Post by ethanashbrook on Jul 29, 2017 17:35:16 GMT -5
"In what might be a memory or a dream, von Rumpel watches Veronika, the early riser, kneel on the floor of Marie-Laure's room in the predawn darkness and march a doll in a white gown alongside another in a gray suit down the streets of the model city. They turn left, then right, until they reach the steps of the cathedral, where a third doll awaits, dressed in black, one arm raised. Wedding or sacrifice, he cannot say. Then Veronika sings so softly that he cannot hear the words, only the melody, less like the sounds made by a human voice and more like the notes made by a piano, and the dolls dance, swaying from foot to foot.
The music stops, and Veronika vanishes. He sits up. The the model at the foot of the bed bleeds away and is a long time restoring itself. Somewhere above him, the voice of a young man starts speaking in French about coal." (Doerr 456-457).
This entire passage I found to be quite perplexing. Towards the end, we can establish that what he hears is the radio, but the whole "dream" seems very cryptic. I thought that the "one arm raised" might allude to a Nazi salute, as it would make sense in the context of the setting. What did you make of this?
The music stops, and Veronika vanishes. He sits up. The the model at the foot of the bed bleeds away and is a long time restoring itself. Somewhere above him, the voice of a young man starts speaking in French about coal." (Doerr 456-457).
This entire passage I found to be quite perplexing. Towards the end, we can establish that what he hears is the radio, but the whole "dream" seems very cryptic. I thought that the "one arm raised" might allude to a Nazi salute, as it would make sense in the context of the setting. What did you make of this?