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SILENT HILL PLOT ANALYSIS
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A plot analysis for the "Silent Hill" series.
Originally written by SilentPyramid
Translated into english by Darth_Blade, kl3r1k, MadRushn and 401st Stalker.
VERSION 3.1
May, 20, 2006
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CONTENTS.
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ABOUT US/CONTACT US
UPDATE HISTORY\WHAT'S NEW
PREFACE
PART 1: MECHANICS, BASE STRUCTURE
1. The Concept.
1-1. Power of the Mind
1-2. Accumulation
1-3. The Inner (subconscious) world
1-4. Laws and limitations of the inner world
1-5. Comparison of the subconscious world and reality
1-6. Endless circuit. Theory of immortality
1-7. Worlds mixing
1-8. Influence
1-9. Who is vulnerable to the influence of such "powers"?
1-10. Reality, illusion and hallucination.
1-11. Subjective perception.
1-12. Descent.
1-13. What really happens to a person, who is in subconscious?
1-14. Death in reality and in the "otherworld".
1-15. Spirits.
1-16. Possessed
1-17. The spiral of reincarnation.
1-18. Monsters. Could they be?...
1-19. God of the inner world.
1-20. Reality of the "otherworld".
2. The Power of Silent Hill.
2-1. The Silent Call.
2-2. Alteration.
2-3. Otherworld outside of Silent Hill.
Team Listing
SilentPyramid - the author, who singlehandedly started this whole thing and
wrote the original text. All comments, questions and suggestions regarding the
plot analysis are to be sent to him ( silentpyramid@mail.ru ), but bear in mind
that his English skills are far from perfect, so some questions may be left
unanswered until the release of the translated FAQ section. By the way, you
can find original version of SilentPyramid's SH Plot Analysis in the
archive at "silenthillpa.nm.ru" (by the way, you can also find
other SilentPyramid's guides and FAQs there).
Darth_Blade - the head translator [and the guy who's typing all this up with a
38 degree fever %) - translator's note] and at the same time the laziest on
the team. Translated the whole Part 4, corrected other translations and wrote
some misc texts. If you have any comments, questions or suggestions regarding
the translation of the PA, send them to Darth_Blade on Das.Zlo@gmail.com
kl3r1k - translator of Part 2 and Part 6. Yes, he's the one who translated all
this amount of text to bring "religion" and "movie analysis" sections to you.
MadRushn - one of the first to sign up for the translation effort. Author of
the original translation of Part 1.
401st Stalker - author of the original translations of sections 12 and 14
of Part 2.
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UPDATE HISTORY
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PART 1: MECHANICS
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Silent Hill - a town, where strange events happen more often than anywhere
else Other worlds Eternal memories Birthing of Gods and mysterious
disappearances Is there any logic to these seemingly unexplainable
things?
What is the driving force behind them? Are they interconnected?
The primary goal of Part 1 is to try and give a logical explanation to
all the supernatural events, basing all conclusions on official info from the
games or other sources. But remember, that everything here is THEORIES, so you
are not supposed to see it as the one and only true explanation. I hope these
explanations help you to understand the plot of the series better.
1. The Concept.
1-1. Power of the Mind.
The main ideas of the Silent Hill series are closely connected with
parapsychological and philosophical theories in the real world. It is
considered, that every human thought and emotion possesses a certain
amount of force, which can be characterized as "psychic energy". And the
stronger this thought or emotion is, the greater it's psychoenergetic
potential. In a nutshell, this energy allows the feeling to affect the
world around the person in general and other people in particular. In
other words, the products of one's psychic activities are not limited to
their own inner self, but can have outside effects.
That is exactly what the book in the school library of SH1 was supposed
to relay: "...Poltergeists are among these. Negative emotions, like fear,
worry, or stress manifest Into external energy with physical effects" -
thus, inner psychic activity can have outside effects of physical nature
and can even create such phenomena as poltergeists. That is a good
example of psychic energy. According to the mentioned book, negative
emotions (like fear, worry, pain or hatred) experienced by teenage girls
have the highest psychoenergetic potential. Nevertheless, we have seen
strong manifestations of this energy in various people in the games - be
it a middle-aged clerk, mourning the loss of his wife, a desperate and
suicidal girl, who murdered her father, or an orphan boy, who wants to
find his mother more than anything else in the world.
Another good example would be a particular girl, whose psychic energy was
so strong, that an entire town called Silent Hill was devoured by the
darkness of her inner world ("Due to the power of Alessa's thoughts, the
town is transfigured into the otherworld" - the role of *thoughts* is
noted in Lost Memories). We can also recall the negative feelings of the
prisoners of the Toluca Prison and the victims of the plague. These have
twisted the "power of the town" ("because of the unforeseen deaths of the
town's population, as well as the thoughts and feelings of the prisoners,
the original power that the town held was gradually distorted" - LM), but
that we'll discuss a bit later on.
1-2. Accumulation.
The psychic energy of thoughts and feelings has the ability to
concentrate in a particular location, which is somehow connected to the
source of the energy. Usually, such locations are places where strong
feelings have been experienced, possibly more than once. We could
theorize that this is the reason, why the natives believed, that spirits
inhabited the trees, water and earth.
And if a place comes to "store" the thoughts and feelings of a several
people, this place will eventually develop a "power" of it's own.
According to Lost Memories, the town of Silent Hill can be described as a
"spiritual sponge", which absorbs the energies of people's thoughts and
feelings in great quantities. Let us look at some of the most prominent
examples in the SH series (believe me, even the guy who wrote this whole
PA can't list ALL of them):
a) SH3: The negative thoughts of a particular suicidal girl are connected
to the merry-go-round in Lakeside Amusement Park and continue to exist
even after her death ("At the merry-go-round in the amusement park, the
"memory of Alessa (Alessa's obsession)" appears. In accordance with her
name, she is not Alessa herself but her profoundly dark emotion that
clings to this place" - LM).
b) SH2: The thoughts of a girl, who was burned alive by her mother as a
sacrifice to God still exist in the cult's church ("Alessa's thoughts
from her childhood linger in the church" - LM).
c) SH3: Bloody notes on the walls of the tunnel leading from the
amusement park to the church. According to Lost Memories, this is "The
voice of a believer that suggests self-sacrifice" - the thoughts of the
person, who sacrificed themselves to God became energy, which still
lingers in that tunnel.
d) SH2: The notes and letters of the director in SH2, Stanley Coleman's
diaries in SH3 and the notes and letters from Joseph Schreiber in SH4 -
all these are the memories and thoughts of dead people, which the
characters perceive as writings.
e) SH4: The psychic energy of the thoughts and feelings of a religious
fanatic, who sacrificed himself, was connected to an apartment and
continued to exist there after it's "owner"'s death, affecting all the
tenants of the building and even other people.
The basic concept of thoughts and feelings having some sort of mystic
power and connection to places derives from traditional Japanese beliefs.
Apart from SH, such influences can be found in many Japanese horror
stories:
a) The Ring - Sadako Yamamura's negative psychic energy continued to
exist in the well after her death and even affected a videotape and TV.
b) Dark Water - same here - the negative emotions of a drowned girl
lingers in the building, the girl searching for her mother.
c) Ju-On: The Grudge - the curse of a person, who died with hatred in
their heart continues to exist in places visited by that person. Those
who come in contact with this curse die and create a new curse.
1-3. The Inner (subconscious) world.
Some philosophers say that "Every man is a whole world", emphasizing the
depth and diversity of each person's spiritual world. According to the
ideas of the SH-series, an inner world exists subconsciously in every
single one of us. This world is made up of memories and concepts about
the real world mixed with various thoughts, fantasies, feelings and the
like. The inner world can very well reflect the fears, hopes and beliefs
of its "maker".
Understandably, some people (especially those with a strong imagination)
have far bigger and drawn-out inner worlds, filled with the strangest of
imagest. Others have a less developed inner world (which doesn't mean
it's not there). If you're having trouble understanding what such a world
would like, try to imagine, that you've just found yourself inside a
person's subconscious. There we have a country of foggy memories, there -
the state of delirious fantasies, inhabited by our greatest fears, there
- a village of images stuck in the subconscious and together it's all a
whole world, which you can travel and enjoy the... sights. And the "God"
of such would be that very person. The composition and contents of the
inner world are completely dependent on the personality and psychic
condition of its "maker" (each person's world is completely unique) - it
could become Paradise, but it has all the potential to be a Hell. It all
depends on the persons system values, world view, desires etc.
It's only reasonable to say that if separate thoughts and feelings have
"power" and "psychic energy", an inner world must also must have such
power, being able to affect the real world and other people. Accordingly,
after the death of its owner, the inner world should be able to continue
to exist as resident psychic energy in a particular place (for example,
Silent Hill), being something like a parallel world (although that's not
a very good analogy, I admit) on the border, where reality and unreality
intersect ("After all, there is no wall between here and there. It lies
on the borders where reality and unreality intersect. It is a place both
close and distant" - an explanation of a subconscious world given by a
doctor in Brookhaven hospital). The fact that such a world can actually
constitute a different reality of sorts leads us adopt the term used in
Lost Memories - "Otherworld".
To try and make understanding the concept a little easier, here's a
practical example from SH4: the inner world of a serial killer,
consisting of his memories, stereotypes and twisted fantasies continues
to exist in an apartment, influencing and drawing in the other tenants.
The mental instability of the world's creator leads to the chaotic and
confusing nature of the world ("If the subject's mind is in a state of
turmoil, the state of the otherworld will be chaotic as well" - LM).
1-4. Laws and limitations of the inner world.
The subconscious world also bows to certain laws and is subjects to some
limitations. What defines them? "His universe is different than ours --
it has limits. And in the limits of that universe, he rules as a king...
It is a world in extreme flux. Unexpected doors or walls, moving floors,
odd creatures, a world only he can control..." - the Crimson Tome tells
us of the seemingly chaotic inner world of a man. Only the "maker" of
this world can control it and establish the laws, which govern the
world's existance. It is not a conscious action (just as the very
creation of this world isn't). The laws form around the preconceptions
followed by the maker of the world (these preconceptions are manifested
in the inner world as these laws). Let's take a look at the games:
a) SH1: A little girl, influenced by the religious teachings of her
mother, truly believed in God and in her world this God existed.
b) SH1: A little girl believed that a certain liquid called "Aglaophtis"
can banish demons and this liquid (being just some sort of herbal mixture
in the real world) really does work in her world.
c) SH1: The same girl believed that a magical sign called "The Seal of
Metatron" possessed great power to destroy magic and "otherworlds" and
the drawing, *useless in the real world*, becomes a an artifact of great
importance in hers.
d) SH3: The Seal of Metatron loses its power, because the "maker" no
longer believes in its power (her belief in that the symbol is just a
piece of junk destroys its power).
e) SH4: A religious fanatic's beliefs in sacred swords, holy candles,
silver bullets that can kill ghosts etc. are reflected in his inner world.
1-5. Comparison of the subconscious world and reality.
After reading the above, we can distinguish two separate types of worlds:
a) Reality, objective world.
The outer world, that exists independent of the person psychic state.
This world is cruel and crushes anyone who opposes it. It is possible
that the cruelty of this world comes from the people that inhabit it -
tainted by sin, incapable of compassion, caring only about their personal
goals. "Why do they cling to this corrupt world?" But what happens if a
person can't bear to live in such a world?
b) Subconscious (subjective, inner) world.
What to do if a person can't accept the cruel reality the way it is? If
they can't exist in it? Heather gives us the answer to that question:
"Suffering is a fact of life. Either you learn to deal with that or you
go under. You can stay in your little dream world...". And that's just
it: You can stay in your little dream world. And when reality brings
nothing but suffering, when it surrounds the person with darkness, the
mind struggles to create a new reality to exist in. One, where it may be
possible to find happiness. "For him there is simply no other reality,
furthemore, he is happy there" - this is how a doctor in Brookhaven
hospital describes a patient, who has found happiness in denying the real
world and running away into the world of his own fantasies and delusions.
But what is this world? It is created by the subconscious and can make
any wish come true. Or rather, this world IS the subconscious - a mixture
of a person's memories, desires, hopes, a reflection of the true nature
of a person... It is like a perfect mirror, or a lake surface, reflecting
the one looking in, combining the subtlety of the image with the depth of
thought... But how does one get into that world? How does one climb into
the rabbit hole? To fully transfer into the subconscious world, one must
first sever all connections to reality. In part, this resembles autism -
a condition when the afflicted has problems making outside contacts and
prefers to dwell in the world of their personal thoughts.
1-6. Endless circuit. Theory of immortality.
It is obvious, that consciousness is inseparable from the body (in
particular, the brain), but does the death of the brain mean death of
consciousness, oblivion? That is a question many philosophers have tried
to answer throughtout the ages. Of course, consciousness is connected
with matter and cannot exist in total nothingness, but consciousness also
has the ablility to reflect matter in the subconsciousness (memory),
creating its own world of reflected matter (in this case the
consciousness is the mirror and subjective perceptions are flaws in the
mirror's surface). But if a consciousness somehow goes into this world
and is reflected in it, this world become the only reality for it. What
do we get then? The consciousness is locked in an eternal existance, an
endless circuit. It become completely autonomous. The whole thing is
reminiscent of the Circle of Ourobouros (used in SH1, by the way). Its
existance is continually fueled by the world it exists in ("nurtured by
that nightmare"). In such a case, the death of the body means little - it
just severs the last tie to reality, closing the way back. The
consciousness will not even realize this death, continuing its life in
the subconscious world. This is confirmed by Crimson Tome: "Anyone
swallowed up by that world will live there for eternity, undying".
The most prominent example of that would be SH4, where Walter Sullivan's
consciousness transferred to the subconscious world before the death of
the body. Thus, Walter, not realizing his own death in reality, went on
to live in its own world for 10 years.
1-7. Worlds mixing.
We know that a place can "absorb" the power of thoughts and feeling of
people. It can absorb the powers of several people's inner worlds. What
happens in that case? In that case, the world begin to "invade" each
other, the borders between them are blurred and in the end they merge
("Other worlds began to force their way into his universe and it began to
swell horribly"). For example, the town of Silent Hill contains the
worlds of a great number of people, which together create a communal
"otherworld". It would be logical to assume, that this world would be
governed by a rounded sum the laws governing its component worlds.
1-8. Influence.
I have already mentioned that the thoughts and feelings of people possess
a certain power. Let us now look at the effect this power has on people.
Judging by the events of the games, we can specify to particular types of
influence:
--The power of an inner world can drag other people into the world,
twisting their perception of reality and making them perceive the inner
world instead. A person under this kind of influence could find
themselves in another person's inner world. In other words, the maker of
the inner world is not the only being capable of coming in contact with.
--The power of thoughts and feelings can affect the personality, making a
person "possessed".
--Finally, the power of the mind can be used to take a life.
Further in the analysis we will closely research each type of influence,
providing examples from the games.
1-9. Who is vulnerable to the influence of such "powers"?
It's obvious, that the most susceptible would be people who have a
well-developed "sixth sense", that allows them to perceive the otherwise
invisible mystical power in some way. But what condition must the mind
attain to be the most open to psychic influence and easily drawn inside a
subconscious world? The games make it clear, that contacts with
"otherworlds" become more probable the farther one is removed from
reality. For example:
a) In a state of sleep (Richard Braintree, Frank Sunderland)
b) In a state of intoxication (Cynthia Velasquez), especially with
heavier drug substances (Peter Walsh)
c) In a low-visibility environment - like fog or darkness. According to
Lost Memories "Mist and darkness obstruct the horizon by creating a
condition in which visibility is limited. In other words, the boundary
between heaven and earth is obscured, which suggests a blurring of the
line between dream and reality".
d) We know that a person unhappy with life tends to withdraw from reality
more and more. Thus, the minds of people who have endured much suffering
in their lives are especially vulnerable to the influence of subconscious
worlds. This is confirmed by Lost Memories: "people with afflicted minds
are easily drawn to the otherworld". And that is why Silent Hill, when it
becomes a concentration point for numerous people's psychic energies,
starts to "attract" other sufferers with darkness in their hearts, akin
to a magnet.
1-10. Reality, illusion and hallucination.
To fully analyze the SH plot I had to read through a couple of psychology
books on the topic of hallucinations - here I shall write a summary, that is
required for anyone who wants to understand SH.
a) Reality - the way the surrounding world is perceived by normal
people, i.e. the true form and content of an object equal the form and
content of that object s image in human consciousness. If it s easier for
you I shall rephrase: the true (objective) object=subjective perception
of that object.
Still don t get it, do you? Hmm Tough luck Let s cook up an example from
life: on the table there is a bottle of healthdrink, the dear reader
wakes up from heavily celebrating Christmas last night, stares at the
bottle of healthdrink and SEES (i.e. perceives) just a bottle of
healthdrink. Did that make things clearer :)?
b) Hallucinations - This really shouldn t happen to normal people, i.e.
the false perception of the surrounding world. What is (or at least
supposed to be) false ? - something that only the insane can see and
no one else - i.e. the hallucinations of one person can never be seen by
anyone, except the psycho (Here is an interesting and thought-provoking
write-out from Lost Memories (the one about Red Devil and Walter
Sullivan): Sullivan says that he saw a red devil . What was it that he
saw? - No one besides Sullivan himself can really know what he saw. -
this is quite relevant, isn t it ;)?? And do these false images , that
are seen only by the psycho, actually look like?
These are elements of human subconsciousness (images from the
subconsciousness), that had floated to the surface and overlapped with
reality. Why doesn t anyone else see them? As they exist only in the
subconsciousness of a single person and do not in fact exist in reality,
so no one else can perceive them.
Example: my dear reader, having had a gulp from the bottle described in
part a), is running around the Christmas tree, waving his hands around and
screaming: Help! He s going to kill me! Santa Claus is after me!
It is therefore clear that hallucinations do not depend on reality.
c) Illusion - sometimes it happens to normal people/ The thing about
illusion is that a a person perceives a real object somehow differently,
in his own way, too subjective. It often happens because of the increasing
expectation (a premonition ) or an emotional pressure along with such
factors as sight defects (i.e. visual perception), hazy visibility (at
night, for example). The principle is that a person sees something not
completely, but partially (for example an object is hard to see) - then
the consciousness automatically finishes off the object s image,
according to that person s mood and to the information from that person s
subconsciousness. It s a bit hard to describe, so let me draw you an
example: Evening time, my dear reader wanders down the road. It s
getting darker, misty too it seems, he cannot see much and my dear reader
has been playing Silent Hill for half a day just before going for this
here walk. - so now obviously he s scared shi sufficiently scared - he
makes his way trough the mist, leaping from every shadow, turning to
follow every sound and being uneasy from the sound of his very own
footsteps etc. - anyway a complete suspense. A bit further down the road
comes another man, but my dear reader cannot quite see him (mist and
darkness, remember?) - so the only thing my dear reader sees is a ghastly
silhouette, looming in front of him. The reader, as I have already
mentioned, has spent some time playing SH and now (thanks to the
impressions from the game) is actually ready to see a monster in front of
him. He squints at the silhouette - and voila! He actually starts seeing
a monster. Of cause, my dear reader immediately takes out his UZI and
takes a quick burst at the upcoming monster (i.e. a person that he sees
as a monster.)
Hehehe, does that example remind you of something? Let s change it a bit:
A man comes back from the Church (after listening a sermon on the coming
of Christ) through the mist, he is a religious fanatic - then he in the
looming shape of a bystander (or of a dog\bush\post) he shall see an
angel or something like that :)
1-11. Subjective perception.
Hiroyuki Owaku, the writer of SH2 and SH3, once said that the concept of
the series is based around philosophical theories of subjective
perception of reality. The gist of it all is that every person sees the
world differently, depending on their personality and world-view. After
all, we really CAN'T perceive the world objectively, because we only have
what our senses are able to relay to us - thus, one object can be
perceived differently be two people: a normal person would see a green
object, while a color-blind person would see it as gray. An objective
element of reality can be perceived as evil by one person and as good by
another. A "normal" person perceives reality as it is generally thought
to be, while a psychically unstable person has a nightmarish world full
of monsters. And with that comes an interesting mechanism: the mind tends
to avoid anything that brings it suffering, allowing people to perceive
the world the way the want it to be. And that is how numerous subjective
views of the world are constructed. In a sense, we can never see the
absolute objective truth and only see what we want to see.
In the SH series, these theories are represented by a "balanced" state
between reality and subconscious worlds. While under the influence of a
inner world's power, a person is balancing between two opposed realities,
which twists their perception and makes them see a mixture of reality and
the inner world. The ground may seem to be a lattice, the walls -
pulsating hunks of flesh. But that doesn't mean that the ground and walls
are REALLY that way. Others may see it as normal ground or just see a
bottomless pit (depending on the world they are influenced by and the
degree of that influence). "In the otherworld , the world is seen
differently depending on the person" - LM.
As always, here are some examples from the games to make understanding
the concept simpler:
a) SH2: The conversations between James and Laura ("What a little girl
like you doing here anyway? - Are you blind or something??" or "You don't
even have a scratch on you! - Why should I?") make it clear that the two
are seeing different worlds. James sees an abandoned town full of
horrible monsters, while Laura sees a small resort town. "To her the town
appears to be normal; she does not see any monsters, nor does she see
Maria" - LM. But which one of them sees the REAL Silent Hill? It could be
that both of them only see what they want to see.
b) SH2: Angela lives in a world full of flames, that brings constant
pain. "For me it's always like this...", she says when James's world
touches hers for a little while. Eddie sees a world of cold-blooded
murders, resembling a huge meat factory.
c) SH2: The scene in the maze. James sees a horrible monster attack
Angela. Angela, in turn, adresses the monster as her father ("No daddy!
Please! Don t!"). Apparently, the two see the monster differently - one
as a monster, the other - as a the image of her father from her memories.
d) SH2: Near the end of the game, Angela sees James as her mother for a
short time and even calls out to him as if he was her ("Mama! Mama, I was
looking for you. Now you re the only one left. Maybe then.... Maybe then
I can rest. Mama, why are you running away? You re not Mama. It s you...
I, I m sorry.."). It may be that she wanted to meet her deceased mother
so much, that her mind was eager to perceive any appropriate object as
her. Thus, not only the world can be perceived subjectively, but other
people too.
e) SH3: According to Lost Memories, the Missionary is a member of the
cult, whom Heather sees as a monster ("Cult member transfigured by
Claudia's power, to Heather's eyes the appearance it takes is that of a
monster" - LM), which again shows us an example of subjective perception.
1-12. Descent.
I have already mentioned, that the "otherworld" that exists as a form of
psychic energy can be explained as kind of alternate reality. And this
reality can affect other people, drawing them inside itself. Initially, a
person is affected only by one world (reality) is put into a position
between two worlds and sees somewhat of an average of the two. In a
sense, it is a transitive state, with one half of the consciousness being
inside the subconscious world and the other being in reality. And that
balance is not static - as we have seen in the games, at times the mind
can go deeper into unreality, at other times - retreat back to reality.
We have all seen the game world change suddenly in the games. For
example, the "misty Silent Hill" and the "night Silent Hill" are closer
to reality, while the "nightmarish Silent Hill" and the "Nowhere" are
closer to the otherworld.
But when the influence of a subconscious world becomes sufficiently
strong, whatever links the mind to reality become weak and the
consciousness fully descends into the alternate reality, perceiving only
it (which is more akin to hallucinations or dreams, than illusion). There
are numerous examples of that in the games, but I'll only point out some
of the more general:
a) SH1: Because of the influence of an "otherworld" the main character
and a group of other people slowly descend deeper and deeper in the world
of nightmares created by a small girl - and the more power this world
gains, the more horrible it appears to the characters.
b) SH4: Under the influence of dead maniac's thoughts, people start to
get drawn into his subconscious world.
1-13. What really happens to a person, who is in subconscious?
What happens to the physical body while the consciousness wanders the
subconscious world? There are three basic opinions on that, and each of
them is supported by several facts in the games, but none of them is the
the one and only truth. Most probably, the truth is a combination of all
three:
a) The characters are sleeping.
First of all, a small note: not only is the world perceived by the
protagonist the way it really is, but their own body may not be so. In
some instances, we can be almost sure that it is not the body, but a
representation of the self in the inner world. Just like when you're
experiencing all kinds of misadventures during nightmares, your body is
sleeping soundly in bed (see "Nightmare on Elm Street" and "Cell"). Let's
take a look at the games:
-- SH4. During your first visit to the Building World, return to the
apartment and look out of the window. You will see, that while Richard
Braintree is trapped in the "otherworld" of Walter's subconscious, his
body is lying in his apartment - he's sleeping.
-- SH4. Similarly, when Eileen Galvin is wandering the "otherworld" with
Henry, her physical body is in St.Jerome Hospital.
-- SH1. After one of the numerous transitions Harry finds himself in an
alternate version of the "Green Lion" and says an interesting line: "I
don't know what's real anymore... I could have had a car accident and now
I'm lying unconscious in a hospital bed... but maybe this is all just
going on in my head". And one of the Bad endings implies that all the
time Harry was in the "Otherworld" his body was in the car, bleeding out
after the crash.
b) The characters wander the town, incorrectly perceiving it.
The sleep theory, while good, can't explain all the events of the series.
For example, if Heather was sleeping her head off in some gutter, how did
she manage to get home after all? The same goes for James, the idea of
whom sleeping in the toilet during all the events of the game is... a
little dubious.
It would be logical to assume that the link between the consciousness and
the physical body during alteration of perception is akin to the
transition from normal perception to illusion and then - hallucination.
The deeper the mind goes into the subconscious, the weaker that link is
(accordingly, the extreme would be a complete separation from the
physical body, resulting in death). In the cases, where the consciousness
is still strongly in touch with reality, alteration of perception
manifests itself as a distorted perception of the real - the person walks
around the town (mall, subway, etc.) and almost all of their actions
happen in the real world too. But as the influence of the "otherworld"
grows, the affected person approaches a state of catatonia or delirious
sleep.
Here's an example from SH3: Heather "switches" to the nightmare
perception on the second floor of Brookhaven Hospital. In that state, she
goes downstairs to room C4. There she finds a ladder, which wasn't there
before. She uses it to climb down a strange HOLE and ends up in a
nightmarish sewer. But when she return to normal perception, she comes to
in room C4. From this we can try and rebuild the events as they happened
in the real world: Heather goes into nightmare mode on the second floor,
went downstairs, entered room C4 and then lost consciousness (the ladder
and the sewer were just a delusion) and woke up after some time there.
That way b) doesn't really contradict a).
c) People vanish from the real world!?
Some moments in the series could lead one to believe, that in certain
circumastances people who are drawn into an "otherworld" simply vanish
from the real world without a trace. This would seem to be a load of
bull... but still... we know that during the transition from a
subconscious world to reality the character simply vanishes from the
former.
