Inventing Anna explores some pertinent issues about an individual's place in an highly exclusive and unequal society. In dramatising Sorokin's attempts of achieving an ideal self, the producers of Inventing Anna probe the muddy intersections between deceptive appearances, self-deception and self-actualisation.
By: Coach Ken
Julia Garner as fake German Heiress, Anna Sorokin/Delvey in Inventing Anna. (Photo: Netflix)
Whilst A Way With Literature deplores all acts of larceny and fraud, we acknowledge the value of the Netflix miniseries, Inventing Anna (inspired by fraudster Anna Sorokin's story), for its intriguing examination of the human psyche.
The Performative Self
Inventing Anna explores the deceptive nature of appearances in the case of Anna Delvey, who pretends to be a German trust-fund heiress, duping the New York elite party scene and Wall Street bankers. These bankers were dangerously close to handing over $22 million in loans to fund her dreams of building an arts foundation, the Anna Delvey Foundation.
This begs the question: What does it mean to be part of the wealthy, elite class? What does it mean to assume the identity of a wealthy socialite, an heiress? Anna manipulates her appearances and alters her behaviour to fit the archetype of the wealthy socialite. Narcissistic, funny, witty, aloof, charming, alluringly mean, Anna's friend in Inventing Anna, Val, gushes over her:
"Anna was cold and unapproachable. Always unavailable. She never texted back. She never cared what other people and she wasn't interested in anybody else but herself. And she was mean. I was dying to be her friend. I was desperate for her. And that was her gift." (my emphasis)
She was cognisant of the social mores of New York's wealthy elite, for she "knew the right things to say and do", according to Val. Indeed, her tendency for narcissism, superficial allure, magnetic haughtiness, and an exclusive "old money" taste (as she"ordered [her meals and wines] like generational wealth"), found her the kindred company of her elite friends in New York high society.
Her luxurious apparel and outfits are then, props that offer this duplicitous persona greater verisimilitude, as the fictional friend Val, notes, "It's in the details", she was "understated", "Elegant. [wearing sophisticated brands like] Alaïa. Balenciaga. Dior." It is only to the trained eyes of the New York elites that Anna Delvey appears as the "real deal".
Image was integral to Sorokin's success in duping individuals and institutions. (Photo: Netflix)
In reality, Anna Delvey is a pseudonym, a fraudulent persona constructed to conceal her true-self Anna Sorokin, a Russian-born German middle-class citizen: The fräulein of next door. The father whom Anna constantly hangs on her lips, is not of the wealthy elite class. Neither does she have the trust fund she proclaims to hold. In reality, Anna's father, Vadim is a middle-class truck-driver who tries his best to provide for his family. Thus, in order for Anna Sorokin to successfully transform herself with a new performative identity/persona (Anna Delvey), she must also rewrite (or fabricate) her personal history, and transfigure her parents into unrecognisable abstractions of themselves.
Wealth and class then, is a state of mind or an imaginative construct, at least for Anna. She is elite, at least in her imagination; or even in reality, she is indeed elite (albeit just a money-lite version) if we could only perceive her apparent image.
The Outsider
Whilst Anna Delvey had all the trappings of the wealthy, elite class (albeit sans real wealth), she was nonetheless an outsider on two fronts. A double otherness for one, she is a woman, and two; she is German, a foreigner. Even if she had the immense wealth she proclaimed to possess, she would still be an outsider.
In considering her initial preclusion from the world of serious business (the "Old Boys' Club", as referenced in the series) by investment banker, Alan Reed, it is clear that Inventing Anna also examines the issues of gender asymmetry in the professional realms. Anna convinces Reed to reconsider supporting her business plans as her lawyer with this:
"If I were a man, with the right accent, in the right suit, from the right Ivy League college, would I still be knocking on doors? Think about what your daughter will face when she's going out into the world." (my emphasis)
Throughout Inventing Anna, the notions of male domination and glass ceilings for women in professional fields/ businesses recur, although it is not a particularly cardinal topic within the series. Nonetheless, it provides a salient reminder that the potential of many individuals, particularly those of marginalised groups, are often restricted by their circumstances and environments, or certain invisible structures. Whilst we may exist as free beings and free agents, we are equally creatures (or victims) of circumstance.
