Spoons the Fish Symbol Analysis

Spoons the Fish symbolizes Emira’s meaningful connection with Briar—and Alix’s lack thereof. Briar loves fish, but Alix doesn’t know this. For the most part, she’s only interested in Briar when it’s convenient for her—or when having Briar by her side looks good for her business. In contrast, Emira takes an active interest in Briar’s life and cares about her zany, unusual interests for the simple reason that Briar cares about them. So, bearing in mind Briar’s obsession with fish, Emira arrives at Briar’s third birthday party with a goldfish in a bowl for Briar (Briar names the goldfish Spoons.)

Alix’s reaction to Spoons’s death further illustrates her complete disregard for Briar’s feelings. When Spoons dies suddenly, just before Halloween, Alix asks Emira to pick up a new fish on her way over—Alix wants to replace Spoons before Briar can notice that he has died. Alix’s mindset further illustrates how little she knows about her daughter. When Emira explains that stopping by the pet store will make them late for the Halloween recital at Briar’s ballet studio that afternoon, Alix brushes Emira’s concern aside, convinced that Briar doesn’t care about the recital and won’t remember it anyway. Emira consents, and it’s only later, when Alix comes across a pair of new cat ears in Emira’s purse (a costume Emira had intended to wear to the recital) and a text message from Kelley to Emira wishing her and Briar good luck, that she understands that she had underestimated how much Briar cared about the recital—and how much Emira cares about Briar.

Finally, Alix’s reaction to Spoons’s death also shows how misplaced her priorities are in a broader sense. Specifically, her reaction shows that she prioritizes outer appearances above inner truth. One of the main reasons that Alix wants to avoid telling Briar about Spoons’s death is that she doesn’t want Briar’s grief to ruin the get-together Alix is having that night with Laney Thacker—in short, Alix would rather lie to Briar and maintain the outer illusion of a happy, functional family life than appear less than perfect in front of others to validate Briar’s perfectly reasonable grief and share a learning experience with her daughter.