Example from SH4: When Cynthia's consciousness returns to reality for a
short time, she vanishes from the Subway World. The same happens to Henry
in the Hospital World ("You just disappeared all of a sudden!").
But can that mechanism work in the opposite direction? If we assume that
"absolute reality" doesn't exist and that matter is relative, the "real"
and "subconscious" worlds become equal, with the former simply having
more minds enclosed in it. In this case, a person vanishing from the
"real" world at transition to another is no big deal.
SH4 note: The story of Peter Walsh, who hasn't been seen since climbing
the stairs in front of his friends (to become trapped in a subconscious
world of a maniac and find his death there) support the "vanishing"
theory. But Richard's body lying in the real world says that the body
doesn't vanish. What determines the chances of a body vanishing is
another mystery left by the authors for fans to crack their heads on.
1-14. Death in reality and in the "otherworld".
Let's look now at how the death of the body affects the mind's presence
in the "otherworld" and death in the "otherworld" affects the body.
a) The influence of a subconscious world can lead to death in the real
world.
The deeper the mind descends into an "otherworld", the weaker its link to
the physical body becomes. But what happens when that link is finally
severed? The answer can be found in Joseph Schreiber's notes: "You've
seen that world as well... But if you get sucked into it, it's not just a
nightmare. Don't get lost in there. If you get pulled in, you'll be
killed". If the consciousness separates from the body completely,
physical death occurs. But what does this death look like?
SH4: Under the influence of Walter's world, Joseph Schreiber slowly dies.
"My head hurts... My eyes are starting to go blind... The pain... I can
feel my body starting to die...". We can assume that such a death is
preceded by a strong headache.
SH1: According to the SH1 plot commentary, one officer Gucci, who was
investigating the cult's drug operations, died because of Alessa's
"power" (basically, the power of her thoughts and feelings). "Officer
Gucci unlikely to be murdered. He apparently died naturally. But medical
records show Officer Gucci Had no prior symptoms of Heart disease". Thus
we can also assume that a death caused by the influence of an
"otherworld" resembles a heart attack.
SH4: If you get the "21 Sacraments" ending, Walter's subconscious world
accumulates immense power and begins to affect all residents of the South
Ashfield Heights Apartment Building. "All other residents of South
Ashfield Heights have been rushed to St. Jerome's Hospital, many
complaining of severe chest pains". Can this be somehow connected with
officer Gucci's death?
By the way, the aforementioned "Ring" reference comes to mind - in the
book, Sadako Yamamura could use her telekinetic abilities to kill people.
Her victims died of heart failure.
b) The power of thoughts can kill people.
Yes, in the context of the SH-series, it's quite true. "She could make
things happen with her mind. She could kill people just by wishing for
it" - a description of girl, whose psychic energy was strong enough to
affect people in lethal ways (and as we learn in SH4, there were many
such children). If you ever wish somebody to die, be careful. Who knows,
maybe it'll come true?
c) How does death in the "otherworld" affect the body.
There are several possible variants present in the games. Let's look at
them:
SH1: Harry dies in the very beginning of the game, but wakes up in the
cafe. The good endings imply that this death did not result in the body's
death. Like in a dream - if you die in the dream, you'll still wake up,
knowing that this was just a dream.
SH3: There are several instances in the game, where Heather can die in
the "otherworld", but be alright in reality (for example, the dream at
the start of the game). But if she, while wandering the town with altered
perception, falls from a REAL roof or under a REAL train, she will die.
SH4: For some reason, people's deaths in the "otherworld" affects their
bodies. "I do know that if you get killed here... Then you die in the
real world too". Recall "Nightmare on Elm Street".
Conclusion: as we can see, the mechanics of the "otherworld" vary with
the installments of the series. We can theorize, that the strength of the
world's influence determines its effects on reality, along with the laws
established by the maker of that world. Finally, the location can also
play some role here - particularly, IN Silent Hill, or OUTSIDE Silent
Hill.
d) Are wounds received in the "otherworld" reflected on the real body?
Judging by what we've seen so far, no, they don't. But SH4 hints that
they MAY appear on the body if the person dies in the "otherworld"
(Walter's victims are the best example).
SH1-3: There is nothing to point out that injuries inflicted by the
monsters are reflected on the real body.
SH4: Eileen was injured in the "otherworld" (Walter broke her arm,
damaged her eye and gave her an overall heavy beating) but in the
endings, where she doesn't die we can see her in the real world - her eye
and arm are fine and she doesn't even have a bruise! Makes me wonder...
SH4: But if Eileen dies in the "otherworld", we get a news report on the
radio, which tells us, that "The woman was immediately rushed to St.
Jerome s Hospital, but died a short time later of her INJURIES". In
addition, according to the police reports, the bodies of Walter's victims
were found with wounds identical to those received in the "otherworld"
(Jasper Gein's corpse is burned, for example). We can only assume that
the injuries are only reflected if the victim dies.
e) Death in the "otherworld" is not final.
While in an "otherworld", one (or, rather, one's consciousness)
practically can't REALLY die. It is doomed to exist in the world (at
least until the world itself is somehow destroyed). See 1-6 for details.
SH4: No matter how many times you kill the "man in blue coat", he will
still come back, because the laws of his world make him immortal.
SH4: Despite the fact that death in Walter's world leads to death of the
physical body, the victims continue to exist in the "otherworld" as
ghosts.
1-15. Spirits.
So, what happens to those swallowed up by an "otherworld"? The Crimson
Tome has something to say about that: "Anyone swallowed up by that world
will live there for eternity, undying. They will haunt that realm as a
spirit". Such spirits become trapped in the world, forced to exist
according only to its laws. Such laws may, for example, turn people into
monsters or ghosts.
SH1-3: A nurse, who used to work in the Alchemilla Hospital was devoured
by the "otherworld" and continued her existance there even after her
death, doomed to eternal suffering. The laws of the world transformed her
into a horrible monster nurse.
SH4: Walter's victims, after dying in his world, take the form of
invincible, undying, restless ghosts.
1-16. Possessed.
One form of psychoenergetic influence is described in the occult magazine
in SH3: "The souls of those who had died suddenly by suicide or accident
don't realize they're dead. Sometimes they stay put and haunt the
particular place. These spirits have lost their human senses and memories
and can only keep replaying the pain and sadness of the moment they died.
The pain can get so bad that they turn to humans for salvation - or they
begrudge humans they lives. At such times they can posess humans. Places,
known as 'famous suicide spots' or 'high accident areas' are allways to
blame".
In other words, people's souls (and a soul in our case is also an entity
of psychoenergetic potential) can also be absorbed into locations and
continue to exist as ghosts. Usually, they lose all recollection of their
lives and simply repeat the moments of their death. When the pain gets
especially bad, the influence increases and can affect other people by
means of POSSESSION, affecting the behavior and personality of the
victim. You should be careful if you find yourself in a place, that has
accumulated the souls of dead people. You could easily get under their
influence.
But a person can be possessed not only by a soul of a dead man, but also
by other kinds of psychic energy - such as thoughts and feelings. Let's
get started on the examples:
SH1: Falling under the influence of Alessa Gillespie's power, Cybil
Bennet becomes possessed by the girl's overwhelming feeling of hatred and
loses all control of herself, attacking Harry.
SH3: As she regains her lost memories, Heather becomes more and more
possessed by a different person.
SH4: The resident of 302 receives the memories of the previous tenant,
changing their memories.
SH4: Eileen Galvin slowly becomes possessed by Walter's childhood
memories and loses control of her actions.
1-17. The spiral of reincarnation.
After the physical body's death, the soul of the deceased may transfer
itself into another person (see Occult Magazine), possessed by the
psychic energy. And in some cases this soul can overpower the intial
personality and thus be "reborn", gain a new life in a new body. But it
can also be in a dormant state, not showing its presence most of the time.
An obvious example is SH3: the soul of a dead girl, dormant in Heather
for a long time (in her subconscious, actually) begins to slowly wake up
and replace Heather's personality.
1-18. Monsters. Could they be?...
An "otherworld" can be filled with strange creatures, born from the
mind's subconscious - most of them are bloodthirsty monsters, attacking
the characters on sight. But what is the nature of the monsters? Are they
real, illusion or hallucination?
a) Are the monsters real?
Just like the inner world, the monsters can't really be called real (they
certainly aren't evil mutants actually living in the town) - they're only
real to those who can perceive them. Other people may not see the
monsters at all, or see them differently.
SH2: If PyramidHead and his Great Knife were actual matter, I think James
would look more like a mass of bloody meat... And can REAL wounds
inflicted by REAL monsters be so easily healed by drinking some potion?
SH2: The notes found near a corpse read: "I saw those demons. They were
there, I'm certain. But my friend says he didn't see anything. If that's
true, does that mean that what I saw was an illusion?". Not everyone can
see monsters, which deals another heavy blow to their "reality".
SH2: Eddie says that he didn't see any "red pyramid things" ("James: You
re not friends with that red, pyramid thing, are you? Eddie: Red pyramid
thing? I don t know what yer talkin about. Honest"). Apparently, he
doesn't see James' monsters.
SH2: Laura doesn't see any monsters, which once again proves that they
are not objectively real. She doesn't perceive James' world, so she
doesn't perceive the monsters in it.
SH3: After the mall level Douglas says "And that monster, what the hell
was that?". Obviously, if two or more people are under the influence of
one world, they can see the same monsters and these monsters are real to
them.
SH1: When Kaufmann first meets Harry, he says: "Something's gone
seriously wrong. Did you see those monsters?". Since both are in the same
"otherworld", they both see its monsters.
b) "Monsters? They look like monsters to you?"
In one of his interviews, Hiroyuki Owaku, emphasizing the idea of
subjective perception in Silent Hill, said this about monsters: "Maybe
they are human beings just like you, maybe even your neighbors. What you
see might be true or false". So the monsters are... people? Normal
people, living in the town? Proof of this can be found throughout the
games:
SH2: The key to the Woodside Apartment Building is held by a monster (a
Lying Figure dressed in a jacket and pants). Also near the monster is a
map, where the entrance to Woodside is marked. So, the monster drew the
map, took the key and died before reaching WSA. That's one strange
monster...
SH2: Another dead Lying Figure dressed in jacket and pants can be found
in the streets. There are several notes on the ground around it. "I'm
going to write everything that I've learned so far. Maybe that will help
you out somehow. If you're reading this, it probably means I'm already
dead" - could this have been written by a monster? But it WAS written by
that monster - only, it's James who sees a monster in what is a simple
dead man.
SH2: The same notes describe monsters: "It seems that they're attracted
to light; They also react strongly to sound; those creatures can be
killed". They can see, they can hear (and in SH3 they can smell also) and
can be killed. Just like humans.
SH2: In the south-western part of town, on the bridge (destroyed in
James' world) there is another dead Lying Figure with a map next to it.
The parking lot and bowling are marked on the map. So, monsters have cars
and like to play bowling?
SH2: Remember the place, where you kill your first monster? Visit it
later (after the hospital) and you'll find the gate closed and sealed
with a police line. Why is the police investigating the murder of a
monster? Is Sunderland a suspect?
SH2: During their last meeting, Angela sees James as her mother. If
Angela can see James (a living human) as her dead mother, then James can
probably see other people as monsters.
SHPB: When Cybil sees a monster dog for the first time, it is far in the
distance. If you look closely, you'll see that it's an ordinary dog, fur
and all - but in the next frame we see a Groaner. Now, did Cybil mistake
a monster for a dog or a dog for a monster?
SH3: Info taken from Lost Memories: "'Missionary'. Cult member
transfigured by Claudia's power, to Heather's eyes the appearance it
takes is that of a monster" - now it's an official source that clearly
states that the monster is a cult member, whom Heather perceives as a
monster. Harry was right when he wrote "I mean, appearances can be
deceiving".
SH3: For a number of reasons, Heather only sees Leonard as a monster.
SH3: Let's look at LM again: "Even now I get lots of questions about the
true nature of creatures. What Vincent says in the library room is
something that was provided as an answer to this question". So no, it
wasn't some crazy joke, unlike what many fans like to believe. Let us
recall that episode:
Vincent: "You re the worst person in this room. You come here and enjoy
spilling their blood and listening to them cry out. You feel excited when
you step on them, snuffing out their lives."
Heather: "Are you talking about the monsters?"
Vincent: "Monsters...??? They look like monsters to you?"
(Heather is shocked. Horrified by the momentary understanding of what she
has done, she only says "oh no...", it looks like she's about to vomit)
Vincent: "Don t worry, it s just a joke. ;) "
There are more examples, but I think the above, coupled with one of the
authors' comments is enough to prove, that oftentimes, when killing
monsters, we were killing normal people, who the characters saw as
twisted creatures, symbolizing their fear, hatred etc. As Cybil said,
"before you pull the trigger, know who you're shooting". But how can a
deluded person tell who they're shooting at if they believe they're
shooting a monster? Never arm a psycho.
Most people have trouble killing others of their kind. It invokes a sense
of guilt, psychological pain (remember James in the meat factory: "I... I
killed a... a HUMAN being... A HUMAN being..."), but I've already
mentioned that the mind tends to avoid pain if possible. And killing a
monster isn't that much of a moral problem: "Well I guess you re not a
person anyway" - Heather says with a wry smile and kills him. It may very
well be, that alteration of perception is a result of the mind's desire
to escape reality. The "monster-human" parallel is one of the most
interesting ideas in the series: it makes the player reflect on their
actions to compare the protagonist's perception with possible reality, it
increases immersiveness and fear factor and also is a very prominent
representation of the theme of guilt, present in the series. Lastly, it
is a good way to fend off moralists.
Real-world analogy: at this point we can refer to existing criminological
theories, which state that some mentally unstable assaulters attack their
victims not because of some sort of personal resentment, but only because
they see them as representations of their fears, memories, etc. For
example, attacks on children are often identified to have subconscious
motives when they are committed as a way of releasing frustration caused
by childhood experiences of emotional unacceptance by parents, or heavy
feelings of guilt incited by them. In such cases, the victim is perceived
as a symbol of one's unhappy childhood and the assaulter attempts to
destroy this symbol to free themselves from the frustration.
c) Are all monsters real people?
Despite Owaku's commentary, I still have my doubts about *ALL* monsters
being real people. There are cases where monsters CAN'T be people. Some
of them have to be either souls of the dead trapped in the "otherworld"
or the characters' hallucinations.
SH1: It must be obvious to anyone that the flying mothlike monsters are
an element of Alessa's world, not flying residents of Silent Hill.
SH4: It's quite hard to imagine that the dogs that walked out of the
men's toilet in the beginning of the game are somehow connected to the
real world.
1-19. God of the inner world.
One thing that is present in all installments is a strange creature,
living in the deepest corners of the subconscious world - God. Of course,
the nature of this God changes each time. It possesses the greatest power
in the subconscious world, but its role should not be overestimated -
it's origin is the same as all the other creatures: a manifestation of
the person's delusions ("'God' is the result of someone's delusions just
like the other creatures" - LM).
Let's take a look at God in the games:
a) Silent Hill 1: Alessa's God\Samael. The product of Alessa's hatred and
religious beliefs. Her pain, hate and the desire to die were manifested
in the form of an angel of death, which, appropriately, is supposed to
bring death to all people (whom Alessa hates) and free Alessa from the
pain of life. Thus, God reflects the destructive part of the girl's
personality, her strongest feelings and subconscious desires, which
served as catalyst at the creation of her own world. But the point
remains that God is simply a construct, created by a human mind.
b) Silent Hill 2: There is no particular God here per se (which can
partly be blamed on James' seemingly nonreligious nature). But the
functions of such a God a perfectly well served by PyramidHead. As we
know, James suffers from an overwhelming feeling of guilt desired to be
punished ("That s why I needed you.... Needed someone to punish me for my
sins") and PyramidHead is the perfect manifestation of this subconscious
guilt. In James' subconscious world, he attacks him, kills Maria and
sticks the painful truth in James' face. In a nutshell, the God of James'
world is James himself, particularly, the destructive part of his
personality.
Another creation that could be named a God is "Mary" - the final boss. A
reflection of James' confused feelings towards Mary's death, taking the
twisted form of an upturned victim of a skewering.
c) Silent Hill 3: Alessa's\Claudia's God. Due to the power of Alessa's
beliefs the nature of God remains the same, but its image changes,
because of the merging between Alessa's subconscious feelings and
Claudia's delusions, desires and memories. The God is now something like
a cross between the original SH1 Demon and Alessa. It bears the latter's
face (because Claudia believed that God should look like her) but if you
take a closer look at her body, you'll notice that it is that of Samael
(because Claudia implanted Alessa's soul in herself and the God was a
creation of Alessa's mind).
d) Silent Hill 4: The Room: The fetus. An orphan named Walter Sullivan
couldn't bear with the surrounding reality. He needed support, care and
love that he did not receive in his childhood. He wanted someone to love
him, to hide from the terrible world. And so he created her - the Mother.
His subconscious world reflects that - the outer world is represented as
something horrible (the subway world, the water prison, you name it), it
is filled with fear and loathing ("he was still filled with bitterness
and resentment towards the rest of the world" - Joseph Schreiber) and the
center of that world is South Ashfield Heights (seen as an enormous
living organism) and especially room 302 as his Mother (and at the same
time her womb), where God (the fetus) resides. Basically, it is a
representation of Walter's desire to be in the safety of a loving
mother's womb.
As we can see, "God" is the manifestation of a person's strongest desires
in their own subconscious world. Being the representation of the
strongest feeling there is, it gets only stronger if that feeling grows
(that is why Dahlia Gillespie and Claudia Wolf nurtured their respective
Gods by feeding the "mothers'" feelings of hatred and suffering). And as
it gets stronger, the world it resides in also gains a stronger
influence, affecting more and more people. Dying Inside has an
interesting phrase - "God is Good, YOU are Evil" - i.e. it is possible to
create a paradise using an inner God, but only if the inner world is the
perfect image of that paradise. Only, people are never perfect. "YOU are
Evil". When Heather asks Vincent "'God'? Are you sure you don t mean
'Devil'?" he doesn't answer "Whichever YOU like" just to freak her out.
While God is the product of the same power in every installment, it is
strictly subjective. It can be God or Devil, because it only reflects the
nature of the person who created it.
1-20. Reality of the "otherworld".
The "otherworld" can't be called reality in the full sense of the word,
because it can only be perceived by a minority of people, effects in an
"otherworld" rarely translate to reality. But we also know that "reality"
is only that, which is thought to be real. Thus, if an inner world gains
enough power, it can swallow up all people and can easily become reality.
Would that be the dawn of a new world? Would that world be hell or
paradise? That is question yet unanswered.
2. The Power of Silent Hill.
Silent Hill. A sacred place where the deepest feelings and memories live
forever. What is the mysterious power of the town... what are its origins?
2-1. The Silent Call.
Pain... Suffering... Hatred... these feelings have always been associated
with the town of Silent Hill. Times went on - from sacrifices, to the
Civil War, to religious conflicts and sadistic executions. The minds of
the victims of these times refused to take in the cruel reality and
descended into their own subconscious worlds. But even their all of their
pain and hatred lived and they continued their existance in the town,
merging, slowly creating a single horrible "otherworld" filled with
terror and bloodthirsty monstrosities, born of sick and wounded minds.
With time, the concentration of this negative energy in Silent Hill
became so great, that the town itself gained a tremendous "power" and
became a sort of a magnet, attracting all such energy, calling to people
with darkness in their hearts. "This Town called you too, James".
2-2. Alteration.
Under certain conditions, a person who comes to Silent Hill can fall
under the influence of the "otherworld" (more so for those with "darkness
in their hearts"). What will the town look like to that person?
a) Communication
Under the influence of the town's power, people begin to perceive
elements of other people's worlds, feelings, thoughts. That is because in
an otherworld the limitations of reality disappear and people's thoughts
can contact without concern of time ("It would seem that in the
otherworld, time and physical limitations are transcended and peoples'
thoughts are communicated" - LM). That is why in the otherworld we can
find notes and diaries, which are reflections of other's thoughts or even
meet the souls of long dead people.
SH2: the director's notes and the patients' diaries are all reflections
of people's thoughts, that take written form in the otherworld. The
ability to meet and speak with Ernest Baldwin is evidence of contact with
the dead being possible. The fact that at some point James can perceive
the inner worlds of Angela and Eddie can also be interpreted as contact
of thoughts.
SH3: 17 years later the Harry's notes still remain in the otherworld - it
would appear that time isn't a factor here... The woman in the church is
proof of communication with the dead and Stanley's diaries are
reflections of his thoughts.
b) Manifestation of one's subconsciousness.
Of course, people under the influence of Silent Hill's power do not only
perceive other's worlds. They also see manifestations of their own world!
The thoughts and feelings of a person inside Silent Hill are merged with
the bigger "otherworld" (you could say that the town feeds on them) and
is manifested in the form of strange images born in the subconscious.
SHDI: The town feeds on the nightmares and demons, created by the mind of
Troy Abernati, whose heart is filled with darkness.
SH2: The town absorbs the fears and delusions of a clerk, who come there
in search of his dead wife. They are manifested in the form of horrible
monsters, labyriths, formed of memories, etc.
SH2: Different people perceive the world differently, depending on which
world's influence is stronger in them and also on the contents of their
own worlds (which are reflected in the "otherworld" and slowly merge into
it).
The "otherworld" of Silent Hill is not just another, dark side of the
town. It is also a reflection of the collective unconscious, the average
of all subconscious worlds and psychic energy in it.
2-3. Otherworld outside of Silent Hill.
SH3 and SH4 show us that the influence of inner worlds is not limited to
Silent Hill. Of course, Silent Hill did accumulate a great power over the
course o history, but the source of that power is the human mind,
people's thoughts and feelings ("the human mind is where the otherworld
dwells and holds power" - LM). Therefore, the psychic energy phenomenon
doesn't have to be connected to Silent Hill in any way. It can manifest
itself anywhere, provided the feelings are sincere and truly strong. And
this means that any location (not just SH) can accumulate "otherworld"
energies. It could even be a simple apartment...
_______________________________________________________________________________
PART 2: RELIGION OF SILENT HILL
_______________________________________________________________________________
PART 2
RELIGION OF SILENT HILL
From immemorial time there is the special religion in the city, started in
the ancient Indian stories. Religion of pain and suffers, of
self-sacrifice for rescue. It is considered, that the belief supports the
person in a life, gives a Hope... But what the religion of Pain can give
to the person? Whether it is able to clear the person's from suffering of
a sin, from the nasty of a material world and to make him better, to open
the Gates to Paradise?
Let's closely look on the religion of the Silent Hill, to understand
events of game better, psychology of characters and, probably even, to
answer the philosophical questions above.
1. MYTHOLOGY ANALYSIS
Doctrine of a cult "the Order" is an ancient myth about the Birth of the
God, and was passing from father to son ("a myth that has passed down over
the years") and then it was written down as six pictures. My opinion is,
for the high-grade analysis of religion of SH it is necessary to begin
with the careful analysis of its mythological side since here we can
establish bases of religious beliefs and beliefs of the cultists, and also
to learn more about a history of a cult. But I want to warn you - since it
is a religious MYTH (besides edited by "leaders" of a cult) there is a lot
of symbolical elements, a mix of real historical events with religious
fiction - and so I recommend to approach to myths kind an abstract.
1-1. Origin
The text: "In the beginning people had nothing. They bodies ached and they
hearts held nothing but hatred. They fought endlessly, but death never
came. They despaired, stuck in the eternal quagmire".
Meaning: According to beliefs of the cult, for a long time ago there was not
any human world, how we understand this word. There were only immortal
people who hadn't anything except hatred and darkness in their hearts...
Not even people, probably only incorporeal souls (they did not have
physical body and there was no death), forever closed in infinite vacuum,
absolute Emptiness. During the eternity, these "people" filled with hatred
were at war among themselves caused a pain to everybody - and could not
escape from this never-ending vicious circle of aggression and sufferings
as they did not know about death. Anyhow, everyone is the enemy of
everyone, - and a choice of human's soul was to make the violence over
colleagues. And the other people make, they do not have Hope, there is no
overall goal, they would like to reach - people would like only to be
pleased, even using the most severe methods and, thus, all of them are
stuck in a bog of despair.
1-2. Birth
The text: "A man offered a serpent to the Sun and prayed for salvation, a
woman offered a reed to the Sun and asked for joy. Feeling pity for the
sadness that had overrun the earth, God was born from this two people".
Meaning: Once there are two persons appeared among all the madness in world
around (the man and the woman - by analogy with "Adam" and "Eve") who have
seen the Observing Eye in the sky - the Sun. And the hope and compassion
arises in their souls. "Adam" and "Eve" believed in the power of the Sun
(as there wasn't anything they can trust) and, wishing to release other
people from the suffering of infinite existence, they asked the Sun by
means of ritual to help them. These people have presented a victim to the
Sun: the man, praying for rescue, has presented the Snake to the Sun, and
the woman, asking the Sun for pleasure, has presented the Reed (probably,
this mythical "ritual" metaphorically describes the process of conception
of the child-god by two people? For example, in culture of some South
American Indian people tribes there were similar ceremonies of "give the
snake and fruit to the Sun and the Sky", consisting in copulation of the
man and the woman who are taking part in this ritual and conception of the
child in glory to deities). But whence people could know for certain, that
ritual will work? They could not know, - people have simply believed all
soul... And the human's belief possesses wonder-working force. And as a
result of these mystical rituals the miracle happened - the God has been
given birth from "Adam" and "Eve".
Pay attention to an interesting formulation " Feeling pity for the
sadness, that had overrun the earth, God was born from this two people ",
hinting that the God was because he felt humans' pity and sadness - thus
we can tell, that cult trusted, that the God can be given birth only if he
will feel humans' sadness, will feel, that this world requires him - here
we can find obvious connection with ideas of the power\energy of the
feelings.
Probably, you have already felt that this part of a myth is penetrated
with bible motives of Adam and Eve. It would be desirable to pay your
attention to the basic distinction - as against the Christian doctrine, in
doctrines of a cult it's known that the God hasn't created people (their
immortal souls), but people have given birth to the God. Have given birth
by their suffering and belief in rescue... Rather symbolically, "the Bible
on the contrary".
1-3. Salvation
The text: "God made time and divided it into day and night. God outlined
the road to salvation and gave people joy and God took endless time away
from the people".
Meaning: So, the God has come to the Earth - but he/she is not so
that God that grants "democracy" and freedom. On the contrary, he has
created the new world full of various laws and rigid restrictions (I'll
remind lines from SH4 of the world created from human ideas and feelings
through ritual: "But his universe is different than ours - it has limits.
And in the limits of that universe, he rules as a king") - but people were
happy to be with these restrictions bringing the Order in their existence.
Let's consider the sense of all changes of the world brought by the God:
a) The god has taken away eternal time and immortality from people.
