An Academy for Liars

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of graphic violence, animal cruelty, emotional abuse, and death.

Moths are a symbol of both power and vulnerability throughout An Academy for Liars. They are related to characters who have either explicit or implicit influence. The first mention of moths appears early in the novel in a description of Wyatt’s magnetic influence on his colleagues, stating that he has “a certain thrall that drew people like moths to light and made everyone want to be known and loved by him” (8). This simile not only emphasizes Wyatt’s charm but also reveals the danger of attraction to powerful figures—this, like a moth to flame, can be both seductive and destructive. Lennon experiences this with Wyatt, Dante, and the power of persuasion itself, with the moth imagery highlighting the theme of The Corrupting Nature of Power.

Lennon finds Dante’s moth tattoos both fascinating and unnerving, especially since “[the] moths on his hands had their wings, but a few of the ones on his neck had had their wings ripped from their thoraxes. The imagery was grotesque enough to make Lennon squirm” (37).