Frank Kermode maintained in his essay "The Genesis of Secrecy" that behind the realistic plot of this novel there is a complex web of mythical images, the most important being the figure of the classical Greek god Hermes, which is strongly tied to one of the characters.
In his essay "The Genesis of Secrecy," Frank Kermode argues that beneath the straightforward plot of this novel lies a deeper layer of mythological allusions, with the iconic figure of Hermes serving as a pivotal element in the story, closely associated with one of the main characters.