When the God has created the new world, each of immortal souls has been
allocated a "physical" body in this new world - but the life of this body
has been limited, let's consider the reasons of restriction of time:
First, the person who has not limit in time starts to ignore time and
delays some things- but when the merciful God has limited time allowed to
the person, and then people began to value time - it initiated human
activity and thirst of self-development.
Second, now fear of death limited human anarchy - the "Christian" morals,
now people stopped to cause pain to each other (even because of fear to be
killed either).
Thirdly, now there was an exit for these people - they could get rid of
the sufferings by means of death at any moment.
b) Divine Time has been created and divided per day and night.
Immortal people did not need to know time because they did not depend on
it in any way. But now, when people have realized fragility of the stay in
this world, time began to play a huge role in their world.
As we understand, dream was not required for immortal people - they could
not see any dreams. But having created Day and Night, the God gave to the
suffering people an ability to enjoy not only the real world, but also
dreams (where people could realize any dreams, not causing any harm to
each other), thus as though having drawn a distinction between a reality
and illusion.
ñ) About to road to Paradise and pleasure. The god has given people Hope.
Now their life has got sense and also people had an overall target uniting
their efforts - now the individual purposes have given up the place of the
common - and people have stopped to be at war among them - humans' pain
began to cease, giving the place to happiness.
1-4. Creation
The text: "God created beings to lead people to obedience to Her. The red
god - Xuchilbara; the yellow god - Lobsel Vith; many gods and angels.
Finally, God set out to create Paradise, where people would be happy just
by being there ".
Meaning: the God by means of his force has created a lot of wonderful
creatures - gods and angels who actually supervised over undertakings of
people and, probably, were something like examples for imitation for
humans (for example, Valtiel, we'll talk about him later). Also it is
possible to assume, that gods were responsible for functions of change of
day and night, death of people, etc. - but it is not so important. Gods'
colors are rather interesting (I think, Walter Sullivan, known by SH2 saw
something suspiciously reminding Xuchilbara). Look at the right side of a
picture. What we can see here? A red Pyramid... Now, make some conclusions
of red god's shape, named Xuchilbara.
By the way, if people should admire to the gods, and there were a plenty
of gods (and they were a bit different) - that quite probably, that people
could not admire to every god. It means that there could be groups of
admirers (see. SECTS) of Xuchilbara, Lobsel Vith, etc. - everyone was
admired to the favourite one - could it lead to the disagreements between
believing people?
Other originality of the above-stated part of a myth consists that the
mythical God is mentioned in a feminine gender... In SH1 the God was
mentioned exclusively in a masculine gender ("HE has been nurtured by that
nightmare" - Dahlia Gillespie said about the summoned God in the last
meeting). Here it is necessary to mention, that, for example, many of the
Satan deities has no gender - for example, the Devil is mentioned both as
"he" and as "she" - the same happened with Silent Hill religion - and the
shape of the God periodically made various changes at numerous editing
religion of Silent Hill and some imported elements of other religions. In
any case, for me "God" is more habitually ("SHE" or "Goddess" sounds
somehow clumsily) - and farther I'll name him like this so persistently.
And to you, my dear reader - is NECESSARY to reconcile to my habits. :)
Comments to shape of the God from a myth: In the picture we can see God's
shape - is white, long-haired woman in a red dress. Because of such
strange clothes, we can think, that the long bright red dress symbolizes
blood (reminds a bloody trace, flowing for the God), or fire (as we can
see the God in this dress, it seems like She is grasped by a bright
flame). As we can understand, the shape of a deity esteemed in the
religious organization repeatedly changed, since times of this myth.
1-5. Promise
The text: "But there God's strength ran out and She collapsed. The entire
world's people grieved for this unfortunate event. Yet God breathed Her
last, She returned to the dust, promising to come again".
Meaning: Soon after creation of the world and some wonderful creatures,
God's powers have run low, and She has suddenly died, and she had no time
to complete the "Paradise". Certainly, all people regretted for that event
(at least as the myth says) - but even the best doctors (even who had the
"wonder-working hands"), could not make anything to help the dying God.
Before her death she has promised, that she will return and will complete
the Paradise (under the doctrine of belief of a cult it turns out, that
our world is the unfinished Paradise from the first Coming).
Why the God has died? I'll answer: according to religion, the God should
come to people the heaviest minutes when their PAIN is great. And when the
purpose and Hope has appeared, people have felt happiness again - and the
pain began to pass, and the powers have left the God. In a myth the reason
of death of the God is unrevealed - but, we also can think, that something
happened with those who "has created" this God from the power of their
thoughts\feelings.
1-6. Faith
The text: "So God has not been lost. We must offer our prayers and not
forget our faith. We wait in hope for the day, when the path to Paradise
will be opened".
Meaning: And even after death of the God people have not lost hope for
coming of Paradise. They have based a cult which task was to approach the
Second Coming. Believers continued to pray and wait for the time when
gates of Paradise will be opened again...
Pay attention to an illustration of a myth - there we can see two members
of the religious organization (the man and the woman - as we'll find out
later, they were called Nicolas and Jennifer), praying at "a maternity
hole" (which we can see in a cellar of church in SH3) together with the
girl in a white cassock (holy Alessa? - but we'll return to this question
further) - REMEMBER this picture - later you will understand, why do I pay
your precious attention to this picture.
1-7. Morals of a myth
Any religious myth contains a deep sense inside. What the morals will
contain a cult's myth? Let's take a look at the events of a myth: if
people do not have belief and hope in hearts they will be doomed for
mutual hatred and eternal suffering. But the belief in human's souls can
make a miracle, change the world to the better side, give happiness - and
if the hope and belief of approaching of Paradise in the hearts of people
this best world will come eventually. As we can understand, that force of
the human's belief can change a life to the better side (to give birth to
the God and to create Paradise), there is nothing reprehensible. But in
practice light ideals are frequently deformed up to unrecognizable - it is
necessary to remember as the doctrine of a cult became so perverted
because of importing some elements of sadism and devil's followers...
Light doctrines at their practical realization as it is usual, have turned
into a bloody nightmare...
1-8. Date of the first Coming described in a myth
As we can understand, this myth represents an artful design of real events
and fiction. Let's try to separate the truth from a lie, to find out the
true essence of the events described in a myth and, probably, even to
define the date of these events in a myth.
For the beginning it would be desirable, that you have remembered a bell
tower in the cult's church in SH3 where the portraits of three basic
sacred religious organizations "the Order" were held (from left to right):
Saint Jennifer, the Mother of god - holy Alessa with the child on her
hands and the divine doctor Saint Nicolas. Especially pay attention on
Saint Jennifer. "Unwavering faith under death's blade" - says an
inscription in a picture, remember it.
Further it is meaningful to remember clearly the statues in Rosewater Park
- according to Lost Memories, these statues were in park after the civil
war in the USA 1861-1865. And there is a monument for Jenni *** Carroll
(Jennifer, Jennifer!!), who was a victim (victim of persecution by t
********* ans) and an inscription - "that here has taken place should be
never forgotten". So what is t ********* ans? If you will open the text
files of the game, you will see, that it actually means "the christians",
- then everything became clearly (we'll remember a picture of Saint
Jennifer - "Unwavering faith under death's blade") and the picture of
these events which have occurred in those far times becomes clearly: local
christians, having found out, that Jennifer consists in the occult
organization have simply killed her near to the Toluca lake (therefore
rosewater - because of blood) for religious beliefs of this girl (but even
before death Jennifer's faith was unwavering). We know that Saint Jennifer
has been killed after the civil war of 1861-1865 and approximately at the
same time her monument has been built. So, Jennifer lived with Saint
Nicolas for some time (that the picture of a myth ¹6 confirms, where both
are represented together. And also LM: "The three saints were probably
established fairly recently, sometime after the Civil War" - and so
Jennifer and Nicolas has been attributed the Saint status after 1865), and
St. Nicolas as we know looking on a picture, was a doctor of God
("Miraculous hands, a doctor of God" - a doctor was treating God). And now
we'll look on logic chain: " Saint Jennifer has been killed during the
middle of 19-th century-> Saint Jennifer and Nicolas lived approximately
at the same time -> Saint Nicolas was a doctor of God and consequently
lived during the first Coming-> So, the first Coming described in a myth
has come to pass approximately in the middle of 19-th century, during
Civil War in USA ". And so, the God has been given birth between 1861 and
1865 - and, most likely, died fast enough.
By the way, this is the first Birth according to cult myths only... maybe
it is not the first time? It is known, that in the beginning of 17-th
century Indians did something too... But, since this is the earliest Birth
known in a cult and described in a myth, it means, the god "has been given
birth" at this time, "the Order" cult was worshipping to.
1-9. Factological analysis of mythology
The analysis of the facts from a myth will help to find out the truth
about events of the middle of 19-th century metaphorically described in a
myth.
According to the myth, before the first Birth people were at war among
themselves - there is one more confirmation, that all events occurred
during civil war (origin), which means that misunderstanding with
immortality of people - is mythological fiction. Somehow it has turned
out, that two people (birth), were able to summon the God on our guilty
Earth by means of religious practices. In a myth, each of them has
sacrificed something to the Sun can be interpreted as a metaphor
symbolizing process of conception of a saint child, or that "Adam" and
"Eve" have brought THEMSELVES (or someone else) as a victim to the Sun for
the sake of a birth of the long-awaited deity.
So, further Salvation follows - it turns out, that the newborn God
appeared to the citizens at once, but also mysterious changes have started
to occur to the world around.
Creation - some strange events began to occur in the city, inhabitants
have started to see the strange creatures similar to angels and ancient
Indian gods Xuchilbara and Lobsel Vith... One of these creatures had a red
pyramid on his head... In the middle of these mystical events there was
the mysterious creature reminding the woman in long red attire, and
witnesses of that "miracle" have named it God.
Promise - here God has suddenly died (probably it happened in 1865 - the
general happiness in the myth most likely symbolizes the ending of civil
war, and so God has been given birth in 1865 and something happened to
him, that has prevented an coming of Paradise).
Faith - those who wanted continuation of construction of Paradise have
created a cult for these purposes (the cult has appeared after the civil
war as it was confirmed in LM). Founders of the cult were Jennifer,
Nicolas and... the girl in white attire. No, it wasn't Alessa - it was the
other tortured girl whom the cult wanted to sacrifice for the Second
Coming.
Soon the most devoted religious fanatics (Jennifer, Nicolas, maybe someone
else) have been attributed to a saint rank ("The three saints were
probably established fairly recently, sometime after the Civil War"),
other people should accept them as ideal and aspire to be similar to them,
to become closer to the God.
2. THE GOD
In religion of Silent Hill the special place occupies an image of the God
- creature who being born from a womb of Holy Mother brings absolutely new
world with its own rules and strange creatures. But, in spite of the fact
that the role of the God usually remains constant, his image often changes
with change of SH religion - this religion's editing was found, for
example, in the book "Silent Hill God Ethymology". God had an image of the
long-haired woman in red attire, and also the demon with horns and wings,
sometimes the suffering dark-haired woman, suspiciously reminding the girl
who has burned down once at a fire in SH...
2-1. The true name of God
It is necessary to understand that the names of God will allow avoid mess
further.
Taking into account philosophical ideas of SH, we can understand that God
is subjective, he can be both the God, and the Devil - depending on our
will. ("God? Are you sure you do not mean Devil? "- "Whichever you like")
But this subjectivity also was reflected in SH religion - everyone
represented God as it likes more, everyone aspired to attribute to God any
other properties, other names - for these reasons the religion was
repeatedly edited, and an image, a name and essence of a deity constantly
changed.
SH God has a lot of names, everyone names him as wants, - let's list all
God's names:
à) Lord of Serpents and Reeds (further - simply "Lord") - the name is
based on a myth about the Birth, where "Adam" and "Eve" sacrifice the
Serpent and the Reed to give birth to the God. The fact, that the name
"Lord" is mentioned even in the texts written in Old English language (for
example, Crimson Tome where alongside with a name "Lord" out-of-date
English words like "thou" are actively used) testifies that "Lord" is one
of the oldest designations of the God. It is necessary to note, that Lord
also "Christ" in Christianity but, certainly it doesn't means the
traditional "Jesus Christ" in SH religion.
b) Creator of Paradise - According to the book: "Silent Hill God
Ethymology", the God also was called as "the Founder of Paradise" in a
cult. This similar name is closely connected to the Creation myth.
c) She - it is difficult to name it. It is known, that up to heading the
cult by Claudia Wolf, her predecessors attributed a male gender to the
God. We can think that the God has changed in a feminine gender after the
ordering of the doctrines which have been lead by Vincent and Claudia.
This change of gender is connected to Claudia's vision of God and her
quivering relation to her elder "sister" - Alessa. Also in the book from
SH3 we can see, that Claudia so idealized the sister that has attributed
appearance of Alessa to a religious deity (see Silent Hill God Ethymology,
About Syncretic Religions)
d) God - definition of a deity.
e) Incubus - the mythical demon coming to women during dream; "a demon of
dreams". This name is traced on a mystical symbol of a cult "Halo of the
Sun", and also Alessa's god is mentioned with this name in LM.
f) Sammael (in Silent Hill Dead\Alive he is mentioned as "Sammael") - to
the God, in whom Dahlia trusted, mach people attributed a name of a demon.
g) Hades - on a t-shirt of Jasper Gain we can see the image of Alessa's
god with an inscription "HADES". In Greek mythology Hades is the master of
the underworld, the sun will never penetrate into his world...This place
is full of ghosts and monsters, and the Cerberus as the keeper... It is
not surprising, that to Alessa's god (which should bring death to all
people) people have attributed a name of the master of the underworld.
It's unknown WHO has renamed the God again - also its unknown WHO has
guessed to release t-shirts with his image... Probably, someone of Jasper
Gain's devil followers... Maybe there are all the intrigues of Konami???
h) Succubus - so, Incubus already was - now Succubus (actually, it is a
female variant of incubus)... On "Succubus Card" in SH4 we can see the
real imago of Alessa's God - probably, Walter thought, that his name is
"Succubus"... Would you think that it is time to stop changing names of
this deity!?
i) Devil - is the name of the God who has been given birth by the human
through rituals 21 Sacraments and Holy Assumption in the book "Crimson
Tome".
It is necessary to note the Holy Mother - in spite of the fact that
cultists were worshipping the Holy Mother, in sacred writing concepts the
"Holy Mother" and "God" are strictly differentiated - Holy Mother it that
comprises the God and the God it that contains inside of a Holy Mother.
Also, you should not be mislead by "the Crimson One" (Dark red), mentioned
in the "Book of Crimson Ceremony" - is not that God you could think. It is
the red god Xuchilbara/Xuchilpaba (it will be explained below about
Xuchilbara).
3. OTHER DEITIES
Except the God, religious doctrines of SH include also a plenty of other
deities and angels, which will be examined now.
3-1. Holy Mother
According to belief of a cult, originally the God is in a womb of Holy
Mother (as in original "incubator"), and it's known by the myth, that God
has been given birth from people. It is easy to guess, that the person who
has believed in the God and given birth to him with the force of the
belief, can be named the Holy Mother. For example, in SH1 Alessa was as
Holy Mother (in record of the dialog in SH3 Alessa was named Holy Mother),
and the Holy Mother in SH4 was Walter Sullivan, the maniac, who has given
birth to his own world and his own God.
Cultists trusted, that the Holy Mother, who contains God, cannot die and
will be reborned unlimited amount of times ("the Mother shall be reborn"
as like Alessa's soul reborned into Cheryl) due to force of the angel -
keeper named Valtiel. She will continue her existence in Paradise (as
Alessa and Walter continued their existence in their worlds even after
their death) and will descent into our world at the same time with arrival
of Paradise and the God on our Earth ("Descent of the Holy Mother").
3-2. Valtiel
Angel from religious doctrines of a cult, for the certain reason strongly
reminding one cultist, who was especially close to the God, subsequently
ranked as a Saint... The name "Valtiel" is formed from English "valet"
("servant") with addition of a suffix "-el" - angel status. Generally,
"Valtiel" means "servant - angel", and in Lost Memories founders
characterize him as "agent of God".
Cultists thought that this deity observes of the Birth of the God. Also
Valtiel persistently follows the Saint Mother, keeps up her safety (and,
hence, the life of the God) and, according to doctrines of a cult, even
able to Revive Holy Mother if something happen with her. Actually, he is
the keeper of an eternal cycle of regeneration, guaranteeing an
opportunity of unlimited attempts to give Birth to the God (and in context
SH3 - unlimited saves ^ __ ^). Valtiel personifies affinity to the God
among the cultists, a so the executioners in Toluca prison will borrow
Valt's appearance soon, "to be closer to the God" (Valtiel partly became
the prototype of SH executioners).
Since Alessa Gillespie deeply convinced in the existence of this angel -
his image was showed in the inner world of the girl - everytime, when
Heather dies in her world - Valtiel takes away a body of the God's Mother
to revive her in this world and to give to the God (and to the gamer at
the same time) the second chance.
Valtiel's image: the angel wears a traditional ritual uniform, and his
body is covered with burns, as if after the ritual of self-burning - even
his face would not be disassembled any more... Whether it means, that
affinity to the God is caused by self-sacrifice? Constanlty, Valtiel
twists the red gate. This gate personifies a circle of reincarnations
"Halo of the Sun" and symbolizes, that the God can be given birth
unlimited amount of times - and as much as Holy Mother wants - she will
be. On Valtiel's shoulder it is possible to notice a tattoo as the Seal of
the Metathrone. It is interesting, that the Metathrone also (as well as
Valtiel in LM) is mentioned as "agent of God" in the book "Otherworld
Laws". Some people can think, that here there is some connection...
3-3. Xuchilbara and Lobsel Vith
The Indians, which were living in territory SH worshipped to the Sun,
before colonizers arrived, but also they had two gods - the red god of
revival named Xuchilpaba (eventually his name will be deformed in
"Xuchilbara"), which had a bloody pyramid instead of his head (in
formation of a god's image the great value was given to pyramidal forms,
which had place in Indians culture), and the yellow god named Lobsel Vith,
presumably carrying yellow attire. Accordingly, also there were also two
rituals of sacrifices - a "red" ceremony of blood and a "yellow" ceremony
of burning. It is easy to guess, that these victims intended to Xuchilbara
and Lobsel Vith accordingly, and each of the gods was the original patron
of the kind of ritual.
Subsequently Indian rituals have strongly affected on the rituals of a
cult (in fact actually "Adam" è "Eve" from a myth have made INDIAN ritual
of sacrifice to the Sun to give birth to the God!), and images of the gods
of America's aboriginals had some influence on an image of Valtiel and on
a ritual attire of executioners.
Simply keep in mind it for a while, and I promise to tell about culture of
Indians, their rituals and Gods later.
Meaning of names: According to recognitions of developers in Lost Memories,
names of deities have Indian motives. "Xuchilbara" can represent a little
bit modified word "Xibalba", in language of Indians Maya designating "the
other world" or "the underworld". It is known, that Indians from this
tribe actually had rituals of bloody sacrifices, considering, that they
can open gates to "the underworld" - Xibalba. "Lobsel Vith" can be
translated from language of Indians Maya approximately as "a bad cycle of
flesh" ("Lob" - "bad", "sel" - circle\cycle and "vith" - flesh). The name
of this deity can be related to belief in regenerations.
4. CULT'S SAINTS
For the certain merits for a cult these mortals were ranked as Saint their
portraits were held in a belltower of cult church. Let's find out at last
something about Saints and their role in SH religion SH. We shall try to
reproduce a situation happened during civil war through the analysis of a
Saint more precisely.
4-1. St. Nicolas
"Miraculous hands, a doctor of God" - that's how describes his inscription
under a picture in a church belltower. It is obvious, that after the first
Coming Holy Nicolas started to be one of the main confidants of God, and
he also was one of the founders of the religious cult "the Order". Now
let's examine a picture (ATTENTION! It is extremely desirable that you
have started SH3, have carefully examined pictures once again in a church
belltower - and AFTER THAT have continued reading).
The skull on a table - from immemorial time the skull was a symbol of
doctors (that's also mean, that Nicolas worked not as the doctor in
traditional meaning of this word, he was pathologist). It is necessary to
note, that the image of human parts on a table of *holy* creates not
pleasant impression about this "holy". YELLOW outfit on the doctor -
whether can symbolize it, that Nicolas was one of the followers of the
YELLOW god - Lobsel Vith?
Let's examine the next picture... At the Nicolas's table we can see
"doctor's" clothes (it's more similar to the pathologist clothes, not the
normal doctor) - and here is the most interesting thing - familiar
clothes, is not that so? Such outfit Valtiel carried in SH3, and also
executioners in Silent Hill Prison wears this outfit, when they are making
ritual executions... But when Nicolas could be the doctor of God (in
1865), there were no ritual executions in prison Toluca yet, also there
was no cult and Valtiel too (since there was no cult).
This implies, that Valtiel got his surgical coat from St. Nicolas (Nicolas
became a prototype of a cult angel), and to the prison executioners - from
Valtiel. But it is quite possible, that this "doctor's" surgical coat was
something like the traditional ritual dress of Indians borrowed by Nicolas.
Look over here:
- St... Nicolas and Valt were examples for human imitation in the cult
- They carried identical doctor's surgical coats.
- Nicolas - God's doctor, and Valtiel is responsible for the Mother&God
safety, revives them, does not allow them to die (makes "reanimation"),
and also observed the "birth".
- Also Valtiel and St. Nicolas are similar externally...
Members of a cult have created the angel most approached to the God, with
an image of their "doctor of God ".
Now it is meaningful to remember Valtiel's shape- as you could notice, the
angel looks rather scorched; his body is covered with terrible burns. If
St. Nicolas was the real prototype of Valtiel, most likely that Valt's
burns appeared because Nicolas has ended his life with a ritual of
self-burning. We can think, that Nicolas, being the religious fanatic, has
decided to prove his "affinity to God" and has committed suicide, made
ritual of self-burning, such honorable ritual in the cult. But Nicolas's
destiny and appearance were reflected in shape of an angel of the cult.
Subsequently Alessa finds out something about the angel of a cult (or
about St. Nicolas, his picture with image in church), - and his image will
be quite impressive to Alessa, then he be reflected in the inner world of
the girl and will follow the Mother of God.
4-2. St. Jennifer (also known as Jennifer Carroll)
(For details look Part 4, chapter 2-15)
She started to be one of the confidants of God (because she was at the
Birth of God or helped him). That's why she has been in the category of
saint (alongside with Nicolas). After the death of God, Jennifer has based
a cult (according to the myth, together with Nicolas and the woman in
white attire). Then recruiting of christians have begun - and Jennifer
Carroll has fallen one of the victims of this recruiting - according to a
monument in park, she has been killed by Christians near to lake, but even
before the person of death its(her) belief in the God was unshakable.
Jennifer was killed by Christians, and the corpse of the girl has been
dumped in Toluca lake - it is explains the ominous name of park
("Rosewater" - because of blood).
4-3. Holy Alessa (also known as Alessa Gillespie)
(For details look Part 4, chapter 1)
This martyress has been burnt by mother for summoning of God (Dahlia
thought that her daughter is only "incubator" for cultivation of the
deity) - but because of intrigues such "faithless" as Harry Mason, God was
not born properly.
Look at the picture - Alessa holds the child in her hands which is also
Alessa is symbolizes a spiral of reincarnations of the God's Mother
essence. Alessa cannot die - and the God within her also cannot death and
so He can be given birth infinite amount of times. Initially Alessa it has
not been ranked as a Holy - Claudia did it, for her beloved "sister"
(Claudia and Alessa were not biological sisters, it becomes clear because
of congratulation card in Claudia's room in SH3: "To little Claudia. Happy
6th Birthday. I love you as if you were my real sister" - therefore I
write a word "sister" so-called), having made revision and editing of SH
religion for some time before events of SH3.
4-4. St. Stephen
Generally the information on this saint is available only as text files of
SH3 ripped from a disk (or this file is hidden very carefully in the
game), so you may not think about it. "St. Stephen: The Sage Who Spent His
Life Restoring Scripture" - proudly the text file says and we can make a
logical conclusion , that St. Stephen has been ranked as a saint, because
he spent all his life for restoration of the Scriptus of a cult.
5. Pyramid Head and connection of prison executioners' image with religion
of city
As we understand, in SH2 context PH personifies James's sado-masochism,
his desire to punish himself for his sins, poured too much and makes hurt
not only for James, but also people surrounding him (Maria, dummies,
etc.). So James is the executioner of himself (and not only himself?). But
why James's destructive part is expressed in so exotic way?
It is easy to guess, that during stay in SH 3 years prior to SH2 events
James has visited Silent Hill Historical Society (SHHS) - and has seen a
picture with the image of the executioner and his victims under the name
"Misty day, remains of the judgement" - it has made indelible impression
on the clerk, and this image of the executioner left in James's
subconscious.
We know that the image of this executioner with a spear and a red steel
pyramid on his head is drawn on the picture in SHHS, so image of PH is
connected to the history of Silent Hill. "Originally, the pyramid head
outfit was the guise of Silent Hill's executioners" - told us Lost
Memories.
But let's find out, did really prototypes of PH dressed such outfit, as
drawn on the picture with an executer, or they have been dressed kind
different. Basically, the cult has been created after 1865, and I doubt,
that they used so impractical methods + it difficult to execute somebody
with this pyramid, completely closing the view - how would this executer
look like? It would be ridiculous. That means that rally executioners
could not have this heavy pyramid on a head. But how these executioners
really looked like?
To answer this question, it is necessary to remember the picture "White
and Crimson Banquet for Gods" in Toluca prison - look closely at the
executioners in a picture - white attires (hmm... we've seen them
somewhere before...) and with a red triangular loose overalls on their
heads (yeah - yeah, loose overalls, instead of steel pyramids) with
opening for eyes (that means that executioners can see everything
perfectly) as a cross (it is result of influence of Christian religion on
SH religion). Here, from this picture we have represented a real image of
these executioners. But, as we can see from the picture, pyramidal
executioners had unusual execution, but severe ritual of sacrifice to God
- so they are connected not only to the history of city, but also the dark
religious organization working in Silent Hill.
Now, when we have examined the true image of real executioners and their
connection with a cult, it would be desirable to pay your attention to
some features of image of PH - his body similar to Valtiel's (Valtiel was
an ideal, believers should aspire) - PH wears similar attire as Nicolas.
