Axolotl

The ending of “Axolotl” leaves much to interpretation, including whether or not the narrator’s transformation into a larval amphibian actually occurs. It is possible to read the ending of this story literally, with a piece of the narrator actually becoming trapped inside of an axolotl and thereby unknowable to himself. It is also possible to read this as something that occurs only in the narrator’s mind. This ambiguity raises questions about the limits of human knowledge. Just as readers cannot know whether or not the narrator’s transfiguration is real, the story’s ending asks readers to consider whether their own identities are fully knowable.

“Axolotl” is an unusual story in that it lacks any definite external conflict. The closest the story comes to providing external conflict are the few brief moments when the narrator interacts with the aquarium guard. The narrator notices that the guard at times seems uncomfortable with his interest in the axolotls, but this minor area of conflict is never really developed. (If anything, this lack of development highlights how entirely detached the narrator is from the external world and how wholly his sense of self is disconnected from his material reality.