The Business Trip

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death, child abuse, physical abuse, bullying, gender discrimination, and cursing.

“I would be meeting Diana, a new friend, in San Diego. We had a lot in common. I had just recently connected with her, and she seemed as interested in having an adventure as I was. She didn’t work in news, but she would be a good help to me in having just a little bit of excitement this weekend.”

This passage is the only moment where the novel hints at the final revelation: Stephanie paid someone to stand in for her at the news conference in San Diego. The statement that Diana and Stephanie have a lot in common points to their status as doppelgangers. The reference to Diana helping Stephanie have a little bit of excitement hints at Diana’s role of replacing Stephanie.

“Seeds of doubt pricked at the corners. I was the stupid one of my mom’s three kids, the dumb waitress who needed a man to support her, a chick in her forties who had never really done anything in her life, never had a chance to be truly free, to get outside of Madison and experience life—real, vibrant, exciting, adventurous life.”

The novel explores the long-lasting traumatic effects of abuse, suggesting that abuse begets further violence. Years of abuse at the hands of her mother and her boyfriend, Glenn, have made Jasmine doubt herself and her abilities. Jasmine has internalized the insults that her mother and Glenn lobbed at her over the years.

“Sometimes I truly thought I would change. I had tried a few times, but it never lasted long because she always pissed me off with something she did or said, and that little devil in me would come out. It wasn’t my fault. In fact, it was her fault for making me angry and bringing out the devil.”

Throughout the novel, men blame women for their violence and aggression. In this passage, Glenn blames his abusive behavior on Jasmine and suggests that he is only violent because she incites him to violence. The novel suggests that victim-blaming behavior is a common trait in violent men.