But PH copies Valtiel (Nicolas) not completely - on PH's head is red (red!
red!) pyramid (real prototypes of the executioner had RED loose overall),
completing that absurd image of the executioner. Why PH is similar to
Valtiel (Nicolas) - it is understandable, but there's a question, what's
the deal with a red pyramid? We know, that Indians had red deity by name
Xuchilpaba\Xuchilbara, wearing a red pyramid (look at the pictures of the
myth), and we know, that the religion of aboriginals of America has
strongly affected religion of SH. It is easy to guess, that during
creating the outfit for the executers, the cult has decided to combine the
images of Valtiel (the standard of affinity to God) and Xuchilbara (the
patron of bloody ritual of summoning the God) with the purpose of giving
an image of the believer to executioners, aspiring to God through bloody
sacrifice (as sets of both ideals of affinity to God) to synthesize these
images with the purpose of creating a new one, absolute example, ideal
saint. And an image of the real executioner the artist drawn on his
picture, embodied some mythical features (so this steel pyramid on the
head of executioner - is fiction, created by the artist)
Also everything compares on chronology: Toluca Prison was designed as camp
for war prisoners in 1862 and has been reconstructed in 1866 - and as we
know (look Part 2, Chapter 1), the cult began its activity after the first
Birth approximately in 1865. Everything compares - in 1866 Toluca prison
opens and the new clothes for executioners are added, which (remember the
influence of this cult to city) was a symbol of reverence of these saints,
and also a metaphor, meaning "Divine Court to the sinner".
Generally, it turns out, that PH has inherited his attire from
Valtiel\Nicolas, and his *head* (actually not thus pyramid, but a red
loose overall) from ancient Indian deity Xuchilbara.
6. THE ORDER
For a long time the mysterious religious cult which the townspeople call
simply "the Order" operates in the city. This cult has been based after
the ending of civil war and its main purpose to revive God and construct
the "Paradise" on the Earth. But religious beliefs of this organization,
and also its role in the city life constantly changed - let's look after
these changes and find out more information about this cult.
6-1. History of the Cult (19-th century - the middle of 20-th century)
The history of the religious organization can be counted from the middle
of XIX century when believers attempted to summon God. In those days the
doctrine of the cult was a mix of Christian doctrines and traditional
beliefs of the Indians, who lived on the territory of Silent Hill (with
cruel ceremonies inherited by them).
But the birth of the cult after the conflict, which has been created after
*political* opposition, has not made anything good and the society of
Silent Hill splitted in two because of *religious* oppositions of the cult
and Christian church. Jennifer Carroll was one of the victims of this
opposition...
Was this cult legal during those period or the government had struggled
with it? The monument of Jennifer Carroll in Rosewater Park explains this
situation - when "the Order" has been formed - Christians of Silent Hill
were angry when a lot of people were after this new religion - and they
tried to punish the leaders of the cult. But, the government was against
this idea - and even (nonsense!) has established the monument in Rosewater
Park to the member of the occult organization! Even when the burning of
witches still were everywhere (for example, in Massachusetts located not
so far from SH). As we can see, the Christianity of SH was serious damaged
by this cult in 19-th century. It is probable, that the city government
included some of the followers of the cult (most likely), or the
government was sold to this cult (that is also possible).
Eventually, the cult gathers huge power, and its religious traditions
start to have serious influence to the life of the city and, particularly,
on the kind of executions in local prison and a uniform of executioners.
The religious organization was the owner of the shelters: Hope House\Wish
House (the official owner was charitable organization Silent Hill Smile
Support Society which was under control of the cult) which subsequently
will be used for *washing brains* to orphans and recruiting them into
cult's religion.
Nevertheless, during the subsequent period cult starts to separate to
sects (see the chapter of "sects") and as a result loses its former
authority, and then changing into the underground organization of the
Satanists - drug-dealers, periodically kidnapped young girls with purpose
to give birth to God, and also secretly imparting to orphans their dark
religious beliefs. According to comments of game authors in SH1OGFAQ,
periodically members of a cult tried to make rituals to summon God, but
for some reasons these rituals failed. Such turn of failures proceeded
till coming of the fanatical woman named Dahlia Gillespie to the religious
organization, which starts to propagandize worship Demons and ideas of
destruction of everything for clearing of suffering...
6-2. Development of "the Order"
à) SH1:
To learn more about financial position of the cult at the moment of SH1
events, it'll be enough to remember the underground church of the cult -
it is located in a cellar (more precisely, even in the sewers) of the
small shop in the business district named Green Lion ("The other church in
this town" - Dahlia describes this scrap land). It obviously means
shortage of budget in this organization. Now let's compare it to the
Christian church in SH (Balkan Church) - there's everything beautiful:
glamour, shiny, beauty... Amount of benches means quantity of Christians
in the city, and interior - about budget of the Christians. We can
understand, that during SH1 events the cult was not out the law, but also
was not on a pique of popularity and especially was not the registered
religion - since 19-th century cult's position were weak. Probably, all of
the cult's problems were in shortage of believers? (Most likely, it is
connected with domination of satanic tendencies at that moment in the cult)
Not enough believers = not enough money = impossible to buy up the
government...
Though, the cult tried to compensate shortage of donations by the union
with especially talented doctors and free sale of their product - PTV.
*Maybe* the government and police received their percents from its sale,
so everyone were pleased (except for dissatisfied with presence of the
religious competition of Christians), and the city became rot from within.
However, Dahlia worried not about finances of the cult - the woman was
fanatically devoted to the ideas of summoning God-demon and even has
offered her daughter for the sake of this illusive purpose. And her works
were not useless...
b) 17 years between events of SH1 and SH3:
17 years prior to events SH3 was lost (was killed by Caufmann - traitor)
the manager of CULTural affairs of Silent Hill and also - last expert in
occult - Dahlia Gillespie. The cult was actually decapitated, for some
years after death of Dahlia "the Order" was confusion, but soon the cult's
high post was occupied by the friend of Dahlia Gillespie - the sadist
("The memories of his cruelty is forever burned into my mind" - Vincent
speaks about Leonard) Leonard Wolf, and he have set in the Brookhaven
because of killing the person with knife at religious dispute. The
CULTURAL aristocrat named Vincent has taken the advantage, and instead of
that sadist, Claudia Wolf became the head of this cult (Vincent only
pretended, that he shares all the beliefs of Claudia, and she trusted this
liar). Vincent had the position of Father and at the same time the Main
Accountant of the Cult - he has got desired access to a *feeding trough*,
than has even more strongly increased the capitals.
Claudia, having received authority of this cult, first of all (in peak to
her disliked father) has replaced the main rate on more liberal "We'll
rescue entire mankind, comrades!" - and for more effective change of a
rate, has engaged in reformatory activity with the purpose to humanize
(Christianize) religion and since it is impossible to read all the library
literature for acceleration of process she has invited Vincent "who is
sharing her sights" (participation in processing religion of SH gave
Vincent an opportunity to subordinate religion to his own benefit.
Certainly, so practical man could not miss such opportunity). The main
religious changes brought with Claudia are listed below:
a) Ideological opponents were removed - names of Dahlia Gillespie and
Leonard Wolf are absolutely erased from the history of cult - in the game
we can see the mentions about Dahlia only for 3 times - in the note of the
father and once for game Heather mutters in the car something about her
mother ("A woman named Dahlia, she tried to summon the ancient god of the
town. She offered up her very own daughter"). Vincent uses only fastidious
"crazy old hag" - and there's not any written mentions about Dahlia,
devoted her (and not only her) life to God, or mentions about Leonard (a
note in the madhouse were not used - the question is directly about the
cult)
b) God has changed his gender and became similar to Alessa - Claudia
always idealized her "sister" and considered that the "correct" God should
be similar to her beloved "sister".
c) The religious myth is edited - the God brings the Rescue to people,
besides the woman in a white loose overall at the end of a myth,
suspiciously reminding Alessa, probably has been added by Claudia.
d) Now Alessa (Alessa Gillespie on the picture) is ranked as Holy of the
cult and her portrait is hung alongside with portraits of such cult heroes
as St. Jennifer and St. Nicolas (which, acquiring to LM, have been ranked
as Holy in 19-th century) in a belltower of cult church.
e) It is possible to rename gods - I do not exclude, that in new religion
Valtiel and other deities had other names. In the book "About syncretic
religions" (SH3, library) there's written about assignment of new names to
the deities because of the influence of Christian religion. By the way,
now an ideal of affinity to God - Alessa (picture of Alessa with the child
hangs in the center and also it is the biggest picture and also we'
remember Claudia's dreams). So, "You want to be closer to God? Follow
after Holy Alessa, comrades!"
f) Remembering her sufferings in the childhood, Claudia after reading the
books like "Young Slaves: Child Exploitation" cancels mockeries at
children with the purpose that they will give birth to God, according to
Claudia's ideas, no one cannot give Birth to the ideal God except Alessa
(children exult, they will not be tormented, burnt, locked any more in the
Water Prison, etc.) - and "Hunting for the Mother of God" begins. Now
children can live happily and the religion becomes for them as a game (for
example, they are singing songs about God, eating sweets and draw maps of
the church with bunnies. At once occurs "She gives us candy And money to
spend Just be sure you do not get her mad" - sings in UFO-ending about
Claudia Wolf).
g) Earlier (during events of SH1) beliefs of the cult (of Dahlia and
Leonard) had more likely sadistic-satanic character, now Christian ideas
of "General Rescue" (Rescue as usual-habitual posthumous Paradise where
are no wars, illnesses, ageing, etc.) are dominating.
Now the new sense of the advanced religion most briefly can be expressed
as - "it is not necessary to suffer! Let's find Alessa, torture her and we
shall force her to give Birth to the God who will forgive our sins and
will open the Gates to Paradise!" I think Claudia had such point of view
because of Christian religion, where Jesus Christ tortured for entire
humanity. But it would be desirable to note, that the external side of
religion can be changed as much as it s necessary - but the Divine nature
will not change. Confirmations of this we can see during SH3...
Results of editing the religion with Christian style are simply
tremendous! Now the cult actively gains popularity, donations flow like
water (and self-sacrifices of fanatics too - remember the inscriptions in
the tunnel through which Heather comes into church: "I give to you
unreservedly, my body and my eternal soul") - now the cult really grows.
With such popular religion it is necessary to reckon with - religion of SH
is officially registered and even scientific books are written about her
(for example, scientific work under the bright name "Silent Hill's Ancient
Gods: A Study of Their Etymology and Evolution"). Remember Christian
Balkan Church in SH1? And so, in SH3 there's no even a single word about
it, but we can see, that the cult has got the church as good as Balkan
Church! Look at quantity of the benches, well-made (from the art point of
view) pictures of the myth, the church piano (the cult began to import
some elements of church chanting - for the greater popularity of sermons)
- figures out that there are a lot of parishioners in this church...
Because of what it is possible? Actually, Vincent explains: "... I built
it with my power - the POWER of MONEY... " However, he exaggerates a
little that its HIS force of money (the force of money which are belonging
to Vincent) - from the notes found in church in SH3, (a room with the tape
recorder believers' complaints: " I've also heard rumors that Father
Vincent has been extorting donations from some followers ") it becomes
clear, that Vincent used not his own money, but gathering from
parishioners (most likely, he did not want to speak about these gathering
with idealistically adjusted Claudia).
6-3. Collapse of Claudia's ideals, new chapter in the history of the cult
For some years after SH3:
What happened with the cult after events of SH3? The letter of Joseph
Schreiber gives us the answer to this question (If Henry has driven in
Ashfield Heights Apartment half-year later after disappearance of
Schreiber, *maybe* it was written approximately in 7 years after events of
SH3):
"April 8
Although the cult itself is gone, I'm sure the spirit of it is still alive"
So we can see that after death of Leonard, Claudia, Vincent and other
followers of their religion, the cult of the Silent Hill is ruined again,
and the entire city, according to SHDI, already deserted for long time.
But ideas of the cult have already surpassed the limits of Silent Hill and
they are continued their life in the heads of people. The cult already
destroyed, but there were its followers (perhaps, they will revive the
cult subsequently?) On an image of the follower of "new type" of the cult
- Jasper Gein (look at his stylish T-shirt!) it is possible to think, that
when supporters of importing the Christian ideas in religion of SH
disappeared, the started to revive devil following moods of Dahlia
Gillespie...
6-4. Cult's church
In Silent Hill 3 we can visit cult's church (Claudia Wolf lived in the
small room) which is near to Lake Side Amusement Park. Nevertheless, some
contradictions in statements of characters and comments of game authors
have made a lot of gossips about this church. Let's expose this case.
During the last meeting with Claudia, Vincent approves "Home? This church
is my home. I built it with my power" - but did Vincent really constructed
this church all by himself? We can see refutations of this fact not only
during the game, but also in LM:
a) When Heather examines a stained glass in church, she remembers:
"Somehow i remember this stained glass... I used to come to this chapel
all the time when i was a little girl... But it was not actually me. It
was actually Alessa when she was a little girl" - and so this church was
and at least 24 years prior to events of SH3 - then Vincent was about 2
years old (LM: " name: Vincent age: 24~26 ")
b) LM: "... the map of the church A map that is drawn with a childlike
simplicity. Alessa, whose mother was Dahlia, must have visited this
church" Maybe Alessa spent a lot of time in this church?
c) LM: "Alessa's thoughts from her childhood linger in the church. It may
be that the younger version of Alessa who was teased and called "witch" is
wandering aimlessly about the church" - so this church it is valid more
than 24 years.
d) In Silent Hill: Among the Damned Jason and Dahlia after walking in the
Amusement Park came to this church. If Dahlia from SH comics - REALLY THAT
Dahlia, we've thought, events of SHAtD should occur not less than 31 year
prior to events of SH3 - and church should be more than 30 years old...
e) Let's remember the place where Heather fights with God in the end of
SH3: "the underground area of the church is in fact a ruin where the
town's former residents once conducted rituals" - so the church has been
constructed on a sacred place for rituals. Probably, it is more than a 100
years?
Result: earlier there (western part of SH) were held the rituals of God's
summoning, after 1865 the cult (under leadership of Jennifer and Nicolas)
- the place where rituals took place is sold (the northwest part of city -
In SH3 Vincent describes its position "The church is on the other side of
the lake. Across the lake, on the north side. If you're going you'd better
go through the amusement park. It's probably the only way in now. Go
northwest on Nathan Avenue. It's a bit far but closer than heaven") and
then the church of the cult was built there. It means that church existed
from 1865 (see illustrations to the myth - St. Jennifer and St. Nicolas
stand in a final room of church with "a maternity hole"). Vincent had
built nothing - he only took money from parishioners, made repairs of the
church, and also has given to it a magnificent kind for attraction of
potential believers.
6-5. Wish House
Wish House is a shelter located in the forest near the Silent Hill, nearby
to the place where aboriginals (Indians) worshipped the sacred stone
"Nahkeehona" and had sessions of talking with their dead ancestors.
Officially the shelter belongs to the charitable organization "Silent Hill
Smile Support Society" or "S4", but the religious sect "Holy Mother Sect"
operates here. It is known, that there were practiced some cruel methods -
orphans were forced to read the Scriptus of the cult and periodically they
were locked in the awful Tower - "Panopticon" Prison, which was settled
down in the forest near to this shelter. Walter Sullivan spent his
childhood there. Certainly, citizens heard about some of the events in
that shelter, and even Joseph Schreiber - reporter, once has published the
article in the "Concord" magazine:
Teaching Despair: Wish House .
Wish House, an orphanage on the outskirts of Silent Hill. But behind
it's false image is a place where children are kidnapped and brainwashed.
Wish House is managed by the Silent Hill Smile Support Society, a
charity organization sometimes called "4S." It's true that 4S is a
well-respected charity that takes in poor children without homes and
raises them with hope. But at it's heart, it is a heathen organization
that teaches its own warped dogma in lieu of good religious values. Mr.
Smith (temp), who lives near Wish House, had this to say: Sometimes at
night I can hear their weird prayers and the sounds of [children] crying.
I went there to complain one time, but they ran me right out. Since then
it has not changed a bit. In fact, this reporter was refused admission
when he attempted to take photographs in the facility. What exactly do the
folks at Wish House have to hide? During my investigations, I was able
to discover, however, a suspicious-looking round concrete tower which
appears to be part of their facilities. Unfortunately no one was willing
to tell us what the tower was used for. But it seems unlikely that it has
anything to do with the business of raising orphans. It may in fact be a
prison, or a secret place of worship. The cult religion that operates
Wish House is known by the locals simply as The Order . It's a religion
that is deeply interwoven with Silent Hill's history. But it's
worshippers' fervent belief that they are among the elite chosen people
has a dark and dangerous side. I intend to continue my investigation of
Wish House and the cult behind it. I've always believed that telling
the whole truth and showing the children the true path, is our most
important duty.
Joseph Schreiber
About parity (ratio) Wish House and Hope House: actually, Schreiber has
published two similar notes about two shelters (Wish House and Hope House)
in two various magazines ("Concord" and "SH Times!") - we've found one in
the asylum of SH3, another - in SH4. We can think, that this is the same
orphanage - but he has two usable names or the shelter was renamed after
release of journalist's article (and Joseph has decided to change the name
in his article to the other one and to publish article again in the other
magazine).
Approximate arrangement of the orphanage: we can define a provisional
arrangement of "Wish House" which is near to the cemetery and a strange
factory:
- SH2 - after Silent Hill Historical Society (a southwest of the city, on
the other side of the Silent Hill Lake Side Amusement Park) James wanders
on the labyrinths and comes to the cemetery where it is possible to find
the grave of Walter Sullivan.
- SH4 - Walter Sullivan's grave is in the forest near to the Wish House.
- SH2 - After the cemetery Sunderland gets on a meat-packing factory.
- SH4 - Near to the cemetery there is a suspicious factory.
- SH2 - The meat-packing factory and the cemetery are close to the Toluca
lake, in particular, "refrigerator" of this factory is closely to the lake
(for fast delivery of meat)
- SH4 - The cemetery, forest, "factory" and the shelter are near to the
Toluca lake which it is possible to see in SH4. Walking on the "factory"
in SH4 Henry constantly complains on the terrible smell - maybe it is the
smell of rotten meat? (By the way, there are pieces of rotten meat in the
forest - Walter's memoirs of a nearby meat-packing factory?)
After examining, it is possible to define an arrangement of a shelter as
"the forest in a southwest of city ".
7. PARADISE
It is known, that the cult aspires to create "Paradise" with the help of
"God". They thought their business is blessed, and any purposes are
justified. Nevertheless, this religious organization has no united
opinions of God and the essence of the ideal world, and this has entailed
splitting of the organization into sects and numerous editing of religion.
Nowadays there are some various concepts of "Paradise" and variants of its
achievement in a SH-series.
7-1. Theoretical and practical ideas of absolute Paradise
Following the ancient stories, members of the cult considered that by
severe rituals they can clear martyrs, "God" is born, feeling their pain
and creates the absolute "Paradise" (after he "purifies the world with
fire" - destroys existing foundations to construct the new ideal world) -
but they were wrong. By these rituals cultists had increased the pain of
the victim so much, that the inner world "purified by suffering" gathered
huge force and got an opportunity to absorb people. Differently, the
"Paradise" created by the cult is not the work of God or Devil - it's the
creative of the usual person! And this world is too unreliable,
unpredictable - how can we know, what's happening in the head of the other
person, can be sure, that his inner world represents the ideal harmonious
"Paradise" full of happiness and pleasure? It cannot be foreknown anyway -
and then can be already late...
7-2. The treatise about aprioristic imperfection of the concept of Paradise
What is the essence of "Paradise"? "Place, where people would be happy
just by being there" - says the fourth part of the myth. Well then,
probably, Paradise should execute all desires of people, realize their
hopes... But how can that be achieved with mental force? Even if with
rituals the cult will be able to make that someone's inner world
("Paradise") will absorb ALL people and will become the true reality, this
wouldn't be enough to bring happiness to *all* people. The secret is in
the relativity and subjectivity of perception of such philosophical
categories as "good" and "evil". Someone counts on the ideal world without
wars, without age and death; others can find their happiness in the depths
of nightmare, the third can thirst for death, global destruction and the
Apocalypse, and the fourth maybe don't want this Paradise at all... There
are no the absolute true applied to all people, because desires and values
of humanity can be quite various. And, if someone's one ideal world
becomes "Paradise" which had influence on the other people it cannot
realize desires of *all* people...
The only reasonable exit is if this "Paradise" would consist of thousand
various inner worlds isolated from each other - in that case each person
could retire in the world that reflects his desires and requirements, as
in the shell of imaginations about the ideal world... But, first, such
kind of "Paradise" can be never achieved (that the worlds have property to
interosculation and mixing), and second, it is not yet known, will it
bring happiness to someone (in fact it has not brought happiness to Ernest
Baldwin in his lonely world of grief and a solitude). Then maybe, no one
needs this "Paradise"...?
7-3. Reflections about pain and martyrs
According to religion, "God" comes if he can hear the sufferings of people
- and he gains the force from these sufferings (mental energy grows with
feelings and, in particular, negative emotions of the person-"incubator")
- and figures out that without pain and suffering, "Paradise" cannot be
created... This feature of religion also has predetermined special
reverence of Pain in the cult, and creation of these cruel rituals.
Generally, martyrs, pain and sadism, like ripping hearts out, had special
reverence in SH religion , it is possible to make a conclusion, that
members of the religious organization thought that God is almost an
embodiment of the Pain and Suffering - but, we know, that God can reflect
any desire and feeling. Obviously, the Pain was especially esteemed since
this feeling can be CAUSED irrespective of will of "Mother of God" (or
"him" - "give birth" to the "God" and "Paradise" can the maniac - orphan)
+ it is connected to cruel Indian ceremonies.
But what to do with people which are not testing a pain and not aspiring
to cause pain to other people? They have no "God s" forces, they are not
approaching the arrival of "Paradise". How can these people deserve the
"Rescue"? Members of the cult had no common opinion on this question -
some people wished "to rescue" everything, others considered that the most
simple way is to get rid of "unnecessary people", which are not worthy to
approach the elite Paradise...
So, the cult starts to use pain to finish the process of construction of
"Paradise" - and cult's Bible had acquired something like: " Rip out 10
hearts to show your devotion to the God ", "kill 21 persons for Coming of
Holy Mother", etc. "The Order" uses people like, for example, Alessa
Gillespie and Walter Sullivan for punishment of heretics and making pain
in the world - it is just necessary make them trust in the God and to
suffer - and this human suffering, gaining strength, will approach the
moment of Birth of God (remember, that earlier was spoken how negative
IDEAS and FEELINGS of prisoners have affected on the CITY POWER?).
7-4. Salvation of the chosen ones (the analysis of Leonard Wolf's ideas)
Leonard Wolf was the high-ranking religious fanatic convinced of his
correctness and he doesn't listened anyone. He followed traditions of
blood ceremonies(for this reason before the meeting with Wolf we should
make the bloody ritual) and trusted, that with coming of God, only "elite"
people able to see the Paradise, "who hears the Divine Voice", that
"unnecessary people" never can reach the new world (" Why must be reward
even the unbelievers? " - cultist asks). We can think, that these *elite*
ideas were caused because of Wolf's position in the religious organization
and his overestimated self-estimation.
Following his own beliefs, cultist has devoted himself to struggle against
"unnecessary people" ("the world is teeming with unnecessary people. It's
God's decision that I fight") - naturally, he considered himself quite
"elite". And to confirm the belief in own "necessary" to God, Wolf started
to protect a useless plate, proudly called "Talisman of Metathrone" and
started to kill the "heretics" with knife in religious disputes...
Further it is necessary to consider Wolf's sights at the ideal Paradise.
Leonard and Dahlia represented the "devil" side of the cult, besides Leo
was the sadist - murderer (look at his pictures - bloody tendencies are
seen here, except that cultist even beat his own daughter!). That bloody
Alessa's world would approach him, and if for the other people it would be
like a nightmare or Hell, Leonard would be pleased here. Most likely, the
cultist wanted that Dahlia has initially grown in the daughter
understanding of the ideal world ("Paradise") as hybrid of Hell with a
*meat grinder*, and understanding of God as Devil's flying goat image, and
then to use Alessa's force of "God" to appear inside this bloody world.
There he obviously could have fun...
7-5. "Everyone will be released, from pain and suffering!" (the analysis
of Dahlia Gillespie's ideas)
"It's not uncommon for people to worship the same god and still disagree "
In spite that Leonard and Dahlia represented the "devil" side of the cult,
and "were friends" with the common interest of God's summoning, their
representations about "Paradise" were a little bit various.
And how the "Paradise" represents to Dahlia Gillespie? It was in the last
Gillespie's dialogue with Mason: "The time is neigh. Everyone will be
released, from pain and suffering. Our salvation is at hand. This is the
day of reckoning. When all our sorrows will be washed away" - it is
possible to judge, that Dahlia wished freedom, and freedom FOR EVERYOVE,
not just for "elite". But, if we'll compare it with other monologue
(during the game Dahlia speaks only obscure monologue, unknown for the
usual gamer) of Dahlia: "When it is completed, all is lost. Even in
daytime, darkness will cover the sun! Everyone will DIE!" That means, that
her "Paradise" reminds global death, eternal night, nonexistence more
likely. Gillespie considered, that life only brings suffering and wanted
to release all people from this suffering, having arranged Apocalypse of
local scales (or larger? It depends on daughter's force of suffering and
hatred).
When Dahlia started to think like this? For a moment of SH1 she was 46
years old - most likely she saw the horrors of the World War II and this
suffering had huge influence on young Dahlia - after that the belief has
*taken roots* in her head, that life always brings suffering, and the
death relieves of sufferings - therefore this woman started to use black
magic, keeping hope, that she would be able to have the Apocalypse and to
release all people from shackles of suffering, shackles of existence - to
change the world, to destroy him, changing in nonexistence where is no
life any more and no suffering. And the Apocalypse is necessary for these
purposes - the world should be purified by fire... And in SH religion
Dahlia at last has found a way to realize her old dream...
For realization of these dark purposes the woman intentionally scoffed at
her daughter - Alessa, thus perverting her inner world - Alessa started to
hate the entire humanity, to wish their death - and it was reflected in
her world, Sammael was the ideal of Alessa's God - a demon bearing death
to all people. Thus, it was necessary to use the force of ideas of a
daughter-"incubator" and to make the world of Alessa the only objective
reality which will bring death to everything she sees. But Gillespie has
not realized, that being in "Paradise", the consciousness cannot die
(because of that Lisa Garland has been doomed there for eternal
sufferings) - if Dahlia's dream will realize, this Apocalypse would not
bring desired purification and would last eternally, having transformed
the world in an eternal nightmare, an eternal agony or a bloody ideal of
"Paradise" for sadists like Leonard...
7-6. "Salvation of all Mankind" (the Analysis of Claudia Wolf's ideas)
Perhaps, ideas of Claudia are more interesting than ideas of her
predecessors. Her sight at the problem of "Paradise" categorically differs
from sights of Dahlia and Leonard (sights of Claudia were strongly
affected with Christian religion), but, Leonard and Dahlia always had big
pressure on the girl
Claudia suffered a lot in the childhood because of father - sadist. She
saw "Paradise" as the world without greed, wars, hatred, age, illnesses
and sufferings ("a place with no pain. No hunger, no sickness, no old age"
- the girl describes her ideal Paradise) - such *sugar* world. But how can
be the world ideal without any negative sides? Whether can white exist
without black? Perhaps, there is no pleasure without sadness, no shadow
without light, no action without counteraction, etc. If there is no age
how to understand, what is youth; if there is no hatred how to feel love?
