echos

[squall34578]

ok whats with these echos i just got the book monday i love it so far i cant put it down im kinda reading it a little slow though because of school in all but really is this rambling on and on about echoes that important? images/smiles/icon_confused.gif

[mtvogel73]

Well, the way I understand it, echoes have alot to do with the size of a space.. it's an audible way to discern the rough size of a room one may find themself in - especially when that space is pitch-black beyond the range of any kind of light. In the case of the House in HOL, it plays a MAJOR role... The same is said for light (ie. flares)... I don't know if echoes in and of themself have a crucial role story-wise, but the role echos play certainly adds to the "feel" of what's happening.... added alot of atmosphere to the story for me. Spooked me quite a bit.

In any case, I'm going to read it again and go back through things I skimmed over the first time more carefully... Apparently there's alot more there to learn about.

That's my two-cents :-)

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by lane mauldin:
ok whats with these echos i just got the book monday i love it so far i cant put it down im kinda reading it a little slow though because of school in all but really is this rambling on and on about echoes that important? images/smiles/icon_confused.gif<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

[Ardis_21]

The technical stuff about echoes might seem boring, but it's worth it for the end of that chapter.

[squall34578]

well thanks yeah i started to get the whole point of the echos with exploration #3 thanks for the help.

[drone]

Echoes appear as a metaphor later in the book (chapter XXI, for instance), so the stuff about the "sky's blue care" might be worth remembering.

[spiralis]

A bat in a hall of mirrors still doesn't see a thing, yet it will find its way out eventually. Or maybe not.

[Jessie]

I am sometimes strong and sometimes weak, but I am nobody's fool.
For there is no language that I cannot speak, though I never went to school.

***Echo***

[bathwater]

Echo's not only have to do with space, and time for that matter, but also tells alot about the structure of the book itself. You have to pay attention to the detail of the tech, aspects of echos. You must not skim or skip anything in this book, kinda like sex, take your time and enjoy it.

[bathwater]

To illustrate my previous point about using echo as a foreshadowing, look at the way the book is set up, you are constantly moving back and forth, and up and down in the book, fliping to references and letters and so on.
Another way I think echos are used to foreshadow, well there are several places that come to mind so I'll only pick a couple. One is when during "Tom's Story" when Tom talks of using the bathroom in the corner, then shortly later Tom refers to the house as a "shit-hole", I know this may sound trivial but I belive this is part of the set patern. Another, possibly a little deeper this time(no pun intended) is in the same chapter (I think) when Navy is trying to ascend the stair well, everyone else gets up but Navy, the floor starts dropping, and then the rope snaps, then footnote to Johnny, at Tex's listening to the story of the boat, "The Atrocity",(odd name for a boat, or not), the ships sinking, Johnny is sinking, and he snaps, maybe, (or not), then the story resumes with Navy on the bottom of the house, very deep acording to the quarter drop,not unilke the ship on the bottom of the ocean, or is it?
One last one for now, Johnny blows snot all over himself during a fit and Thumper helps him out,shortly later Johnny picks up the stray dog, a Pekinese (I wonder why that breed?), and gets snot all over himself.
Could all be coincidence, or not.

[Twix]

Wow. Very nice. I had noticed that sort of echoing/reflecting of elements in the novel before, but I hadn't caught those examples before.

Another one to think about (again, my copy is loaned out (I REALLY have to buy another :P)) takes place in chapter XXI and one of the appendices. In XXI, when JT wanders across the country only to find himself at the Whalestoe, he finds that it is abandoned, condemned, and, to paraphrase (wish I had my copy :P): surrounded by a fence (I think he says 10 feet tall?) with No Trespassing signs every few feet. Flip then to the appendix with the photographed portions of the Navidson Record on scraps of paper. One large sheet of paper--entirely in JT's Courier font, I might add--takes place after Karen and Navy have left the <font color=blue>house</font> for the final time. It has the testimony of an ambulance worker who collected Navy, and then, afterward, talks about how they had a large fence built around the house, with No Trespassing signs every few feet. The reflection of the Whalestoe was entirely inescapable to me, just thought I'd toss it in. images/smiles/icon_smile.gif

(Sorry for the deluge of posts--I was away for the weekend, and I'm catching up)

Kimba

[bathwater]

Thank you, it's nice to be recognized, 'specialy from a rated member, but the echos just keep popping up, or back, maybe. Take a peek at my "What's in a Name" topic (everyone please) I go into a little about echo's but I belive it serves as to the relevance of the structure of the book, besides I want to see more post on the subject.

[austizmo]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote
You must not skim or skip anything in this book, kinda like sex, take your time and enjoy it.

Then smoke a cigarette and read it again.

I really enjoyed the chapter on echoes. In fact, it's one of my favorite parts of the book.