Although They Never Learn alternates between narrators Carly Schiller and Dr. Scarlett Clark, the two are ultimately revealed to be the same person. Carly is a freshman at Gorman University, and her timeline precedes Scarlett’s by 16 years. “Carly” was a childhood nickname given to Scarlett by her parents, and during the years between her timeline and Scarlett’s, she changes her last name, earns a PhD, and becomes an English professor at Gorman. Her childhood was marked by the emotional abuse of a controlling, cruel father who had little respect for his wife and daughter—which likely ties into Carly’s shedding of his last name. She experiences further mistreatment at Gorman, where she is forcibly kissed by Dr. Alex Kinnear and once friend Wes, both of whom express anger at her rejection. These instances and her roommate Allison’s assault by fellow student Bash shape her into the vigilante Scarlett—with her first kill being Wes.

Young Carly is an intelligent, dedicated student: Because of her academic performance, she is allowed into an advanced writing seminar during her freshman year at Gorman. This intellect allows an older Scarlett to excel in academia and vigilantism. As a professor, she is subjected to sexist microaggressions and her scholarship is criticized, and then stolen by her abuser Kinnear—her experience embodying the theme of

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