Excepting one, Claudia excluded another. Feels like that this is no
Paradise, but nothing. "Sounds pretty boring" (Thanks to Salin for
reflections about the negative sides of Claudia's sight of ideal Paradise).
In peak to views of the father, compassionate priestess wished such
Paradise for ALL people (however, in altruistic *intoxication* she has
forgotten to ask other people - subject of happiness, would they like such
model of "Paradise").
The girl always idealized her elder "sister" - Alessa. She believed, that
the pain purifies the person, arises the most bright feelings in the
person ("Is it so hard to believe that sympathy could be born from pain
and suffering?" - Claudia opens her ideas in the last meeting) and
consequently the world created by Alessa, which had a lot of sufferings in
her life, should be fine, the ideal Paradise. Claudia couldn t even
imagine, that sick mind of Alessa instead of Paradise, preferred to
disappear from the world in the darkness of a bloody nightmare ("I'd
rather go to Hell"). Claudia's idea was to use force of "the internal
God", force of Alessa's suffering, to make her (Alessa's) inner world the
only reality, to distribute its action to all people - then everyone will
start to see "Paradise" of Alessa and everyone will be happy.
Also Dahlia Gillespie had pressured on the ideas of Claudia ("She was
totally brainwashed by that crazy old hag" - Vince speaks about noxious
pressure of Dahlia). Particularly, the idea about impossibility of
happiness in the life and the idea about the global Rescue. Therefore,
Claudia as well as Dahlia considered, that the world should be cleansed
with fire ("The world must first be cleansed with fire") - but if Dahlia
trusted, that her Apocalypse will be the end of mankind, will release all
from existence, Claudia was convinced, that the death is only clearing of
shackles ("It's time for Mankind to be released from the shackles of sin
that bind them"), connecting the person (also remember "Be then released
from the bonds of the flesh and gain the Power of Heaven" - this line in
accuracy describes ideas of Claudia) - the death in a material world
enables the person to proceed in the spiritual world - "Paradise" and to
live in this world eternally.
7-7. "Mom! Let me in!" (the Analysis of Walter Sullivan's ideas)
Walter Sullivan was not the desired child, nobody wanted his birth. Even
parents have simply left the child to death in the apartment 302. But,
Walter has survived - but the life in the world of people has brought to
him not happiness, but the suffering since the child was unnecessary. In
the shelter scoffed at the orphan, locked in prison, forced to learn the
Scriptus of a cult and principles of creation of the own world and
Paradise through some bloody ritual... As though Walter wanted not to be
born, he wanted to turn time back and to return to the womb of the mother,
he wanted not to live anymore... But he could not find his true mother
and, having given in to children's errors, Sullivan has believed, that his
mother was the Apartment 302 - and to return to the womb of the Mother it
was necessary to wake the Apartment... And then Sullivan has understood -
Mother does not want to wake up in the world of people, where the pain and
suffering reigns and to wake the Apartment, Walter should purify her of
the world of people ("21 Sacraments were the only way to purify Her") to
create for her the new world through cruel ritual of a universe under the
name of 21 Sacraments. Thus, the main dream of his life has been closely
connected to doctrines of the cult and could not be realized without
execution of 21 Sacraments for the Descent of the Holy Mother... And, to
give birth to beloved Mother and to wake her in the best world, to find a
desired pacification in the Womb and to plunge into eternal dream, Walter
Sullivan is ready to end his life, but also to sacrifice to the Apartment
twenty other lives...
8. SECTS
The cult was divided into sects, each has its own image of God and found
the ways of aspiration to Him (or to Her) - this idea has completely
proved in SH4 (and also in Victims List). Well, let's look closer on these
sects. Most likely, there are 3 primary sects (names of the sects are
specified only in Victims List from Konami - there's no names in the
game), and also recently created the sect of Valtiel.
8-1. Saint Ladies sect (for some time "important Lady" headed it)
Remember, how the mysterious voice in the phone asks fatal question to
Heather (Sheryl, Alessa): "Which do you prefer? To give pain or to receive
it?" These sects divided by this principle.
Saint Ladies sect initially was a part of "the Order" and specialized on a
ceremony of sacrificial self-burning (therefore also yellow), the patron
was a yellow Indian deity named Lobsel Vith. The sense of the "Saint
Ladies" sect is in approaching to God through suffering and pain. That's
why Dahlia Gillespie has a high post in this sect - she knows how to
accustom to "Pains for the sake of the Prime target"... "Most likely her
mother is abusing her. I've never seen her come in without some sort of
scrape or bruise. Her expression is pitifully dark for a 6 year old" -
we've found confirmation to this in the notes of Alessa's teacher. But
Alessa Gillespie wasn't the unique victim of religious errors - according
to comments of game authors, sectarians also often kidnapped girls to make
them "incubators" for the God through cruel ceremonies.
Here the special role was given to fire and martyrs - "and the martyrs
will burn in the fires of hell" - tells Dahlia Gillespie. Following
traditions of American aboriginals, the Sun was especially esteemed in the
sect ("It may have some connection with the main deity being a sun God" -
tells us Lost Memories about the ritual of burning).
8-2. Holy Mother sect
The second sect of the cult is the "red" sect which target was the
aspiration to the God through violence ("To give pain") - make pain during
their lives. As we know from SH4, the basic ritual for God's summoning in
this sect was cruel and bloody "21 Sacraments for the Descent of Holy
Mother" (includes obligatory murders like cutting up, beating to death,
ripping hearts out, etc.) where are brightly reflected sadistic
orientation of the Holy Mother's sect. For a long time ago, the patron of
Indian blood sacrificial ritual was red god with pyramidal head named
Xuchilpaba/Xuchilbara.
It is necessary to note, that in spite of Saint Ladies (where the God is
esteemed), in "red" sect Holy Mother is especially esteemed - the
religious deity containing the God in the womb (look part 2, chapter 3-1).
Therefore, through these rituals members of sect summoned not the God
himself, but Holy Mother who will give birth to the God. We can see
three-stage system of achievement of "Paradise" in doctrines of the sect:
first the Holy Mother is summoned (reborned), then she gives birth to the
God, and after that God creates that desired Paradise (granting Rescue
"the Nations of the Sin").
In the religious doctrine of this sect Holy Mother is not the usual mortal
martyress like Alessa, but the other deity.
Also, HMs owns the shelter - Wish House in the forest in vicinities of
Silent Hill where potential "red priests" are studying(more precisely -
potential sadists - maniacs), imparting hatred to small orphans (we'll
remember a signboard in the Wish House, warning children of dangers of an
external world "The Outside is filled with dangerous things. If someone
goes Outside without an adult's permission, the Master is sad", and also
intimidations of children - "Everybody says Ashfield is a really scary
place" - were founded in the forest "diary" of Walter - children initially
were afraid of the external world) and fanatical belief in cruel ideals of
the sect. Knowing about sights and position in Leonard Wolf's cult, it is
possible to tell confidently, that he had a high post in the "red" sect
(yeah, the "Important Lady", coming to Wish House as we know from Walter's
diary, was Dahlia Gillespie, visiting her colleague Leonard Wolf), most
likely he has imparted the principles "Violence over the Prime target" to
his daughter - Claudia.
8-3. Common things in sects
In spite of the fact that "yellow" sect SLs and "red" sect HMs are
contrast each other, they have a lot of common things:
- In both sects the special attention is given to the pain (we remember,
that the pain possesses the great power). I think, it is possible to tell,
that both sects are a part of a single one.
- In the sects the aspiration to the God occurs through the person,
through autopurification.
- "Paradise" considers the world-after-death in both sects (look at their
rituals) which is necessary to aspire "through yourself" - there is
neglect to the material world and reverence of the spiritual world,
religious introvert.
Now it's clear, that both sects were based on ideas of subjectivity of the
God and subjectivity of "Paradise" - principles of the God's Summoning and
"Paradise" are always identical, and what type of "Paradise" and what type
of "God" will you summon - depends on your own sights and everyone can
summon that God in whom the person trusts (it is shown in 21 Sacraments in
SH4). And, basing on these ideas, heads of sects tried to summon that God
and that "Paradise" which were necessary to them, forced children from the
shelter to believe in him , thus pressing on their subconscious world and,
arranging it as they wish (Dahlia Gillespie did the same with Alessa).
8-4. Sect of the Lord
Also there was the other sect - sect of the Lord (certainly, it not the
Christian God, but the "Lord of Serpents and Reeds" from cult's mythology)
which representatives obviously hated their colleagues from the other
sects ("How can our Lord forgive such an abomination...?"). The Scriptus
of this sect was the ancient book "Crimson Tome", written by supporters of
the Lord's sect a long time ago (pay attention, that there are some
elements of Old English language), and criticizing ideals of Holy Mother's
sect. Let's look closer on the sources of such hostility.
Let's remember 1865 - the cult's God was born (and since that moment the
history of the cult began). And now we'll remember the religious myth: it
turns out, that many cultists trusted, that before the First Coming there
was no world (immortal people - souls doomed on eternal hopeless
existing), then was born the "Lord of Serpents and Reeds" and started to
create the world - day and night, a life and death, etc. That is cultists
trust, that reality is created by the Lord is unfinished "Paradise". And
now we'll read the ancient book of the Lord's sect named Crimson Tome:
a) "Through the Ritual of the Holy Assumption, he built a world. It exists
in a space separate from the world of our Lord. More accurately, it is
within, yet without the Lord's world" - as we know from the plot of SH4,
the result of Holy Assumption is staying in the subconscious world which
(in process of 21 Sacraments for the Descent of Holy Mother) starts to
absorb other people, gradually extend their consciousness from reality. It
is interesting, that in the book "the world of the Lord" is understood
that, we've used to call "the real world".
b) "How can our Lord forgive such an abomination...?" - the Lord's sect
does not respect the creation of the new worlds and new Gods just with
human's mind. If sectarians considered, that Lord has created reality any
attempts to escape this reality is equivalent heresies.
c) "She who is called the "Holy Mother" be not holy one whit" - the Lord's
sect does not respect the ideals of Holy Mother's sect and thought that
their deity is not the deity at all...
d) "The "Descent of the Holy Mother" is naught but the Descent of the
Devil" - in the Lord's sect considered that the creature, which is
containing the God in the womb is Devil!
e) "The "21 Sacraments" be naught but the 21 Heresies" - 21 Sacraments -
the way changing people from the holy reality in their perverted world -
is blasphemy, heresy, seduction of believers in reality and live there.
Result: the Lord's sect was formed for a long time ago (their book already
tearing apart because of its age) and resists to the ideals of "yellow"
and "red" sects, being based on a principle "not trying to summon/create
your own Gods - instead of that you will make the Devil!" Supporters of
the Lord's sect especially esteem reality (as Lord's unfinished
"Paradise") and consider, that only God (Lord) is able to construct the
ideal "Paradise" - so they are wait for the returning of Lord with the
purpose of an upgrade of "reality" up to the level of "ideal Paradise" (it
is interesting, that they have no idea if their Lord was the God, which
was born from someone's perverted subconsciousness during the First
Coming). Most likely, typical representatives of the Lord's sect were
people who haven't suffered in their life, and they were fine with this
existing world.
8-5. Religious Chaos
The cult has been created after the civil war and after a while has
splitted up to sects - originally each sect knew their applicability,
clashed among themselves on an ideological - religious basis, but then
terrible mash has began:
a) Each theorist wanted to catch a piece from religion of SH - everyone
started to tell crazy things and to import some elements from the other
religions to the religion of SH ("There is no religion that has remained
unchanged from the moment it was founded. This one is no exception. When
the religion fell into the hands of immigrants, it was deeply influenced
by their own original Christian beliefs") - there were some elements from
Christianity, occult, cabbalistic...
b) After the Scriptus of a cult has been lost, St. Stephen has spent his
life for its restoration - but, certainly restored variant was not a full
copy of the original that started to confuse the cult again.
c) The Lord's sect has written the blasphemy book Crimson Tome for the
Holy Mother's sect. It was like a declaration of the war...
d) The god has changed his name plenty of times, now no one couldn't
remember even his name, and even in the Divine field there were
disagreements...
e) Cultists, waiting for authority seriously started to create their own
sects, trying to catch a piece of the cult and to create their variant of
religion - result was Valtiel's sect created by Jimmy Stone.
f) Sectarians have started to do different things - for example, Toby
Archbolt (headed "red" sect for some time, but subsequently also fallen as
a victim of the maniac) spent his time selling marihuana and seducing the
girls from the shelter.
It's clear, that disorder started with these sects, and someone should fix
it, until it's too late.
8-6. Valtiel sect
Valtiel sect is the youngest sect of the cult, it has been created by
Jimmy Stone approximately 30 years prior to events of SH4, but existed
only about 20 years. The founder of sect has a post of the Supreme priest
to supervise activity of the sect and to conduct interaction between "red"
sect, propagandizing the summon of the Holy Mother and the God through
bloody ritual "21 Sacraments for the Descent of the Holy Mother" and
"yellow" sect, specializing on the summoning of the God through burnings
of girls. Certainly, the head of Valtiel sect had "his people" in the
other sects. Stone's right hand - priest George Rosten working in the Wish
House (belonging to the Holy mother's sect) and cultivating the ideal
priest of the "red" sect which could make a bloody ceremony. But, the head
of the Valtiel sect conducted with both sects - it's not hard to guess,
that he also had the "left" hand working in the "Saint Ladies sect" and
cultivated the "yellow" priest which could give birth to the God through
the ritual of burning. (We don't know, who his «left hand» was, but if
we'll think better...).
Thus, Valtiel sect could manipulate the other sects easily, thus actually
it is the head of "the Order" cult. This honorable position in the cult's
hierarchy was reflected in the fact that Valtiel sect began to be as the
sect, which is closest to the God. Its purpose was worship Valtiel (an
angel, a symbol of affinity to the God) - but "worship" was expressed in
executions (actually - sacrifices. It went since Indians times),
accordingly, the duty also was assigned to the priests of Valtiel sect to
play a role of executioners. One of the elements of an image of the
executioner the red loose overall which was used since times of Indian
traditions of worship red pyramidal head god Xuchilpaba.
But approximately 10 years prior to events of SH4 Jimmy Stone and George
Rosten have fallen victims of their pupil - crazy maniac - Walter
Sullivan, who become famous of his cruel murders which has brought both
members of Valtiel sect as a victim to the Mother - apartment. It was the
terrible hit for the Valtiel sect, after that this sect has not recovered.
After Jim Stone's death influence of Valtiel sect has catastrophically
decreased, that gave the chance to Claudia and Vincent to accumulate all
authority in their hands.
8-7. The unity of sects
The century after formation, cult was confused - a lot of underground
sects, everything mixed up, sectarians cannot understand anything - real
mess. Besides the cultist Leonard Wolf is in the madhouse because of
murder.
Vincent and Claudia use this chance and become the head of the entire cult
with the motto "OK, friends, stop kidding - let s rally toward Divine
face!" After disposal of fanatic Leonard, there was no opposition in the
cult. And for more successful unity of sects Claudia and Vincent started
to unite elements of doctrines of these sects (censuring unnecessary and
adding to this sights of Claudia at the religion of SH). And everyone will
be happy after the main Saint, an ideal of aspiration to the God, become
Holy Alessa (look pictures in Belfry).
Now the structure of the cult and its doctrine come in the order, the new
cult gains the lost popularity and influence in the city. Donations
suffice to make full repair in the church... But how long the new variant
of "the Order" will exist or everything will be lost because of pure
belief of the main priest in ideality of Holy Alessa?
10. Rituals
10-1 The origin of SH rituals
In fact, the rituals of burning and 21 Sacraments were not created by cult
adepts. These rituals had existed a long time before the colonists came and
originally were performed by the natives of America - Indians (more precisely,
the Maya and the Aztecs), and were adopted by "the Order" (so the rituals are
older than the Cult itself), edited and modified in religious style.
10-2 "21 Sacraments for the Descent of the Holy Mother\Holy Assumption" (FAQ)
Religious meaning: birth of one's own God through blood and violence.
Description: "The First Sign. And God said, At the time of fullness, cleanse
the world with my rage. Gather forth the White Oil, the Black Cup and the
Blood of the Ten Sinners. Prepare for the Ritual of the Holy Assumption. The
Second Sign. And God said, Offer the Blood of the Ten Sinners and the White
Oil. Be then released from the bonds of the flesh, and gain the Power of
Heaven. From the Darkness and Void, bring forth Gloom, and gird thyself with
Despair of the Giver of Wisdom. The Third Sign. And God said, Return to the
Source through sin's Temptation. Under the Watchful eye of the demon, wander
alone in the formless Chaos. Only then will the Four Atonements be in
alignment. The Last Sign. And God said, separate from the flesh too, she is who
is the Mother Reborn and he who is the Receiver of Wisdom. If this be done, by
the Mystery of the 21 Sacraments, the Mother shall be reborn and the Nation of
Sin shall be redeemed."
Explanation: so, let's examine
a)
(Q)estion: Why 21?
(A)nswer: this tradition was brought into the SH religion by some occultism
and fortune-telling lover (heh, who was that, I wonder?), the number is based
on Tarot cards numbers (from 0" to 21", card 22" is The Eye of Night",
which symbolizes the God. (Of course, this is not an Indian tradition - they
didn't know about Tarot) The meaning of the victims is connected to the
meaning of the cards - let's see:
-- Tarot card #1, "The Magician". "The Magician" usually symbolizes a
person with organizational and manipulative talents, strong personality, which
is controlling the situation. Let's compare it with Walter Sullivan's 21
Sacraments - victim 01121, Jim Stone, priest of Valtiel. Magician = priest,
organization talents = Jim organized the Sect of Valtiel. 100% match.
-- Tarot card #2, "The High Priestess". This card symbolizes faith,
intuition, etc. Let's compare it with the Victims List: Bobbie Randolph,
horrors fan, he is into occultism and believes that paranormal activity exists
- 100% match again.
-- Let's try Tarot card #4" - "The Emperor". This card symbolizes parental
care, good management, success, authority and power. Now we check - Steve
Garland, 04121. Parental care = he's Lisa Garland's father, success = he has
his own shop in Ashfield and, besides, according to the victims list
information, the police has found a scoop used for cleaning after the dog -
isn't that a symbol of good management (in house and near it)?
-- Now let's examine Tarot card #9, "The Hermit" - it symbolizes caution and
isolation from the surrounding world. It's also a symbol of defeating one's
lusts and also a symbol of will to understand the nature of every event. It
also can symbolize intention on work, intention on one's self, the
self-absorption of one's character. So, who is number 9 in Sullivan's victims
list? The old watchmaker William Gregory (quite punctual by character, and
obsessed with his work). Old = isolated from the world (old Gregory was so
withdrawn from the world that, according to the victims list, his body was
found after Sullivan's suicide - nobody noticed the disappearance of the quiet
watchmaker), obsession with work and enthusiasm in his work (watch making and
repairing) is the will to understand the nature of the events". As usually,
200% match.
-- We can also check someone else. Randomly we choose a card from the Tarot
deck - it is number 15, "The Devil" - it can symbolize degradation of
someone and death of one's soul. In some situations this card can symbolize
that someone's goals were false and it would be better to give them up before
they go down. So, who is number 15 on Sullivan's list? Joseph Schreiber,
"Despair". Let's compare: Schreiber had lost his hope, he had fallen into
despair = death of the soul and his paranoid attempts to discover the cult's
mystery had led him only to Sullivan's world. Besides, in the context of SH4
Schreiber is the "Giver of Wisdom", and who was it that gave the Wisdom to
Adam and Eve and offered to take the Forbidden Fruit from the Tree of
Knowledge? That's right - the Serpent, a.k.a. Devil.
Guess these examples were enough.
b)
Q: Why Tarot cards?
A: It's thought that Tarot cards express every side of the world (after 21st
Tarot card there are cards which symbolize paranormal events and things - such
as God, reincarnation etc., but they are mentioned only in special
literature), watch the logic: to gather all the Tarot cards (symbolizing all
the world) is to GATHER THE WHOLE WORLD - to kill definite amount of people
(who symbolize every side of the world) is to GATHER THE WORLD. So, wasn't
Walter Sullivan doing that? "Through the Ritual of the Holy Assumption, he
built a world" - Crimson Tome confirms this opinion. In the SH religion the 21
Sacraments symbolize Creation.
c)
Q: Why is number/victim 0 is missing?
A: This card ( 0", the Fool" can symbolize
recklessness/inexperience/simplicity/the power of fate over man, and in
definite situations it can symbolize death - it seems like someone from the
cult decided that these sides of life shouldn't be represented in new world
built with 21 Sacraments+ But the victim 0 probably has not been found, or
lazy Sullivan didn't do his job as it was supposed to be done?
d)
Q: Ten hearts = the blood of the ten sinners?
A: Ten hearts is the first half of the 21 Sacraments for the descent of Holy
Mother ritual, it came from Aztec rituals and originally it looked like this:
"Offering prayers, pierce a man's chest with a copper stake. Drench the altar
in the blood which spouts red from the heart, to praise and to show loyalty
unto God" (Lost Memories) - i.e. the meaning of this operation is just to show
one's loyalty unto God - in fact, there can be any number of victims - i.e.
the more the better" =). Besides, Ten hearts" isn't just pain honoring in
cult, but also is an important psychological aspect, which means there is no
way back anymore".
e)
Q: What is Holy Assumption"?
A: We can see parallel meanings here: assumption (which means taking
something) and Assumption ( taking into the Heaven. This parallel is a good
example of self-intention ideas of the SH series.
f)
Q: What is the meaning of the ritual of the Holy Assumption?
A: The Holy Assumption ritual is an intermediate point of 21 Sacraments
ritual. According to the SH religion, its meaning is: "Be released from the
bonds of the flesh, and gain the Power of Heaven". Let's watch the whole
ritual from the beginning. The prerequisites are: obsidian goblet (symbolizes
night/darkness), sinners blood (symbolizes blood - strange, yeah?), and White
Claudia seed oil (symbolizes the mist - hallucinogenic grass" White Claudia
also fuddles the mind, we can also remember "The lies and the mist are not
they but I". The believer spills the blood over the altar (despite the
discomforts, it is better to do this with the ritual Great Knife, and it is
also better if heart and the blood are fresh), then he fills the Obsidian
Goblet ("Oh Cup which brims with the whitest of wine" - this symbolizes that
darkness and fog are mixing and takes the person away from reality - see Part
1, 1-11) with White Chrism and uses the hallucinogen (how is this "using"
done, we don't know, because developers haven't left any hints on that because
of censure. I (SilentPyramid) think that the oil should be kindled and smoke
should be breathed in: "Oh, proud fragrance of life which flies towards the
heart. Oh Cup which brims with the whitest of wine" - fragrance of life" is
probably the fragrance of burning oil) - and begin to dive into his
subconscious world. Now the only thing that is left is to get rid of the
physical body - and the mind will be enclosed in this world forever. This is
the meaning of Power of Heaven".
g)
Q: Are there any connections between Reverse Will" lyrics (from SH2 OST) and
Holy Assumption ritual?
A: Let's remember the lyrics:
"Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep,
If I should die before I wake,
I pray the Lord my soul to take "
Despite the fact that these lyrics originally are the pray, in SH2 and
Rebirth" ending context it is getting a different meaning, darker than it was.
The connection is obvious:
"Now I lay me down to sleep" - it stands for using the hallucinogen to get
asleep.
I pray the Lord my soul to keep," - this is for Ten hearts" ritual, which
shows loyalty of believer.
"If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take" - this means
that believer, who got rid of his body in the moment of diving into his
subconscious world, stay there forever. So, the name Lord" does not mean the
creator of reality" (this is what the Lord was understood in Lord's sect), but
mean one's own God, which man believes in, and which is represented in the
subconscious world (e.g., in yellow sect" the name Lord" was given to the
subjective God, because the followers of the sect believed that in 1865 God
was born by people - Part 2, 13-6).
h)
Q: Is there anything after the Holy Assumption or is it the end of the ritual?
A: The Holy Assumption is not the end of the ritual, after the physical body
dies, the soul exists in its own world (this happens if inner universe" had
been shaped in incubator or if incubator himself was possessed by some idea).
As it was mentioned, this world itself has some kind of energy - energy of
feelings, and, when a particular amount of this energy is gathered, other
people begin to see and feel this world, and their mind is dragged into the
world of the believer - this is a chance. If the mind of the victim stays in
the world of the believer, the world will assimilate its energy (because the
mind itself has a definite amount of energy) - as a result, more people will
start feeling this world, and more of them will be drawn into it. So, the
subconscious world can be filled with energy so much that absolutely everyone
will feel it, and this world's God will really exist.
i)
Q: What does "If this be done, by the Mystery of the 21 Sacraments, the Mother
shall be reborn and the Nation of Sin shall be redeemed" mean?
A: The Nation of Sin in the SH religion means the people who had not let the
God (i.e. the Pain) enter their souls. But it isn't a problem - everyone will
get their salvation. Remember the Cult's scriptures:
"By the Sacraments, the Holy Mother
shall appear in the countries of the world
and shall bring salvation to the sinful ones."
Of course, if the subconscious world gathers an enormous amount of energy,
EVERYONE will preceive it, even the sinners (that's why Nation of Sin will
have Salvation). This happened in Silent Hill once: "Alessa's powers runs wild
... Her agony is manifested and the entire town is swallowed up by the
otherworld". If the psychic energy can swallow the whole town (even a small
one), then it can swallow the whole world too.
Q: Why is the victim/symbol Assumption number 11121?
A: This is also connected with Tarot cards. 11 is "Strength" (***NOTE***: In
a traditional Tarot card deck 11 is "Strength". 8 is "Justice", but there
is a not so widespread Tarot of Ryder-Waite, where 8 is "Strength" and 11
is "Justice". But I (SilentPyramid) think that in the 21 Sacraments the
traditional deck is used, i.e. 11 is "Strength". What does Strength"
symbolize? This card's main idea is in understanding one's soul power and
ability to resist the worst conditions of life, and, with will and faith, with
believing that one's right, one can reach the height which no one can imagine!
And 11121 is the believer that performs the ritual, should have a strong, even
fanatical, faith in what he does - without this faith the ritual cannot
succeed.
k)
Q: What is the way of choosing the victims?