Exam Tip: In your "mind and self" texts, pay close attention to how the external world impacts the individual's existence and identity, and/or how the external world limits or empowers the individual/affects their choices and behaviours.
Whilst Anna's observations are valid, it is understandable to assert that her fraudulent intentions automatically disqualifies her from using these observations to justify her pursuits.
Yet, many viewers also cannot ignore the following questions: How much meritocratic work did the "frat boys" at Wall Street put in to beget their successes? How far did their generational wealth and elite social capital sustain them at their positions of privilege? Seen this way, how much more fraudulent then, is Anna Sorokin than these grossly privileged (mostly white) men?
When A Performance Becomes Too Real
Let us examine the following excerpt from Edward Albee's tragicomedy (with absurdist elements), Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, in relation to Inventing Anna.
Martha: Truth and illusion, George; you don't know the difference. George: No, but we must carry on as though we did. Martha: Amen.
Quote from Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf by Edward Albee, (3.161-3.163)
In Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? by Edward Albee, the protagonists, (an unhappy married couple) Martha and George seem to agree that there is no objective reality: In exposing one illusion, we often find another laying within. In the quote, George's assertion that they "must carry on as though we did" (my emphasis) is in itself an act of bad faith, an act of pretence and self-delusion. This act of self-delusion is all too difficult to escape, as the imperative diction, "must", offers no alternative.
Similarly in Inventing Anna, it seems that illusions are often too seductive to abandon; illusion and reality are too entwined to differentiate. For Anna, her performative persona/self and her true self are often intertwined, indistinct from one another. In an early interview with the fictionalised journalist who broke Anna's story, Vivian Kent, Anna asserts, "[y]ou think that there was some evolution, like in the movies or whatever, but I was always who I am." Here, the absolute language "always" conveys her confident certainty in and constancy of her identity as a rich German heiress, which contrasts with the fact that she is ultimately presenting a bogus persona of a German heiress.
In Inventing Anna, when Anna refuses to get dressed for her court hearing, and threatens her lawyer that her father will hire a substitute because she cannot be dressed as she pleases, it seems that she is trapped in her self-conception (or more accurately, delusion) as a rich German heiress. In response to Anna's intransigence, her lawyer, Todd Spodek dismantles her delusion in a vehement outburst:
"You're not stupid, so what is it? Full on fu****g delusion that makes you believe he's coming anywhere near here?"(my emphasis)
"Do you believe your lies? Are they for me or for you? Must be you. Because everyone else in your life who hasn't abandoned you yet is way past believing them and could give a fu*k! So long as your checks don't bounce. Even your father is done with this shi**y act of yours."(emphasis added)
Here, the viewer observes an interesting dissonance between Anna's awareness of her true identity, and preoccupation with the ideal self (the rich German heiress): At times, it seems difficult for Anna to differentiate between illusion and reality; the performative self is a compulsive habit that she hopes will eventually become real, which recalls the adage, "fake it till you make it".
Conclusion
I suspect that Anna's preoccupation with New York or America is perhaps due to its reputation as the "land of the free", where one could become anything they want to. America then, is a perfect space to materialise a personal renaissance and reinvention, especially for those who so desperately want to rewrite their personal histories.
The sad irony is that what Anna wanted is a heritage and an identity that cannot be bought or stolen; the land of the free could not even be the cradle of her dreams, for what she wants is beyond her. This is not to dismiss her as an idealistic glutton. Rather, it is a warning to all to guard themselves against misplaced values and/or the misguided means of pursuing one's dreams.
In a world where you can be whatever you want to be, why not be honest with yourself and others?
Final disclaimer: We must acknowledge the fact that the dramatic details of the miniseries are born out of artistic licence, and cannot be taken as completely factual. The viewer's reactions to the characters of the miniseries should only be contained within the universe of the show, and cannot be representative or replacements of their treatment of the real-life Anna Sorokin. We must also be wary of the seductive impulse to the glorification of scammers.
If you found this article useful and would appreciate a more personalised learning experience, or want to achieve greater clarity and strength of language, consider Literature coaching at A Way With Literature (AWWL) today!
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