Robert Montgomery Bird uses metempsychosis, the soul being able to survive the death of the body and possess another, as a way for Sheppard Lee to navigate his discontentment with himself and a way for him to achieve the goals he perceives to be ideal. Bird also uses metempsychosis as a metaphor as a way to tackle social and economic issues of the antebellum era, as Sheppard Lee chases what he perceives as happiness in a culture based on envy. For instance, Sheppard Lee stumbles from one occupation attempt to another because a gentleman of that era is supposed to be successful, however, he is lazy and does not want to do the hard work necessary to achieve his goals (10). Further, Sheppard Lee’s envy of others success and perceived happiness leads him to the wealthy Squire Higginson, a man he sees as the “picture of happiness” seeing him with “admiration and hatred together” (31). In this manner, Bird uses Higginson as the personification of health and contentment, something Sheppard Lee wants very badly (31). Therefore, the use of metempsychosis can be used as a metaphor to build upon the idea that the transference of souls can also be applied to the very nature of identity through the needs, wants, and possessions of others. …show more content…
In doing this Sheppard Lee is able to discover that as he leaves behind one identity he still retains his inner most “self.” In other words, Bird suggests that with each transference one would also possess the ability to separate ones self into both the detached observer and the physical body