A: In fact, you may feel free not to choose them. Sullivan has learned the 21
Sacraments by heart, and he was choosing his victims so that the numbers (or
Tarot cards) were connected with the personality of the victims. I.e. "The
Magician" was associated with a priest, and so on. But this is optional and is
left for the believer to decide. For example, Alessa didn't choose anyone, but
the effect still was very strong.
l)
Q: Why are we counting people?
A: Carving the numbers on victims' bodies isn't mentioned in the cult
scriptures - then where from did Sullivan get it from? Well, there are enough
"teachers" in the Cult - Leonard Wolf, Andrew DeSalvo, Jimmy Stone, George
Rosten, Dahlia Gillespie, etc - seems like someone managed to convince
Sullivan that carving is necessary. By the way, we know that it is prohibited
to count people in the Christian religion and to give them numbers, so we can
say that Sullivan's carving is a real religious offense for Christians. But we
also need to mention that occult/satanic/anti-Christian thoughts were strong
in the Cult when Sullivan was being taught, so he took them. Of course, when
Claudia began to rule the cult, carving became forbidden (and maybe the 21
Sacraments ritual itself was forbidden for it's violence, or it was replaced
with a self-sacrificing ritual - that's Claudia's style).
m)
Q: What is the Mother Reborn"?
A: It's a symbol/victim 20121 which is considered to be the ultimate element
needed to create one's own world. Due to some well-known reasons, the
religious term "Mother Reborn" is associated with Eileen in Sullivan's mind.
There are 2 reasons for this: 1) Eileen lives next to Walter's "Mother" - Room
302. 2) In fact, Eileen was the only close person Sullivan had, so she became
a kind of "mother" to him.
Some memories and feelings of Walter are also connected to Eileen - these
feelings are represented in his subconscious world.
The Tarot card 20 is "Judgement" - take a look at the card's design - people
are standing around an open grave. One of them is looking at the flying angel
with a trumpet. People are being brought back to life by the sound of angel's
trumpet. That's why Walter's memories and feelings are represented - "brought
back to life" - in his world through Eileen.
The Victim/symbol 20121 is also mentioned in the "Halo of the Sun" section.
(Part 2, 16).
n)
Q: What is the "Receiver of Wisdom"?
A: The Symbol/victim 21121". In a Tarot card deck 21 is "The World" - this
is a "positive" card and it symbolizes Wisdom, Love, defeating one's
weaknesses etc. So, Townshend has enough of this wisdom/love/compassion
(remember - he cares about every victim - despite the fact he should care
about himself only), that's why he is the 21st victim. The meaning of
symbol/victim 21121 is also mentioned in the "Halo of the Sun" section.
o)
Q: Why must the next resident of Room 302 be the last victim?
A: It should be mentioned that Walter Sullivan associated the "Receiver of
Wisdom" with the next resident of the Room (his "Mother" after the "Giver of
wisdom" ("Whoever lives here after me... You'll be the 21st, the last of the
sacrifices..." - this is what Schreiber writes in his letter to the next
resident). Guess this choice of victim is connected with Walter's strange
associations (Room = Mother) - if we compare 15121 and 21121, we will find
out that Walter associated "Wisdom" with "Mother". That's why the "Receiver of
Wisdom" is the "Receiver of the Room", the next tenant.
p)
Q: Is there any connection between the 21 Sacraments/Holy Assumption and the
ritual of the Resurrection of the Dead, which was described in "Lost Memories"
from SH2 sub-scenario?
A: Let's remember the Lost Memories text, which we can found in Maria's
scenario (ATTENITION: this file is missing in the original SH2 version - so if
you don't have Restless Dreams, you'd better run and buy it now).
"I have the strongest trust - you may even call it faith - in the miracle
called "Ressurection of the Dead". Upon the hill where the light descended,
the Beast intoned his song. With words of blood, drops of mist and the vessel
of night, the grave become an open field. The people wept in fear and joy at
the reunion, but my faith in the salvation of Xuchilpaba did not waver. It is
also spoken of in the ancient legends. The original worshippers did not
believe that death was the end but that it was simply the path by which the
deceased returned to nature. They also believed the process was reversible.
(There's something imprinted towards the bottom of the page. Did Ernest write
this? What could it mean?) Blood = Red, Mist = White, Night = Black"
Of course, "Resurrection of the Dead" and the 21 Sacraments/Holy Assumption
are the same. Firstly, red blood, white powder and black goblet - all match.
Second, we can find the name Xuchilpaba here - it is a little altered
Xuchilbara - the name of the red god.
q)
Q: How can the dead can be resurrected by the 21 Sacraments/Holy Assumption
ritual?
A: As we know, the consciousness of the believer, who has performed the ritual
and gained the "Power of Heaven", and also the minds of people who somehow
managed to get drawn into someone's subconscious world, stay there, manifested
by some symbol. So, what will happen if this world gains enough power to draw
in everybody? These "dead men", enclosed in the subconscious world of the
believer, will exist again - they will be "resurrected" by the alteration of
realities. This way everything can be resurrected - one's self, one's
illusions, one's God, etc. - everything that person who "powered" this
subconscious world believes. This way, Alessa gave birth (almost gave birth)
to her subconsious God (well, not by means of the Holy Assumption, but the
idea is the same).
r)
Q: Why did Walter carve his name on victims?
A: According to the 21 Sacraments description text, name carving was not
necessary - seems like it was added by Walter or his teachers from the cult.
Anyway, taking into account that the 21 Sacraments' meaning is to suck people
into someone's subconscious world, it can be said that these people stayed
inside Sullivan's world - i.e. they became a part of Sullivan.
10-3. The ritual of burning.
Religious meaning: birth of someone's subconscious God through pain and
suffering.
Description: Lost Memories "In another sacrificial rite mentioned in the same
book, the victim is burned alive. This was a more dignified ceremony in which
prisoners and sinners were not allowed to participate, only the clergy could
be sacrificed. Similar to the burning at the stake, no comparable rite can be
found in the religions practiced nearby. It may have some connection with the
main deity being a sun God."
Explanation: this ritual is common in the "yellow" sect; it was practiced by
Indians and was introduced to the cult by St. Nicholas. The main idea of
summoning the God is the same as in the 21 Sacraments. First, a victim is
needed (a girl will suit better - this is connected with psychoenergetic
potential - "Negative emotions, like fear, worry, or stress manifest Into
external energy with physical effects...Although it's Not clear why,
adolescents, especially girls, Are prone to such occurrences" - this is what
we found in library in SH1), the victim will be tortured for a long time to
make them feel as much pain as possible (or, we can say, to strengthen the
power of feelings) - of course, the victim's mind will try to save itself from
the pain of the material world and its consciousness will try to run to the
world of the subconsciousness (this will lead to creation of a strong
subconscious world) - and, when it tries to escape, White Claudia should be
given to the victim (if it's necessary) and the victim should be burned (this
is caused by origins of the ritual - the native Americans were worshiping the
Sun as a God, and it's also very Painful). So, in fact this is just like Holy
Assumption" ("Be released from the bonds of the flesh" and the martyr,
released from his body, gains the "Power of Heaven" - if everything goes as
planned, he (pr she) is no more bound by flesh in this world. So, later
everything goes just like in the 21 Sacraments ritual - if martyr has
experienced enough strong" feelings (or if he was forced to experience), his
subconscious world will gain enough power to swallow another people - and,
this way, it will gain more and more energy, until it gains enough to swallow
up every person in the world (remember Alessa from SH1).
Religious metaphor: The eternal flame of pain moves the world around.
10-4. Ritual execution in Toluca prison.
(The original text of this article was written by BAHEK, additions were made
by SilentPyramid) [then it was translated by 401st Stalker and the resulting
"translation" was then corrected by Darth_Blade in a very pissed off mode -
Translator's note]
It is known that native Americans practiced human sacrifice. The original
Indian ritual of blood-spilling is "Offering prayers, pierce a man's chest
with a copper stake. Drench the altar in the blood which spouts red from the
heart, to praise and to show loyalty unto God", but it was made more violent
later (this ritual is the origin of ritual execution in SH and 21
Sacraments". Let's examine the "upgraded" version of the ritual.
First, let's remember some scenes from the game:
A picture in SH1 near the altar in "nowhere", where Alessa is praying: a naked
woman with tied hands is hung on a rope. The executioner holds a spear near
her chest.
SH3, first dead body in the alternative cafe has a scar on the right side -
wound inflicted by a spear?
Victims from SH1 - the corpses seems very... thin - maybe their stomachs are
empty? I.e. there is NOTHING inside? On some corpses we can clearly see
stitches.
The corpse from SH3, alternative Brookhaven, from which blood was dripping
into a bucket - Heather describes it as a "full all-out bloodletting".
The picture named "Crimson and White Banquet for Gods", where we can see two
Pyramid-headed executioners with a bucket of blood.
Ritual of spilling blood over an altar which Heather does before meeting
Leonard Wolf.
Pyramid-Head's room - we can see a corpse in a cage.
The picture "Misty day, remains of the Judgment" - an executioner with a spear
is standing in front of skewered prisoners.
So, a victim is needed (a woman - picture from SH1). The victim is hung on a
rope (the rope is tied to both hands, but, in rare cases, to one hand). Then
victim's chest is pierced by a copper spear (yeah, the spear originally was
the "copper stake" of the Indians), but the spear hits not the heart but the
right side of the body - because of this the victim does not die at the time
of the hit, but it will suffer from pain for a long time. Then, the victim is
hung on the rope (but this time upside-down). What a victim does - we can see
in one of the corridors in SH4 and in a video from SH2 (Pyramid-Head holding
one of the Lying Figures).
It is possible that then executioners let out the victim's guts while the
victim was still alive. Many corpses from SH have slashed stomachs. When all
internal organs (even the heart) are taken out, the wound is stitched up (we
can see the stitches on some corpses), and the body (dead already) is hung
upside down over some bowl to collect blood (remember Crimson and White
Banquet for the Gods). The heart of the victim is cut and the altar is
drenched in blood (SH3 - LM).
Now let's say a couple of words about the stomach slashing and taking the guts
out. The stitch can be seen on the corpses in PH's lair. By the way, we can
mention the interesting similarity between SH execution and ancient Egyptian
traditions: the picture on the gallow is made in Egyptian style + the pyramid
(the symbol of pharaohs' power) = the triangular hood of the executioners. So,
what did the ancient egyptians do before embalming a body? Yeah, the guts of
the pharaoh were taken out, and the cut then stitched.
So, after that the body of the sinner who has received his punishment (it
wasn't always a deserved one: "Death upon the head of a sinner!"), was nailed
to an iron cage (the body in the cage symbolizes that even after death the
sinner will still stay in the cage, and something in it reminds me about the
eternal circle of the subconscious world), and the paper describing the crime
committed by the sinner was often fastened to the face of the corpse.
After that the dead body was hung somewhere to provide fear and terror among
the citizens of Silent Hill. "Dead men, dead men swinging in a tree. How many
dead men do you see?"
So, the justice is done and the Gods are pleased.
11. Metatron
Metatron's Seal in SH3 and Samael\Metatron's Seal in SH1, left a lot of
questions to the fans of SH series. Using the information from LM and our
knowledge of the influence of other religions on religion of SH, we'll
answer all of these questions.
11-1. Metatron and Samael, religious sources
Samael and Metatron, specified in SH1, they are not a fiction of authors -
these angels exist in the real religion. Let's find out more information
about them to understand the latent sense of idea with Signs of
Samael\Metatron.
According to the Kabbalah (do not forget Dahlia's beliefs) and Great Lost
Memories, from the beginning the Angels Samael and Metatron were a single
whole where good and evil counterbalanced each other - but subsequently
this "single whole" was separated to the "evil" Samael and a "good"
Metatron (that obviously sends us to the history of separating Alessa's
soul to the Half-Alessa and Sheryl). Samael subsequently has received the
status of the fallen angel, the angel of death and often has been
associated with the Devil and attributed such acts as seduction of Eve,
and also paternity of the Kain. Besides told, that Samael's appearance was
the huge twelve-winged snake.
It is considered, that Samael and Metatron after separation became
opponents: Samael personifies evil forces, Metatron - good forces... But
actually Metatron, as well as Samael is the supreme angel of death, and
the God make daily instructs concerning the souls to take away. Also he
has the ability to dispell any spell (for example, In one of the legends
Metatron was the only angel powerful enough to break a powerful spell of
the two evil magicians, which were trying to get to the heavens). Metatron
is the most powerful of Briatic world's archangels and he is "the personal
secretary of the Supreme". But how does he looks like? The Kabbalah told,
that Metatron has 36 wings (by the amount of the righteous persons living
in the each generation due to which existence of the world is supported)
and uncountable set of eyes (you should be glad, that Metatron did not
become some mid-boss in Alessa's world). Besides, Metatron - is the only
angel which has right to sit.
11-2. the Seal of Metatron and the Mark of Samael
Identical at the first sight symbols as the triangle in the circle in the
first part of game are called as two different names - "the Seal of
Metatron" and "the Mark of Samael" that should cause doubts in the player.
For example, Dahlia in the dialogue with Harry Mason on the yacht in SH1
names strange symbols as the Mark of Samael(" It is the Mark of Samael ")
and she is threatening, that its distribution will lead to the
catastrophic consequences, and in SH3 precisely the same symbol is called
as the Seal of the Metatron which should destroy Alessa's God and her
world. How could the same symbol be simultaneously The Mark of Samael and
the Seal of the Metatron!? Knowing, that angels Samael and Metatron were
initially a single whole, it is not surprising, that both of them have the
same symbol - Mark of Samael/Seal of Metatron. By the way, pay attention
to the abbreviations of Mark of Samael (MoS) and Seal of Metatron (SoM),
apparently - MoS is the SoM on the contrary, that make us think again
about the essence of Samael and Metatron.
Otherwise, the triangle in the circle is the symbol of the two deities -
Metatron and Samael, therefore in the religion there are two variants of
the name - " Mark of Samael " and " the Seal of the Metatron ". But
irrespective of the names, both of these kabbalistic angels has the
functions relative to the destruction - that's why the symbol has the
function of destruction and dispel. In the first part of the game Alessa
tried to use the Seal of Metatron\Mark of Samael to destroy her own world
and to prevent the God's birth - it was unprofitable to Dahlia, therefore
she wanted to use Harry Mason to stop Alessa. And in the dialogue with the
writer she named the symbol as the symbol of evil demon Samael (instead of
the good archangel Metatron) to confuse Harry and to make him believe that
distribution of this symbol foretells bad consequences and should be
stopped. As we understand, if she has used the " Seal of the Metatron "
Mason could have doubts - that's why this was the artful tactical move.
11-3. Functions and conditions of the Seal of Metatron\the Mark of Samael
What the functional applicability of the symbol? To answer this question
it is necessary to remember the book "Otherworld Laws" where were
described the functions of the symbol. Let's see:
a) " It will bring results regardless of whether the target is good or
evil " - means the connection of the Mark of Samael and the Seal of
Metatron is - it combines the forces of good (Metatron) and evil (Samael).
Therefore this powerful charm imposes big responsibility for the user.
b) " strong protective properties " - this charm can protect its owner
c) " strong dispelling properties " - it has the ability to dispel, to
destroy magic charms. This function allows the Seal of Metatron to destroy
Alessa's world.
ã) Notice that in the book this symbol is called also as the " Virun VII
Crest ", that testifies that the sign has at least THREE used names...
Nevertheless, it is necessary to note, that the Seal of Metatron\the Sign
of Samael works only UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS. The truth about these
conditions is revealed by the authors in the questions and answers of
official guide to the SH1 (released only in Japan) - the matter is that in
the Alessa's world this symbol will work, if it will be in the certain
places of the city - Midwich school, Alchemilla hospital, antique shop
Green Lion, a beacon and the amusement park. Otherwise it will not work
and would not be able to destroy Alessa's " other world's" charms.
11-4. Is the Seal of Metatron\Mark of Samael have a REAL power?
Actually Claudia was right, when she spoke about the charm " it's just a
piece of junk " - indeed, in the REAL world this thing will never be able
to work. But the subconscious world lives with the other laws - and there
the magic is possible, using the charms is possible, everything is
possible, if the founder of this subconscious world will believe.
And here comes is the main law of the subconscious world: the thing,
person will believe, will take place in his inner world. Why? Let's find
out by SH1:
a) Alessa has the mother fanatically devoted to religion and superb
knowledge in occult.
b) We examine the shelves with books in the Alessa's room - there are a
lot of huge religious books (" serious stuff " - Heather's notice). Mother
forced her daughter to learn all the books, she forced her to trust in the
Seal of the Metatron, in the Mark of Samael, in Aglaophotis and Flauros...
And this belief then will be reflected in the inner world of the naive
girl.
c) The girl trusts, that the tracing of the shining sign of Metatron (or
the Mark of Samael ^ __ ^) will lead to to destruction of this world and
the destruction of the God, and she tried to prevent the Birth - for this
purpose she puts Seales of Metatron in her world. Alessa has the
antagonism of desires: on the one hand she wishes the Birth of the fallen
angel, which death will destroy hated people (Alessa's aggression, her
destructive side), other - wants to escape from an eternal circle, and
also she doesn't want the death of the father (after Cheryl's return) -
she wishes to destroy her world, before it's too late. And for this
purpose she tries to distribute in her world the mystical symbol to
destroy a nightmare. But outside the inner world of Alessa these signs
have no magic power.
11-5. Why does the Seal of Metatron didn't worked in SH3?
There are two explanations - the first - according to the religion, the
second - according to the mechanism.
à) According to the religion
According to the religion, the Seal of Metatron has not worked because it
has not been used in the certain places of the city - Neither Heather, nor
Vincent didn't know how to use it properly. Therefore it's not worked in
the Alessa's world. But if Heather before going to the park has some time
to go to the school, hospital, antiquarian shop and a beacon - the " other
world " could be destroyed by the force of the mystical symbol...
á) According to the mechanism
We know, that inner world of the person reflects all of his beliefs
(including religious). But in SH3 Heather admits, that she does not
believe in occultism, and her trust is ripped apart with the Claudia's
words " It's just a piece of junk. What do you think you can do with it?
I'm sorry you fell for my father's foolishness ", having dissuaded Heather
in the Metatron's magic "mumbo-jumbo". Even Vincent, who gave Heather the
book about magic and occultism, forced her to believe in the magic force
of the Seal, could not convince the girl. Heather didn't believed in the
Seal, she didn't know how this thing should work - and this absence of
belief in the charm's magic was reflected in her world, the Seal didn't
worked.
(P.S. Nevertheless Aglaophotis worked in SH3 since the functions of this
plant has been written in the book, and Heather really trusted her beloved
father who has presented her " a red pill ")
12. Magical objects and books of Silent Hill
Now let's see all of the objects met in SH-series which possess magic
abilities, and especially important books devoted to the religion of
Silent Hill for better understanding of some mystical phenomena of a
series.
12-1. Flauros
Description of abilities: " Here, The Flauros, A cage of peace. It can
break through the walls of darkness and counteract the wrath of the
underworld ".
Meaning of the name: Flauros is a name of one of the 72 demons which were
summoned by legendary tsar Solomon (by the way, in SH1 it is possible to
find the Amulet of Solomon). We can find mentions of him in Lemengtone -
the magic book which was copied from manuscripts of the Israel tsar
Solomon.
In the story: How could so precious thing come to Dahlia? Easy! Maybe the
bum has sold it for the bottle of Healthdrink or a dose of White Claudia
(I guess, that person was very pleased, that has favourably sold this
useless junk to the loony woman), and then Dahlia was very happy with this
cube, yelled about its improbable abilities and forced (methods of
physical influence - " Most likely her mother is abusing her. I've never
seen her come in without some sort of scrape or bruise " - writes K.Gordon
about Alessa Gillespie) Alessa - this girl, already tortured by " occult
lessons ", to learn this magic abilities of Flauros. Certainly Flauros was
just a junk, and all its prospective magic abilities - are Dahlia's
misleadings, created with her fanatical occult hobby. But Dahlia's lessons
were succesful - and her misleadings, have taken effect on Alessa's
subconscious world (speaking Vincent's words, " It is forever burned into
her mind "), and Alessa seriously began to believe, that Flauros possesses
the improbable force - and it was reflected in her inner world, not the
magic power of a children's toy has impressed Alessa, but it's became
possible ofly by Alessa's beliefs. Here's the description of Flauros from
LM: " It has the ability to break the continuity of the boundary that
surrounds Alessa " - notice, that it's written about ALESSA's and,
probably, it wouldn't work anywhere, but in her inner world, that means,
that this cube of Flauros does not possess any magical force.
It's very important dialogue: when Dahlia in her last meeting begins her "
sermons " about magic, Harry told: " I'm in no mood for jokes... That's
absurd ", Dahlia answers him: " You are the only one who thinks so " -
really, Alessa has created the world and establishes it's rules, that's
why the things she trust, will be in her inner world, whether it'll be
fantastic characters, bloody monsters or magic spells. Thus, Konami " says
", that not some cheap "magic" trinkets, but the true Faith can do magic.
12-2. (Aglaophotis)
Description of abilities: " Red liquid or crystals resembling blood.
According to the Kabbalah, the name is taken from a herb with the power to
dispel evil spirits. It is said to grow in Arabian deserts. It may be
vaporized or applied as a poultice to guard against demons. It is
powerful, but as it is rare it is extremely difficult to obtain ".
The information to think about: Aglaophotis is a plant of small growth
(the length of a root approximately in 4-5 times exceeds length of an
elevated part of a plant), with a thickish stalk and the dense thick
leaves, growing in the Arabian deserts. It is considered, that it has an
abilitiy to expel evil spirits\demons and to summon good (for example, it
was used for summoning of wind spirits - each spirit corresponded to the
certain direction of a wind and has it's own name - for example, Hamum -
spirit of northern wind, Faleh - the spirit of a southern wind). The root
of this plant aws used for this purpose.
It is necessary to note the process of gathering aglaophotis: according to
beliefs, aglaophotis should be gathered during the time when neither the
Moon, nor the Sun " doesn't see you ", and it is the extremely important
to "not to offend" a plant, during the gathering to care about it with due
respect. The root should be separated from a stalk exactly in the moment
when the first star will grow gim.
Knowing this, just think, HOW EXPENSIVE should be aglaophotis, collected
with observance of these ritual subtleties and brought in the USA from the
Arabian deserts... (*_*)
In the plot of Silent Hill\Silent Hill 3: Aglaophotis is not hallucination
and it wasn't created by Alessa (then Harry Mason could not take it away
it with him), but it's difficult to judge about these "magic" abilities -
most likely, they are the result of Alessa's conviction in magic power,
but, unfortunately, Alessa didn't learnt it well enough - that's why
Aglaofotis works completely inadequately in the inner world of a little
girl. Dahlia, seeing, that the bottle approaching Alessa on was 100% sure,
that this is the end of her God (" Stop it!! " - and in the occult she
couldn't mistake. That means, she perfectly understood, what is able to
summon EVIL spirit\demon). " What on earth? It's not supposed to... " -
says Kaufmann, realizing, that for some reason everything goes not as is
written in the ancient books. Aglaophotis instead of destroying a demon,
takes it from Alessa's body in pretty good shape...
Besides during SH series we never saw abilities of Aglaophotis OUTSIDE OF
Alessa's world, full of mystical biases of the girl - this means, it is
necessary to believe, that Aglaophotis - actually is a usual grass, but it
works in Alessa's world for the same reasons, as Flauros.
12-3. The "Lost Memories" book
Comment: It's the work of the obscure author analyzing history of Silent
Hill when Indians lived on this territory - events shrouded in a fog of
centuries. The city keeps a lot of memories, but also it keeps eternal
Silence... Probably, the author of this book wanted to become the voice of
Silent Hill, to merge with it in a single whole?
Anyhow, this book appears in two and a half parts of a series (Silent Hill
2, Silent Hill 2: Restless Dreams and Silent Hill 3) and reveals a lot of
history of city - for example, it describes beliefs, ceremonies of
Indians, opens the secret of reviving dead through sacred ritual, etc.
12-4. Artifacts for the ritual of Holy Assumption
a) White Chrism
(presumably an oil made of hallucination seeds of White Claudia)
It is required for fulfilment of Holy Assumption ritual, hallucination
abilities of White Claudia allows human consciousness to go deep into
themselves. It is necessary for reception of " Force of Heavens ". Use -
it is poured in the Obsidian Goblet and, probably, lights up. Symbolizes a
fog.
b) Obsidian Goblet
The black cup with a leg as the snake symbolizes night and darkness.
There's poured the liquid named White Chrism. But, basically, there's no
any special meaning of this Goblet - I think, it is possible to do
everything without it.
c) Great Knife
The huge ritual knife used at the ceremony for cutting of 10 hearts of
sinners, and then, most likely, for disposal of a body of the believer.
Executioners in Prison Toluca the same knifes, but, probably, they were
rather quickly convinced of their impracticality - that's why in SH4 the
Room we can see reduced (almost twice) version of ritual Great Knife which
were used by Sullivan. But, for successful ritual, it is possible to use a
usual knife (or even the soup spoon?).
12-5. The Book of Crimson Ceremony
The text: " Speak. I am the Crimson One. The lies and the mist are not
they but I. You all know that I am One. Yes, and the One is I. Believers
hearken to me! Twenty score men and seven thousand beasts. Heed my words
and speaketh them to all, that they shall ever be obeyed even under the
light of the proud and merciless sun. I shall bring down bitter vengeance
upon thee and thou shalt suffer my eternal wrath. The beauty of the
withering flower and the last struggles of the dying man, they are my
blessings. Thou shalt ever call upon me and all that is me in the place
that is silent. Oh, proud fragrance of life which flies towards the heart.
Oh Cup which brims with the whitest of wine, it is in thee that all
begins".
Comments: The book describing the ritual of Holy Assumption, being the
main ritual of the "red" sect. The narration is conducted, ostensibly, on
behalf of " the Crimson One " - on behalf of the patron of bloody ritual,
the RED piramidal head American Indian deity named Xuchilpaba. Also in
this book we can see, that American Indian ritual of sacrifice (Lost
Memories: " The roots of the Crimson Ceremony lie in Mayan and Aztec
rituals. At one time, the ritual of human sacrifice was quite prevalent ")
is advanced and copied with religious manners - the author has tried to
mark the in a history.
12-6. The Crimson Tome
The text: " She who is called the " Holy Mother " be not holy one whit.
The " Descent of the Holy Mother " is naught but the Descent of the Devil.
Those that be called the " 21 Sacraments " be not sacramental one whit.
The " 21 Sacraments " be naught but the 21 Heresies. To give birth to a
realm of wickedness within the blessed realm of our Lord be blasphemy and
the work of the Devil. If thou would stop the Descent of the Devil, you
must bury part of the Conjurer's mother's flesh within the Conjurer's true
body. Thou must also pierce the Conjurer's flesh with the 8 spears of "
Void, " "Darkness", "Gloom", "Despair", "Temptation", "Source",
"Watchfulness" and "Chaos." Do so and the Conjurer's unholy flesh will
become that which once it was, by the grace of our Lord ".
