What defines a quest? Is it the journey itself? Or the goal obtained when the journey is over? The theme of the quest is a common motif in literature. It can be explored in multiple ways from multiple perspectives. Quests can be related to everyday life as well. It can be as simple as a trip to the grocery store, or it can be the rigorous training to accomplish a personal goal. Overall, quests are a relatable part of the human experience. After reading a story like “The Insufferable Gaucho” and a novel like The Book of Laughter and Forgetting and empathizing with the characters, it is plainly evident why it is such a present motif in literature. In The Book of Laughter and Forgetting, Of Love and Other Demons, and Paradise of The Blind, all novels explore the theme of the quest by having characters go on a personal or philosophical journey with the end goal of transforming themselves or the environments around them.

 Thesis: In The Book of Laughter and Forgetting, Of Love and Other Demons, and Paradise of The Blind, all novels explore the theme of the quest by having characters go on a personal or philosophical journey with the end goal of transforming themselves or the environments around them.