Ellis: ”Letters from L.A.”, The Informers, study questions – KB

4. Comment on the way Anne is dealing with Randy's existentialist crisis.

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Bret Easton Ellis: ”Letters from L.A.”, The Informers, study questions – KB

Letter 12
1. "Describe and comment on Anne's "Typical Saturday" (p. 13).

2. "Anything to get Randy off his suicide kick. He's back on it, Sean. It scares me. Well, time to go to
aerobics again in half an hour. Write me, please." (p. 13). Analyze and comment on this excerpt of the
letter.

Letter 13
1. Analyze the letter – check:

 "The temperature dropped to sixty-five" (p. 13)

 Michael Jackson

 Randy

 Anne

Letter 14
1. Comment on the way a friend of Carlos died. Who might have killed him (who use those methods?)
and for what reason?

2. Comment on Anne and Carlos’s reaction to the death of Carlos’ friend.

Letter 15
1. Characterize the guy from the studio who juggled for Anne and “then peed on a potted palm” (p. 15)

2. How did Randy die? Why that way?

3. Comment on Anne’s reaction to the death of Randy.

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Bret Easton Ellis: ”Letters from L.A.”, The Informers, study questions – KB

Letter 16
1. Why hasn’t Anne written Sean for more than a month? And why is this apparently her last letter?

2. Is it a happy ending for Anne in L.A.?