Comments: The ancient book (you do not believe, that it is ancient? Look
at language of narration!) where representatives of sect of the Lord,
doesn't want the Births of the Gods created by human reason and expecting
resurrection of the Lord, scolding "red" sect - the biggest part of the
book is devoted to criticism of Sacred Mother, Holy Assumption, etc. It is
known, that Walter Sullivan, Joseph Schreiber and Henry Townshend read
this book.
I think, the fanatical belief of supporters of the Lord's sect does not
allow them to understand, that their Lord summoned in 1865, (summoned with
disrespected rituals of replacement realities) also is a product of human
subconsciousness and in fact the same as Alessa's "Samael", "PyramidHead"
of James, "God" in SH3, and Walter Sullivan's "Germ".
12-7. Otherworld Laws
The text: " This magic square, with strong protective and dispelling
properties, is called the ' Virun VII crest ' or the ' Seal of Metatron '.
It will bring results regardless of whether the target is good or evil;
its strength, therefore, places a very high burden on the caster. As it is
also difficult to control, it is not usually used. This is why it bears
the name 'Metatron' after the angel Metatron (or Metratron) also known as
the Agent of God ".
Comments: Huge, faded from time, occult book for the certain reasons
appearing in the cult library, where Alessa and Claudia spent their time -
as Dahlia and Leonard . Now guess WHO has brought IT in the library. You
know? Of course, this book has been brought from somewhere by Dahlia
Gillespie (really, she is talented for getting trash) and has brought to
the library. Basically, this book is useless - as we can see in SH3, the
information from this book is useless. The only thing, this book is able
to do is to raise hopes in the believer, or simply to confuse people (as
it happened with Vincent and Leonard).
12-8. The Seal of Metatron\Samael
Description of abilities: see Part 2, section 11.
In the plot of Silent Hill 3: For the certain reasons Leonard Wolf
trusted, that this thing is able to destroy God and counted himself as its
keeper. Also cult thought, that 17 years prior to events of SH1, the Birth
of God was prevented by using the Seal of Metatron by faithless heretics
(similar thing confused Vincent). Certainly, Claudia was right - the Seal
of Metatron actually is " just a piece of junk " her silly father has
believed. But, nevertheless, in the end of SH3 the Seal of Metatron\Samael
was able to destroy the God - if Heather really believed in the powers of
this Seal, but the girl does not believe in magic (when Heather reads
occult magazine in the subway, she says, that such bosh can be esteemed
only for fun, but shouldn't think serious about this stuff), therefore the
Seal does not work in Alessa\Heather's world.
12-9. The book " Silent Hill's Ancient Gods: A Study of Their Etymology
and Evolution " (About Syncretic Religions)
The text: " There is no religion that has remained unchanged from the
moment it was founded. This one is no exception. When the religion fell
into the hands of immigrants, it was deeply influenced by their own
original Christian beliefs. For example, the traditional representations
of these primal Gods may be given the names and descriptions of christians
angels. Thus shared characteristics begin to appear. (There is also one
rare example of the chief deity, ' Creator of Paradise 'or' Lord of
Serpents and Reeds', being dubbed with a demons name of course, this was
not done by believers but by their opponents.) "
Comments: This book describes religion of SH, most likely, at the moment
coming up from underground. The special attention has the influence of the
other religions (and personal outlooks of believers) on formation of SH
religion.
It is necessary to note, that the author of " About Syncretic Religions "
shows big attention to such important details, as constant change and
step-type behaviour of God's shape in the cult - for example, in the book
there's the image of God esteemed in a cult during events of SH1, when,
due to the diligence of Dahlia and Leonard, demon tendencies prevailed in
the cult (the image: a horned - winged demon with goatee head and (also
see Konami concept art of Samael) erection, frankly speaking about a
sexual belonging of God, Dahlia Gillespie trusted - and subsequently has
forced Alessa to believe), also the image of God after editing religion by
Claudia (the image: Alessa).
12-10. Sword of Obedience
Description: " I've found something that's extremely effective against the
ghosts. It saved my life. It was stuck into the huge rock in the woods
near the orphanage. It's a sword blade with a hand-made, triangle-shaped
wooden handle that has some kind of spell written on it. As a weapon, it's
heavy and hard to carry. But somehow it seems to change in response to the
ghost-victim's power. Strike when the sword is energized! If you do not
reduce their power, your attacks will be repelled. As far as I know, there
are only 5 swords in existence with that kind of power. It's extremely
valuable ".
Religious value: the Sword with the spell engraved on it and the
triangular handle, stopping victims of Walter... Most likely, victims of
bloody ritual were pierced with this sword that they can not move, and
the triangular handle says us the features of deity's image - patron of
"red" ritual, and also the shape of Toluca prison's executioners, making
severe ritual executions.
In the plot of Silent Hill 4: Schreiber has found a sword near Wish House
- this is obvious, but whence after visiting the shelter he has found out,
that there are 5 swords? The answer is simple and clear - he subtracted it
in a religious book from a shelter. Naturally, Walter Sullivan read this
book in the shelter (and maybe forced to learn by heart, as well as 21
Sacraments, under fear of an imprisonment in Water Prison). As a result
Walter has believed in existence of these swords, has believed that they
can operate on phantoms and even that there are 5 swords - as it is
written in the book... The similar belief has been reflected in Sullivan's
subconscious world - 5 magic swords.
By the way, there are no magic swords in any other part of SH - they can
be founded only in SH4 - another confirmation, that magic swords are
Sullivan's reflection in his world only subjective confusion.
12-11. The Holy Candle and the Saint Medallion
Description: " I've found two mysterious and powerful artifacts that seem
to be very effective for evading the ghost-victims: the Holy Candle and
the Saint Medallion. Not only are they effective against the ghost-victims
in the Other World, they also seem to prevent them from invading my room.
Just light the candle near where they're coming in and its holy power is
activated. The Saint Medallion seems to repel unholy energy when it's worn
(equipped.) I'm starting to gain some hope ".
Religious value: Candles were in rituals of transcendental magic in the
cult - pay attention, that MotherStone is completely arranged with
candles. Accordingly, the Saint Medallion should preserve its carrier
against forces of the other world.
In the plot of Silent Hill 4: Absolutely the same as swords - except
Walter's world these things will not work anywhere (if only the founder of
the new world will not be confused by this cult and will not believe in
artefacts' power).
12-12. Spears of Holy Mother
Description: " Spear with " Holy Mother " carved into it. The " Crimson
Tome " says that I have to stick eight of these spears into Walter's body".
Meaning: authors of Crimson Tome were sure, that 21 Sacraments ritual can be
prevented, if the body of the one who makes this ritual, to be pierced
with eight spears of Emptiness, Darkness, Gloom, Despair, Sin, Source,
Supervision and Chaos, each of them will have an inscription " Holy Mother
". I don't know, why authors of this book have decided, that it will work,
but naive Walter, having read Crimson Tome has believed in efficiency of
this method - that's why spears will work and in his inner world that
gives Townshend quite good chance of a victory.
12-13. The Scriptus of the cult\21 Sacraments
The text: " The First Sign: And God said, At the time of fullness, cleanse
the world with my rage. Gather forth the White Oil, the Black Cup and the
Blood of the Ten Sinners. Prepare for the Ritual of the Holy Assumption.
The Second Sign: And God said, Offer the Blood of the Ten Sinners and the
White Oil. Be then release from the bonds of the flesh, and gain the Power
of Heaven. From the Darkness and Void, bring forth Gloom, and gird thyself
with Despair for the Giver of Wisdom. The Third Sign: And God said, Return
to the Source through sin's Temptation. Under the Watchful eye of the
demon, wander alone in the formless Chaos. Only then will the Four
Atonements be in alignment. The Last Sign: And God said, separate from the
flesh too, she who is the Mother Reborn and he who is the Receiver of
Wisdom. If this be done, by the Mystery of the 21 Sacraments, the Mother
shall be reborn and the Nation of Sin shall be redeemed ".
Value: the Scriptus of a cult has been lost once, but then was restored by
the person named St. Stephen - you can see this book in confessional of
SH3, the cellar of a shelter and confidential room in SH4. Very valuable
is a chapter of the Scriptus where it is spoken about 21 Sacraments,
Walter Sullivan was forced to learn in the shelter.
12-14. The Book of Praise
The text: unknown.
Value: The book, describing how to wake the God sleeping in a womb of Holy
Mother by making her (Mother) suffer, feel the rage and other negative
emotions.
In the plot of SH3: on November 14-th Father Vincent gave to naive Claudia
Wolf the book of Praise where was described how to wake the God. The
methods described in this book, have seemed too severe for Claudia - how
could she do something like this with her sister? But she has no other
choice - she really wanted to bring Paradise to the Earth, to relieve
people of suffering... Claudia will do everything, for the sake of
humanity (" I do not want to be a mere bystander in this world "), even
with this severe methods, and making suffer her beloved Alessa, Claudia
will never be forgiven (" For the pain i've caused you i deserve no
mercy... "). By the way, Vincent will regret that he has given this book
to the fanatic - but it will be too late.
12-15. Channeling Stone
Description: " A mystical stone possessing power. If used somewhere the
result will be...? "
In the plot of Silent Hill: similar dark blue pieces of glass with the
image of the big eye on the underside (*the* always watching you, heh)
were on sale in the econom-shop Convenience Store 8 in the north of city.
Hardly to believe that such thing could be really valuable, but it was in
demand after hearings about flights of UFO above a city beacon. The girl
by name Alessa (and, presumably, she's not the only one) even trusted,
that if to use the stone in the certain places in the city it is really
possible to call UFO... Such nonsense!
13. Halo of the Sun
This symbol has been borrowed by Silent Hill's cult from traditions of
Indians where the red circle designated light of their main deity - the
god of the Sun, and in later has been made as a symbol of the religious
organization " the Order " though it has numerous changes which have
essentially deepened the value of HotS. The Halo of the Sun we can see in
SH2, SH3 and SH4, carries a deep sense, reflecting ideas of revival, the
God and an inner world. Suffering childhood of Alessa has been connected
with him - that is why in SH3 when Heather looks at the symbol from the
past, she has a headache -it's painful, the memoirs come back. Also the
symbol is connected with a childhood of the other character - Walter
Sullivan.
According to traditions of " the Order ", the huge value has the color of
HotS: red or black color of HotS means praise to the God but if it is
represent in dark blue color - it will mean imposing curse on the God.
13-1. Religious meaning of the "Halo of the Sun"
Let's see all the basic elements of a mystical symbol to get the most
complete representation about the value of the Halo of the Sun.
- According to the description of a sign, 3 internal circles symbolize the
past, the present and the future, and can be interpreted as a cycle of
time.
- Between external circles on the parts of a sign corresponding to 90,
180, 270 and 360 degrees of a circle, there are the images symbolizing
accordingly "Chaos", "Source", "Temptation", the "Supervision"
corresponding symbols\victims at the numbers "19121", "17121", "16121",
"18121" in 21 Sacraments. Also we know, that in the cult victims\symbols
of 21 Sacraments were considered as elements for construction of the inner
world, two external circles personify the world created through " 21
Sacraments " and Revival of the God and Holy Mother in this world.
- Two external circles symbolize "Revival" and "Mercy". Similar values
have also the victims 20 and 21 in 21 Sacraments.
- The small sign in middle of Halo of the Sun with an image of the ROYAL
CROWN personifies the God as the governor of the world
RESULT: " Halo of the Sun " symbolizes, that mercy and eternally the God
is in the center of the world created through 21 Sacraments (and is its
part), and is surrounded with a cycle of the past, the present and the
future. He does not know death and can be revived in this world so many
times, as it's necessary.
13-2. Signs on external circle of Halo of the Sun?
Let's see, what is the meaning of the symbols traced between external
circles on the parts of a sign, corresponding 90, 180, 270 and 360 degrees
of a circle.
a) The top symbol. We can see an eye - it is an image from the Taro card
at number 22, called " the Eye Of Night ". This symbol personifies the God
observing the world (therefore he is above) and keeping order in this
world. Accordingly, an eye of Divine - is the symbol of constant
supervision as though reminding " I'm ALWAYS watching you ". This symbol
in ritual 21 Sacraments corresponds to a victim with number 18121 (yes, on
a place of the top symbol in SH4 is imposed the tablet of 18-th victim).
It's not a coincidence that the theme of murder 18121 is "Supervision"
(and a victim - supervisor Andrew DeSalvo) is related with idea of the
All-seeing God.
b) The bottom symbol. And here is real-life religious symbol - " the
signature of the Satan ". The image of a devil's sign we can observe in
the contract between the Devil and Urben Grandier, submitted as the proof
in the court in Looden in 1634 (it is written to Latin, with use of a
mirror from right to left - reminding idea with mirror reflected fleeces
in the cult symbol), and also in the book of Elifas Levi " The Doctrine
and Ritual of Transcendic Magic ". This symbol represents the Satan, the
Devil. It is not surprising, that the Devil below - as contrast to an
image of the supreme, all-seeing God who is keeping order in the world
(see the top symbol). And, certainly, as contrast to the Divine Order, the
Devil should bear Chaos. We also impose the tablet of "Chaos" for " the
Signature of the Satan ". It's not a coincidence that the theme of murder
19121 is "Chaos" (and a victim - explosive, aggressive Richard Braintree)
is connected to idea of the Devil Chaos created in human reason.
c) Symbol at the left. Scales are shown - it is not necessary to have
deep occult knowledge to understand, that scales - is the most ancient
symbol of Justice. This symbol in 21 Sacraments corresponds to a victim
with number 16121 (on the place of the top symbol the tablet of 16-th
victim is imposed in SH4). It's not a coincidence that the theme of murder
16121 is "Temptation" (and a victim - sinner Cynthia Velasquez) is
connected with idea of the Sin and Justice.
d) Symbol on the right. This image reminds the figure of the human,
ducking and holding a torch, the light source, in the raised hand as if
shining the darkness of uncertainty - this symbol actually exists and
particularly is a changed signature of the Lucifier (letters are removed,
but drawn elements have remained - the image reflects that the Lucifier it
" the carrier of light " or "light source"). This symbol in 21 Sacraments
corresponds to a victim with number 17121 (on a place of the top symbol
the tablet of 17-th victim is imposed in SH4). It's not a coincidence that
the theme of murder 17121 is the "Source" (and a victim - the ignited fan
of occultism - Jasper Gein, which became the "light source" itself) is
connected with idea of Belief and Religion.
13-3. What is written on the Halo of the Sun?
On the Halo of the Sun it is possible to notice the strange inscriptions -
what is it? The answer: these are the runes, but all of them are written
as if reflected in a mirror. These inscriptions so are read:
a) The bottom - right corner. Runes write word "Alessa" is a name of the
Mother of god.
b) The bottom - left corner. Runes write word "Dahlia" - a name of mother
of the Mother of god.
c) The top - left corner. Runes write a word "INCUBUS" - an evil demon
who is under cover of night came to the women for satisfaction of his
sexual desires; a nightmare; generally something pressing, oppressive,
preventing. Also "Incubus" is derivative from "Incubator" and means " that
is inside an incubator ". Summarizing all aforesaid, INCUBUS it is
possible to treat as " the Internal demon from dreams ".
d) The top - right corner. And here's the reading of this word does not
have unanimous opinion. Basically, it is read, as "Alizer" (Alessa +
Heather = Alizer?), but left 4-th rune can be read not as "z", but also as
"ks". Then it turns out Alikser
(*P.S.: Thanx to DoVoD for reading the runes *)
13-4. The history of formating Halo of the Sun
In spite of the fact that the mystical symbol has a big history and takes
roots in traditions of Indians, during adaptation by the cult it has
strongly changed. For example, in the chamber of the occultist in prison
of SH2 we can see the ancient variant of the Halo of the Sun - but there
he is represented terribly and with four internal circles. Most likely,
this symbol looked initially (at the moment of origin of the cult), but
after it was edited by Dahlia Gillespie - it has changed the quantity of
circles and has brought in the text (I think, it's obvious, that words
like "Alessa", "Incubus", "Dahlia" were added to this symbol by Dahlia
Gillespie).
14. THE END OF THE SECOND PART
_______________________________________________________________________________
PART 3: TOWN OF SILENT HILL
_______________________________________________________________________________
TO BE TRANSLATED:
1. Geographical Location
1-1. Towns and historical facts
1-2. Location of Ashfield
1-3. Ashfield and Silent Hill. What state is Silent Hill in?
2. The town of Silent Hill.
2-1. General Description
2-2. Toluca Lake
2-3. "We're happy to have you!". Tourist guide.
2-4. The districts.
2-5. Old Silent Hill
2-6. Business District
2-7. North Resort Area
2-8. Paleville
2-9. South Resort Area
2-10. South Vale
2-11. Neigboring towns.
3. History of Silent Hill.
3-1. Before the XVII century. The Place of Silent Spirits (FAQ)
3-2. Second half of the XVII century. Then a lot of new people came in
3-3. Beginning of the XVIII century. "God drove the unbelievers away and
threw them into the Abyss"
3-4. Around 1810. "A part of that abyss is in the old society"
3-5. The XIX century. The plague.
3-6. Around 1850. Wiltse Coal Mine opened. "There was a HOLE here...."
3-7. The Civil War
3-8. 1865. "God was born from this two people"
3-9. 1865. The Cult. "We wait in hope for the day when
the Path to Paradise will be opened"
3-10. 1866. Toluca Prison. "Misty day, remains of the Judgment"
3-11. Blood Swamp
3-12. Beginning of the XX century. "We're happy to have you"
3-13. 1918 and 1938. Accidents on Toluca Lake.
3-14. The 1950-s.
3-15. The 1970-s.
3-16. Events of SH1.
3-17. The Cult between SH1 and SH3.
3-18. Walter Sullivan s killing spree.
3-19. Mysterious events in Ashfield.
3-20. Events of SH3.
3-21. Events of SH2.
3-22. Events of SHDI
3-23. Events of SH4.
4. The Power of the town.
The Silent Call.
Interaction
"In my Restless Dreams I see that Town...Silent Hill"
5. The end of part three.
_______________________________________________________________________________
PART 4: CHARACTER ANALYSIS
_______________________________________________________________________________
In this section you'll find my thoughts on various characters of the series.
You may not like my style of going into great detail about their
personalities, but I just can't restrain myself to a few wide-known facts when
discussing such well-developed characters as Lisa, or James. Such researches
sometimes bring great results - interesting facts can be devised from
analyzing their personas. All sections in this part have a common structure.
First comes a full analysis of the character, then you have some curious
facts, like the meaning of the name (partially from LM, partially from my own
speculations), the character's "personal" soundtrack (i.e. the track[s] that I
think describe him\her the best) etc. etc.
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1. CHARACTERS OF SILENT HILL 1
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1-9. Andy.
Age: 7
Occupation: Elementary School Student.
Andy was neighbor of the Masons. Through his bedroom's window he often saw
Cheryl going to school. He obviously liked her (otherwise, he wouldn't be in
the story - Translator's Note), but was too shy and couldn't say a word to her.
Weird things started to happen - he saw a 14 year old girl in a school uniform
- Alessa. Her psychological energies have begun to surface and the Masons'
neighbor saw her projection. It is unknown what drew him to do this, but just
before the Masons leave, Andy hides in their car. Does he know where he's
going? Anyway, on the way to Silent Hill, Harry gets into an accident.
Andy comes to in Silent Hill. The fog is unusually thick, the streets are
seemingly devoid of life, the roads are collapsed in many places... What
happened to the town? What of Andy?
Whoops. Yeah, too bad. Looks like we'll never know that, because the
adiitional scenario "The Boy" was part of the Silent Hill Play Novel, which,
due to its low ratings in Japan, was closed. I don't even know where to get
this scenario now (even in Japanese), so the Andy's fate is up to your
imagination.
In addition, I can say that there's some sort of connection between Andy and
the red doll in Cybil's scenario.
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2. CHARACTERS OF SILENT HILL 2
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2-1. James Sunderland.
Age: 29
Occupation: Clerk
James lost his wife three years ago - this is when his life lost its meaning
and became an endless nightmare. Three long years, which Mary spent in
St.Jerome's Hospital, while James kept an uneasy balance between hope and
despair, still believeing, that his wife could be saved, but becoming more and
more convinced that it is impossible. He wanted to help her somehow - read
medical literature, but with little results ("I've already read enough medical
books. None of them ever did any good"). Mary's disease was slowly killing
them both. Like two prisoners, sentenced to death, they waited for the end.
James was tired, he just wanted to end the torture so that the painful wait
caused them no more suffering.
Around a week before the events of SH2 Mary returned home to her husband - not
because she was better, she knew that her death is near and it may be her last
chance to see James. She wanted to visit Silent Hill for the last time, but
her condition was getting worse and worse, the three years given to her were
running out - she may have not survived the ride.
Thus she spent several days with James, slowly dying before his own eyes.
And one day, James made the final decision: he put a pillow over her face and
held it until she died. "Here's a lullaby to close your eyes...Goodbye." Rest
in peace, Mary, and let all your dreams be good. Dreams of Silent Hill.
Now the only thing left to do is to fulfill her last wish - to take her body
to the town of their memories ("The real reason I came to this town. I wonder
what was I afraid of? Without you, Mary, I've got nothing" . James hid Mary's
body in the car trunk... (Lost Memories gives a clear hint at that)
And then the sum of everything that has been pressing on him for so long
finally broke him. He couldn't take it anymore and fell into a trance-like
state... His life did end that day. He had no strength left to live and no
strength left to die.
After Mary's death, James couldn't live anymore, but he was too weak too die.
He has lost his will and reason to live. In a sense, he is a walking corpse.
He cannot move forward, thus always returning to the events of the past and
his happines, every time suffering from realizing that he will never have it
again. In his mind, James tries different ways of coming through it ("What
would happen if I did a different thing then?" "What if eveything went
different back then?") and all these versions lay down deep in his
subconscious, forming a complex web of thoughts, emotions and memories. And,
like a spider, James returns to this web time and time again, trying each
thread. This brings him great pain, but he wants this pain, because it is the
only feeling left for him to remind him that he exists. But human memory is
not infinte - it tends to remove or refuse to accept those events that bring
it pain (people that remember WW2 as "good times" - they prefer not to
remember the negative things or portray them as good). And thus, removing
himself from reality, James becomes trapped in his "web". He remakes true
statements in his own favor and accepts them as reality, creating his own
world of false memories. I tried to show the metamorphoses of James' thinking
as one gradually changing statement.
This happened very quickly... Maybe it took several hours, maybe several
days... A thought can encompass millenia in a second. But when James came to,
he was already hopelessly lost in the labyrinth of his own delusions. Unable
to find accept the truth, he convinced himself that his wife died three years
ago. Died from the disease, and it's not his fault. But he wanted her to be
alive... he wanted to be with her. And then he received a letter from Silent
Hill. A letter from Mary.
"In my restless dreams, I see that town. Silent Hill. You promised me you'd
take me there again someday. But you never did. Well, I'm alone there now...
In our "special place" Waiting for you..."
----------------------------
a) The letter
Obviously, the letter was not real - it was just another delusion. Notice that
towards the end of the game the text disappears. But... was it only James'
imagination? Why is it so similar to what Mary wrote in the hospital? It could
be just a coincidence, but I have a different explanation for that.
As we know, one is more susceptible to psychic influence when he\she is
suffering from a psychological trauma or the mind is in disarray. When James
killed his wife, he fell into a state similar to a trance and fell under the
influence of Mary's thoughts and memories, that continued to exist even after
her death. It may very well be that the letter was a combination of James'
delusions and Mary's memories. See 2-5.
----------------------------
Could Mary still be alive? Is she really waiting for him in Silent Hill. No,
this cannot be true... But what good is truth, if it destroys happiness, ruins
life and leaves no place for hope? This letter is James' last hope - and he
sets out to the foggy town of memories.
-----------------------
b) The toilet scene.
And so, we find James on the south-eastern outskirts of Silent Hill. He is
looking into a mirror - maybe he is trying to look deper into his soul? Trying
to determine what is real and what is not... For now he sees only the
reflection of his body, but soon he will find himself on the other side of the
mirror - in the world of his subconscious, where his nature will show itself.
In his 29 James looks much older - he is tired of life. Mary's disease really
drained the life from the both. But with her death life did not return to
James...
----------------------
James came to Silent Hill, which means that he at least WANTS TO BELIEVE that
Mary is alive (He was left with either that or "In water" - "I'm going to find
Mary..... It's the only thing I have left to hope for". We all understand WHAT
James would do if it turned out there was no hope for him), but there is still
the delusion, that his wife died three years ago ("Mary died of that damn
disease three years ago").
Also, it's worthy of note that he enters Silent Hill from the side, where the
cemetary is (just don't tell me he came to this part only because there was
toilet %))) ). That means he believed that Mary was buried in the Silent Hill
cemetary - in the "sacred place".
And he goes to the cemetary. He walks the forest path through the fog. The
path is so long, that it is impossible to turn back ("It's so long you don't
feel like turning back", as creators tell us in "Making of Silent Hill 2"
video). Fear takes root in his soul and even the sound of his own footsteps
seems like terrible sounds, made by unseen forest beasts.
But what does he find in the cemetary? There is no grave marked "Mary
Sunderland". But he meets a strange girl, who is looking for her mother. She
warns James, that there is something wrong and dangerous about Silent Hill.
But James can't give up. There is no turning back. All he has can do is keep
looking for Mary in the fog of his own soul. Where will this road lead him?
Will he be able to find the truth and accept it?
We all know it from the game: after coming to Silent Hill, James find himself
in the flux of the "White Noiz" - the constantly overlapping subconscious
worlds of many people - he can see other people's thought, but mostly, of
course, his own world prevails - the world of his hopes, desires... and fears.
A world of darkness, in the bowels of which lies the Ultimate Truth, carefully
hidden by delusions.
---------------------------------
ñ) The Light of Hope
After receiving the letter, James gains Hope - a great, unstoppable power,
that propels him forward. Following this paranoid Hope, James descends deeper
into the nightmare.
Remember how Henry Townshend, the prisoner of Room 302, uses his last Hope -
the HOLE and crawls through it towards the light at the end of the tunnel,
unable to turn back. And now remember James, rowing his boat in the fog,
towards the distant beacon of the hotel, where his dead wife is waiting. Also,
remember room 205 of WSA - the mannequin is dressed in Mary's clothes and the
flashlight is blinding to James' eyes. The metaphor is obvious - "the blinding
Light of Hope".
