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May have found the destination - is it an asymmetric, non closed mess?

SH, you’ve missed the opening article. The resultant shape is symmetrical

It's also closed, with one additional highlighted letter

For the depiction of the fate of the characters I have plumped for entering the word featured in the extra letters from 34a to 2d in place of the existing letters. As discussed earlier, it's graphical, in the strictest sense of the word, and the fact that it leaves the end of one character's name intact seems too neat to be a coincidence. I could be wrong of course (it's been known!) and Quisling your option seems also to be valid.

Ukridge, if you are changing letters within the destination, I’d be surprised if it was marked correct. No such change is specified in that sentence in the preamble, and there was room to say so if it was required. All other letter changes are specified.

Good point quisling

I do take the point about the contents of the destination. To me it has the feel of an idea that didn’t quite come off, perhaps in an earlier draft of the puzzle.

I found this very tough but have managed to crawl over the finish line. I was fortunate this week as I visited several European airports and therefore had a lot of time to kill. The ambiguity surrounding the second instruction is irritating but I've plumped for an artistic representation of the word that appears just before the name of the work (leaving the letters entered intact and drawing over the top of them in an appropriate colour).

Quiisling, your post at 193 has confused me for two reasons. Firstly, I have the destination as 3, 3, 4, 5 so this means that the resultant shape cannot be symmetrical. The gap in the shape is occupied by a changed letter from the first instruction. Secondly, I am confused by your reference to highlighting, which is not specified anywhere in the preamble. My graphical representation is a drawing rather than highlighting and depicts of the fate of the characters "within" the destination. Therefore the name of the destination is not included in the drawing.

Kitsune, sorry to be inaccurate or mislead. I did not have the puzzle to hand. My points 193 and 194 were meant to be read together. Mea culpa. So I agree with what you’ve done. My reference to highlighting referred to the additional letter from one of the characters, as you said. That does create a closed symmetrical shape. And I further agree that the pictorial representation is fully contained within the destination and does not include it.

No need to apologise, Quisling, I just wanted to make sure that I hadn't grabbed hold of the wrong end of several sticks!