And what do we see? Henry, following the faint hope of getting out of the
Room, finds himself in an even more horrible prison - the subconscious world
of Walter Sullivan where he has to fight for his life to find the Ultimate
Truth. And Sunderland, searching for his dead Mary, descends deeper and deeper
into the world of his own delusions, where the truth he has been hiding from
awaits.
d) Eros and Thanatos
According to Sigmund Freud's theories, two basic instincts exist in every
person - "the life instinct" (libido, Eros) and "the death instinct" (mortido,
Thanatos). The two polar powers are the unconscious desires of man and are
supposed to determine the whole life of a person. Seeing as how Team Silent
said that they used this theory in making Silent Hill 2, let us look at the
Eros and Thanatos of the protagonist:
--- The first side. Felicitative. An infantile, egoistical side, that wants
happiness. But this happiness is characterised by nostalgia. It is like a
small child: a child has a toy, which he is not interested - it's lying around
and he doesn't care. But TAKE IT AWAY and he will cry, turn away from all
other toys and will demand to give this toy (which he didn't care about until
now) back - his whole world will spin around this toy. But give it back and he
will play with it for a while and leave it lying around again. James
relationship with Mary is similar to that.
But that is not all. Eros is does not represent only the instinct to live and
be happy, but also sexual instincts, which are bound to life. And these
instincts play a major role in the creation of Maria. So, Maria is basically
the manifestation of James' libido.
--- The destructive side. It knows of the egoism of the other side and wishes
to punish it by inflicting pain. These two sides are meant to be able to
co-exist at least to some degree, but there's a twist. When James is happy,
the destructive side gains power and tries to fight this happiness. When James
is unhappy, the felecitative side becomes stronger and goes to lengths to get
the happiness back. Thus, James is doomed to be forever trapped between these
two extremes. I think that because of his masochism James actually wasn't
happy with Mary in the full sense of the word "happy". ("he doesn't laugh
much" - Mary writes about her husband. Was he always grim or only when she
fell sick?). James' constant doubts prevented him from being happy. His trail
of thoughts was something like that: "Right now I'm happy - I have a loving
wife, a good job. I have achieved my happiness. But do I deserve it? Maybe I
deserve suffering?". Or something like that (I suppose not so many of you have
noticed the similarity between James and the characters of the famous Japanese
writer Yukio Mishima). James just couldn't live in the present... That's why
when Mary died he wasn't able to start a new life, he couldn't find a new goal
to pursue in life and started to drown in his sorrow and memories. It was his
false world that gave him these goals, gave him Hope. Or rather, an illusion
of Hope ("I wanted to see you. Even an illusion of you... That's why I came
here" - he says in the "Maria" ending).
James' subconscious world is built around these two instincts. His two
greatest desires - to find happiness and to punish himself for his sins -
nurture this world with psychic energy. Each of these instinct has found a
material representation - these are Maria and PyramidHead.
e) Maria.
The long three years went on. Three painful years. James was tired, tired of
waiting, tired of hoping - he already knew, that Mary was lost to him, that
his happiness will die with her.
Suffering, despair, loneliness... "And that s why you needed this Maria
person?" James needed someone, who would be close to him, who would support
him, someone to replace Mary for him. And then, he created a new Mary for
himself - a perfect woman, who would fulfill all his dreams and give back his
lost happiness.
So, how would a "girl of his dreams" look? She must look like Mary, of course,
but be much more open ("I can be yours..." - "Don t you want to touch me? Come
and get me "), always cheerful and kind ("And I ll never yell at you or make
you feel bad."). For some reason, James associated the image of a perfect
woman with a certain strip dancer from the bar Heaven's Night - "Lady Maria".
Thus, her name. I should note, that James still loved Mary, so his image of a
"dream girl" was highly affected by the image of his wife. She must be a
blonde, because, according to some stereotypes "Don t you think blondes have
more fun?". Red and pink colors prevail in Maria's clothing - this is
obviously the result of his frequent visits to Heaven's Night.
For these three years, James dreamt of this perfect woman, his wife dying from
the disease. And, after some time, this image took root in his subconscious
world and became part of it.
f) Between Mary and Maria
There are actually two sides of James' Eros presented in the game:
One side knows, that without Mary James cannot be happy and wishes her return
by any means ("I want her back! Give her back to me!"). The desire to come
back to happiness by coming back to the "good times", i.e. James wants that
very same Mary who was with him 3 years ago - even dressed the same (remember
the mannequin in 205?).
The other side doesn't want to return to the past and wants to find NEW
happiness in a new life with Maria. But Maria is not real. But it doesn't
matter, because this side of James rejects the harsh reality in order to
achieve happiness. The goals justify the means. Because without happiness
there cannot be hope and without hope there cannot be life. This Eros cannot
allow.
But what will James choose? This depends on your actions through the game.
----------------------------------------
Exploring James' subconscious world we meet a strange creature with a red
pyramid on its head - the image of an executioner. His appearance is
inextricably linked with death. This is the manifestation of James' Thanatos,
which strives to force the truth into the light and punish James for the crime
he committed.
----------------------------------------
g) PyramidHead
I know that most fans believe, that PyramidHead is one of the demonic servants
of Samael, sent down to Earth to torture the poor clerk for some reason. But,
if you take one good look at the official info, you will see that it is
nowhere near true. Let us try and determine the true nature of this terrible
executioner, using facts from the games and information from Lost Memories as
a base.
3 years ago, when James was in Silent Hill, he visited the Historical Society.
where he saw the picture "Misty day, remains of the Judgement". It depicted a
cult executioner and his victims. The picture made a great impression on James
- the image of the executioner remained in his subconscious to appear three
years later as James' guilt and desire to punish himself. This was the birth
of PyramidHead.
Through the whole game PyramidHead is trying to inflict pain and even kill
him, but he does the same to Maria (Eros and Thanatos are always at odds) -
this is a way of showing, that self-punishment, when it gets out of hand, can
hurt others as well.
The pain PH inflict on James is not just physical - he also leads James to the
realization, that he killed Mary. PH forces James to see the truth he was
hiding from.
There are two PyramidHeads. This could mean that James was familiar with the
customs and traditions of Silent Hill, but there is also a theory that the
second PyramidHead is the second side of James' Thanatos, just as there were
two sides of his Eros. Also, the second PH appears only in the hotel and can
be a manifestation of James' guilt for killing Eddie. One for Eddie, one for
Mary...
---------------------------------
Searching for Mary, James makes his way to the Lakeview Hotel, the chapel of
memories, which holds his last hopes and dreams... He believes, that his
search is nearing an end and Mary is waiting in room 312.
---------------------------------
h) Truth and Hope.
James is balancing between his hope for Mary's return and the realization of
truth. On one hand, he is falling deeper and deeper into his delusions, but on
the other hand, the memories of his crime still live deep in his subcosncious,
making their presence known. Let us look at some quotes:
-- "Mary... Could you really be in this town?" - the first phrase. James is in
doubt - a letter from a dead person defies all logic.
-- "It's ridiculous, couldn't possibly be true... That's what I keep telling
myself... A dead person can't write a letter. Mary died of that damn disease
three years ago. So then why am I looking for her?" - but despite all doubts,
it is his last hope.
-- "Anyway, she's dead. I don't know why I think she's here" - James says this
to Angela. James is already starting to doubt his sanity. Well, this doubts
are not unfounded...
--"You liar! ...Last year Mary was already..." - even though he wants to
believe that Mary is alive, but can't leave the "web" of his delusions. Can't
accept that one year before SH2 Mary was still alive.
-- "Mary... What... What should I do? Are you... really waiting somewhere for
me? Or is this your way of taking... I'm going to find Mary..... It's the only
thing I have left to hope for" - James follows this last hope, because he has
nothing else left.
-- When Maria dies in the catacombs, James remember Mary "for some strange
reason". Maybe this reminded him of Mary's death?
-- "Eddie! I... I killed a... a human being... A human being... Mary... Did
you really die three years ago...?" - James emphasizes the word ''DIE". After
Eddie's death, James begins to doubt that Mary died three years ago. Maybe
something ELSE happened to her then. Or maybe he thinks "Did you DIE or did I
KILL you".
-- "So Mary couldn't have died... three years ago... Could she really be
here?" - after the conversation with Laura in the Hotel James belives, that
his wife is still alive and is waiting for him in Lakeview.
i) The Tape
Room 312 will be just another disappointment for James. Mary is not here. It
is just an empty, lonely room. And memories of James' wife, of the happy time
they had together in Silent Hill. And with them - the memory of the murder.
James realizes the truth. But with the coming of truth, hope departs. James is
once again filled with despair.
He falls on the chair before the TV. This is reminiscent of the person in
front of the TV in room 208. This man was James... After seeing that tape, he
has no reason to go on living - maybe he was supposed to kill himself then...
But again he hears Mary's voice: "James. Where are you? I'm waiting. I'm
waiting for you. Please come to me". A the faint hope returns to his ravaged
mind and he sets out to search for her again. But now he already knows the
truth and is ready to make the final decision...
---------------------------------
What will this final decision be? Will James choose to live in the world of
his delusions and be happy with Maria? Or will he sacrifice his own life to
resurrect Mary through a the ritual of the Holy Assumption? Or maybe he and
Laura leave the town together and remember Mary forever. Or James won't be
able to live without Mary and will give in to his Thanatos ("Angels Thanatos"
after the In water ending), joining his wife in a deep dream.
All we know is that James never returned from Silent Hill...
Quote: "Mary died of that damn disease three years ago... So then why am I
looking for her? "
Metaphor: "Trapped in a cage of delusions"
Symbol: Cage
Music: "True","Prisonic Fairytale", "Angels Thanatos".
Name: According to LM, the first name was taken from one of the men, who was
suspected of being Jack the Ripper (probably to emphasize the paranoid and, I
dare say, maniacal sides of James' personality).
The last name is more interesting, though. There theories concerning it:
a) Sunderland - derived from "Sun". The sun is a symbol of Hope, goals and
happiness. If we interprent "Sunderland" as "Sun above the land", it can be
seen as symbol of inability to achieve all these thing on in our world.
b) Sunderland - derived from the German "sunder" - "sinner". The connection is
obvious, I think.
c) It is also worthy of noting that in the state of Massachusetts, where
Ashfield is located, one can find two towns - Townshend and Sunderland. Maybe
it was a way of showing how the characters are linked to towns?
Now, if we look at all three points and try to combine them, we'll get
something like that: "A sinner, hiding from the truth for a desire to find
happiness in memories".
2-2. Angela Orosco
Age - 19
Social Status - Runaway Student
We first meet Angela at the cemetary - she is examining a gravestone. By her
looks, one wouldn't say she's 19 and she doesn't sound young. She feels that
the there is some sort of danger in the town and is scared. James' sudden
arrival scares her even more ("I, I m sorry...I, I... I was just...."). She
talks like a small girl that did something bad talks with her father...
She is looking for her mother ("I'm looking for my mama..."). In this she is
similar to James - Angela also starts her search from the cemetary. From this
we can assume that her mother is DEAD, as are her father and brother. Further
in the game we see her searching in the following places:
1) Blue creek apartment, Room 109.
2) Halfway between the Historical Society and the Meat Factory.
3) LakeView Hotel.
This means that Angela didn't even know where exactly her mother lived.
Actually, even the existence of this "mother" is yet to be proven. What if she
is only a part of the Angela's "web"? What if Angela's mother died at birth or
not long after? What if Angelf was an orphan adopted by Thomas? Still, there
she DID have a mother, which is stated by the photo found in Blue Creek. It is
torn into two pieces - on one piece we see a woman holding a baby (Angela's
"mama" with a baby - small Angela), on the other - a man. Here's my version of
the tragedy that befell the Orosco family: At first, it was a normal happy
family - mother, father, a son and a small daughter. But then, when Angela was
still very young, her mother died (judging by how Angela's subconscious world
looks, her mother died in a fire along with her brother). Broken by the loss
of his beloved wife, Thomas Orosco started to drink, bringing suffering to
himself and his daughter (once again, a striking resemblance to James, don't
you think?). Accordingly, Angela only saw him as a drunk and agressive man.
Each day when she came back from school she probably found him lying in a pool
of his own vomit. Or away in a bar. Judjing by her lines ("You re only after
one thing. Or you could just force me. Beat me up like he always did") we can
assume that Thomas raped her. Or at least she thinks he did. It is never
actually stated.
So, what could Angela think of his father (and, as a result, all men in
general), seeing him in this condition all the time? "You disgusting pig!!".
Although, I doubt she tried to help him somehow. She was too weak for that and
needed someone to love her too ("Will you love me? Take care of me?").
Angela couldn't take this life anymore. She hated her drunkard father... She
even tried to run away from home (obviously, she didn't consider what would
happen to him in that case), but Thomas stopped her. He didn't want his
daughter to leave - he found her and forced her to come home. Maybe he even
loved her, she was his last close person after all... He just couldn't deal
with his own pain and Angela was unable to understand and help him. It was
probably then that she killed him with a knife. The Orosco family may have
lived in room 109 of WSA and it was the place where Angela got that knife. Or
the knife in the game couldn've been an illusion altogether.
After doing such a terrible thing Angela decided to leave the town to forget
what happened. She had no friends or relatives and was left alone. We don't
know anything about her brother - he probably died along with her mother in
that fire. She was left with only memories of her happy childhood. She spent
her time thinking about her kind, loving mother (even though she might not
have been like that) and how everything would be good if they lived apart from
Thomas (this is signified by the torn photo). After her mama died, life
brought Angela only suffering... She was tired from the pain and wanted to end
the suffering. But can she heal her pain alone and attempt to find happiness?
No... "It's easier just to run. Besides, it's what we deserve." She is too
tired to seek happiness, she can't live on, she doesn't even have hope... She
just wants to run away again. Run away from life. Run away to where her mama
is.
-------------------
a) Angel Thanatos
In the course of the game we see Angela display a strange interest in death.
She is so tired of life's sufferings, that thoughts of suicide, which could
end them, please her. We find Angela in room 109 of WSA with a bloody knife in
hand, lying in front of a mirror. She is pondering suicide. Why is there such
a big mirror in the room? It is part of Angela's subconscious world. She
wanted to see her own death and enjoy it to the maximum.
If we look at her other appearances we'll see that all of them are somehow
linked with death:
---Cemetary - no comments. If you don't understand the connection between
death and cemetaries, I don't know why you're reading this anyway.
---Room 109 of WSA - an illustration of Angela's suicidal tendencies.
---The Labyrinth - Angela is in danger, but all she does is cower in the
corner and seemingly accepts the inevitable death. But James KILLS, the
monster, saving Angela.
---The burning stairwell. - we see the scene of the fire - corpses with blood
in the pelvic area on the walls (a reference to the raping when she was
young). Angela says that James shouldn't have saved her and asks him to return
the knife. Suicidal themes again.
We see that Angela's main themes are suffering, death and suicide. Angela is
sort of a martyr, obsessed with death - the "Angel Thanatos".
-------------------
A short time after killing her father, Angela's mind collapses from the stress
and she becomes lost in the labyrinth of delusions. That is when Silent Hill
"calls" her. She starts to believe that her mother's still alive and is
waiting for her in that town...
------------------
b) When did Angela kill her father?
In the catacombs we find a newspaper, according to which Thomas Orosco was
killed between 23:00 and 00:30 - that was probably when he found his daughter
and tried to bring her back home. Now, in the next part of the hallway there
are also newspapers and one of them has today's date ("Newspapers are
scattered all over the walls and floor. There seems to be nothing of interest.
But this one has today's date... That's kind of strange"). Could that mean
that the above mentioned paper had been published a few days before the events
of SH2?
Quoting LM: "From the article in the bloodstained newspaper, the conclusion
can be made that Angela was unable to bear her abuse and took her father's
life. After this incident, being in a state of emotional turmoil, it may be
that Silent Hill called out to her". So, the chain of events was something
like that: Angela runs away from home, Thomas finds her and brings her back,
she kills him and runs away again. After that she gets under the town's
influence etc. etc. Basically, what LM was trying to say is that there wasn't
a long time period between Thomas' death and the events of the game.
------------------
The main monster of Angela's subconscious world is her father. Accordingly,
she sees him everywhere. Even in James, during their second meeting (remember
WSA - she screams "No!! I m sorry...I ve been bad... Please don t..." - what
did she see?).
Also, she sees her mother. Probably not the real mother she had, but the image
of Angela's mother from her memories... The ideal mother, of whom she dreamt
all her life. But Angela thought herself unworthy of her idealised mother's
love... The stronger, more beuatiful, kinder (etc. etc.) she imagined her to
be, the more miserable she saw herself. And, obviously, if Angela thinks
herself unworthy of love, so does the ideal mother in her world... "Even Mama
said it... I deserved what happened... Don't pity me... I don't worth it".
Angela sees Silent Hill as engulfed in flames. This reflects her wish to join
her ideal mother by dying in fire just like she did (yes, it is a reference to
her death). Also, the fire represents Angela's unending pain - the fires of
Hell, lit up by her alone. Sunderland sees it on the stairwell in the hotel
(at this point Angela's energy is so strong that it can suck other minds into
her world). Angela found what no one else could - the one way to defeat the
God inside you. She is tired of her pain and asks James if they could start a
new life together ("Or maybe you think you can save me? Will you love me? Take
care of me? Heal all my pain?"), leave this place of lost memories and
restless dreams, stop following the illusion of Hope (it could've been a
verison of the "Leave" ending with Angela instead of Laura). Together they
could support each other, heal the pain and free themselves of the suffering,
but James is too weak for this. Angela offers him another solution - to run
away from this cruel world, to commit suicide ("Give me back that knife" and
end the suffering. By giving her back the knife, James could release her from
all this pain - just like he did Mary. But, the memories of what he did to
Mary stop him from doing so, forcing Angela to continue this endless psiral of
death and dooming her to live in this nightmare. Maybe James wanted to keep
the knife to kill himself? No, he was too blinded by his hope to see the
truth. And he doesn't WANT his pain to end. And so, he keeps the knife,
dooming Angela to further suffering...
We can only wonder what way Angela'll choose - will she find the strength to
live on, will she join her family in death, or will she stay in her world and
burn, as her God wishes her to? When she leaves it is as if the fire devours
her - could it be a sign that she crosses over to her world of pain and
suffering to exist forever? This is for you to decide.
Quote: "It s easier just to run. Besides, it s what we deserve. "
Metaphor: "A wingless angel in the flames of despair."
Symbol: Fire
Music: "Theme of Laura (Reprise)" , "Forest"
Name: Her name is taken from the main character of "The Net" - a movie about
the danger of advanced technologies. Also, "Angela" reminds of the the "In
water" ending with the "ANGELS Thanatos" track.
2-3. Eddie Dombrowski.
Age - 23
Occupation - Gas station employee
Eddie was hated, picked on, spit on all his life - at school, at work. His
last name is hard for an English-speaker to pronounce, he's overweight and
paleness, that doesn't fit with his complexion - from early on in life he
became the target of numerous jokes. The worst part of it was the fact that
Eddie couldn't do anything about it. Despite all the modern fuss about
"equality", Eddie is unable to do anything about his life. He doesn't have any
friends, he can't get a decent job (what employer would accept a man with such
a name?) and he has no money, which prevented him from "buying" friends. Eddie
is trapped in an endless circle of despair, punished, yet not guilty of
anything. With his passive nature, he couldn't really fight back and could
only ignore all those who made fun of him, put up with everything etc. for all
his life. I don't think he was happy with this life. The insults were even
more painful for him, because he knew that he really DID have all the flaws
that people laughed at, and he would always have them, and would always feel
the shame. But it was okay, Eddie clenched his teeth and went on - he still
had Hope in him, a hope that someday everything will change - a hope that he,
the ugly duckling, would become a graceful swan (or, at least, the other would
get tired of laughing at him. They used Eddy as an example of "really bad":
"Ha, you think I'm a gutless fatso? Just look Eddie DUMBrowski!" - or
something like that.)
Eddie had a hobby - american football. He probably wanted to be a player -
success, popularity, pretty cheerleaders [> ~~~ - Translator's note]. But
Eddie's complexion was a little... unappropriate for a sports career. Again,
his dreams have been shattered. In one of the rooms in WSA, where we meet
Eddie James' world overlaps with Eddie's. And what do we see? Lots of american
football posters and a crude, child-like drawing: a boy and girl and something
huge somewhere on the edge of the picture. It very well may be that the latter
is Eddie. This drawing is a representation of his depressed sexual interests,
which is not surprising, considering his looks.
But time passed and the anger and frustration collected in him without venting
out every so often. This created paranoia, tearing poor Eddie apart.
1. On one side we have Eddie - a good-natured guy, thrashed at by everybody,
while he shows no real resistance (Laura: "Hah! You re just a gutless fatso!"
, Eddie: "Whadda ya have to say that for?" - he didn't shoot Laura and didn't
even try to argue with her on that). Maybe because of Eddie's passive nature
his offenders even didn't have an idea that their "jokes" were very painful
for Eddie?
2. On the other side - his inner aggression needed to be taken out - every day
in his thoughts Eddie ripped the offenders into bloody pieces and tore out
their hearts.
Think about how painful it was for him to replay this in his mind and then
suffer through another portion of insults from his neighbors, colleagues and
supervisors. It's quite understandable that one day his patience ran out -
Eddie snapped. He killed a dog ("Yeah, I killed that dog. It was fun. It tried
to chew its own guts out! Finally died all curled up in a ball" - Eddie
enjoyed the death of a living being) and shot its owner in the knee ("Then
'He' came after me, I shot him too. Right in the leg. He cried more than the
dog!"). Maybe it was the dog's owner, Eddie's boss, or just some random
citizen that made fun of him again. Basically, Dombrowski is your typical
image of an "american psycho", the hero of many new-metal songs by bands like
KoRn, SLIPKNOT and somesuch. Anyway, we know that he ran from his hometown and
came to Silent Hill to lay low and hide from the police. Really? Or maybe he
just THOUGHT that he did something terrible ("Nobody will ever forgive me" -
says Eddie, but he exaggerating the seriousness of his crime) and the police
are after him? Violent animal handling, assault and causing light injury - not
really an outrageous crime, is it? Maybe it'd even get overlooked. The most
he'd get is a fine and a couple of years in prison plus a prohibition to keep
a firearm. If he surrendered as Laura suggested ("if you did something bad,
why don t you just say you were sorry?"), he'd get even lesser punishment.
But, "It s easier just to run. Besides, it s what we deserve"...
James first meets him in Room 101 of the Woodside Apartment Building, hugging
a toilet (watch CAREFULLY, in the fist few moments you can catch a slight
smile on Eddy's face). Eddie is VERY excited about the contents of the fridge
and vigorously assures James that he didn't kill anybody. But when James is
about to leave, Eddie looks like he wants to say something, but only blurts
out "James, I... I... um... You be careful too." Notice that his eyes are
looking in different directions and the pupils are moving quite quickly, as if
he is avoiding James' eyes. Also, he says he saw some "weird-looking
monsters". Let me guess... dead dogs? %)
------------------
a) Body in the fridge
In room 101 of WSA we find a body in the fridge. Eddie claims he didn't do
anything, but it seems he's not telling something... Let us look at the
possibilities:
-- Eddie's consciousness crossed over to the subconscious world, a man walked
in, Eddie saw him as a monster, killed him and put the body in the fridge (why
the fridge? Some sort of sadistic fantasy maybe... or Eddie tried to hide the
evidence of his crime), but then he went back to reality and saw WHAT he did.
-- When Eddie's consciousness crossed into the alternate, he saw a man
laughing at him and a shot him (yes, there's a box of bullets in the room) and
put the body in the fridge.
-- The corpse was originally there, which I have trouble believing.
----------------------
Eddie also sees other people as his supervisors, "friends" etc. What does
Eddie's alternate reality look like? Do you remember the room in Woodside
where you got the pistol? The walls are full of bullet holes. When Eddie came
to Silent Hill, he probably tried to hide from the police in Woodside, but the
world suddenly changed around him - he saw faces on the walls. They laughed at
him. Finally, he exploded and started to shoot at the walls and soon ran out
of ammo. He left the pistol in the room and ran to room 101, where he met his
"monster". So, while James' alternate world consists of rust, cages and
monster, that come to punish him for his sins, Eddie sees people making fun of
him. I think his world's is VERY annoying. Just think of it - Eddie's paranoid
delusion that everyone was making fun of him was his strongest feeling. And
the strongest feeling is often blown to great proportions in a dream or a
similar state. And what is an alternate world? It is basically a dream
overlapping with reality. Now try and imagine a world, where EVERYTHING makes
fun of you - the walls, the people, even the pieces of meat in the plant -
everything makes fun of you (yeah, the pieces of meat remind of Eddie, don't
they?). Yeah, one can easily go insane in such a world...
After he got better, Eddie made his way to Pete's Bowl-o-rama and meets with
Laura. She calls him a gutless fatso, but he just eats pizza. That means that
he thinks everything that happened in Woodside just some sort of bad dream (if
you look closely, you'll notice that he's eating the same piece of pizza all
the time. No appetite, Eddie? Did you do something bad?)
Despite James' advice to leave the town, Eddie walks around it without fear
(then again, James didn't listen to Angela too). Next time we meet him is
under the Historical Society, in the Toluca Prison. Eddie is so busy
reflecting on the frailty of human life, that he doesn't even notice James at
first. The corpse is real (and James once again sees it as a monster) and
there's nobody else who could've done that but Eddie. But he's hiding from the
police - then WTH is he doing in a prison? Maybe after talking to Laura, he
thought of the possibility of surrendering (which would mean he felt guilty)
and to think it over he went to the prison, which really is an exhibit in the
SHHS. But when he entered the prison, his perception shifted to the
alternative again (Eddie's and James's mental states are very unstable, which
causes their shifts from the "foggy" to the "nightmarish" world).
The last meeting in the meat factory shows that Eddie has changed. The
original Eddie was like a closed boiler - he can't let out the steam and
explodes. This Eddie looks more like a merciless butcher - the boiler has
exploded, his patience has run out completely. Now there's nowhere to store
the aggression to forget about for a while - no more good Eddie. For the first
time in his life Eddie has Power. The Power to stomp out all his fears. Now he
has his own excuses. Almost all criminals have their own twisted morality
scale, according to which their actions are highly moral. Humans need to
jusity their actions. "They treated me like garbage all my life, and they
continue to do so now! That's enough! They've been slowly killing me all this
time - I have a right for self-defence!" - this "right" (and a gun in his
hand) allow Eddie to kill anyone without doubting his actions. (For reference
read F. Dostoevsky's "Crime and punishment".) There are several corpses in the
room where James meets Eddie - he probably killed everyone (the corpses are
STILL monsters for James) thinking that they're making fun of him again. It
seems as if Eddie is taking great pleasure in killing...
---------------------
b) The sexual subtext of Eddie's actions
Agression, hatred, murder... To try and understand Eddie better, let us look
at the less obvious sides of his personality, using the basics of
psychoanalysis and criminology.
The definition of agression was first given by Sigmund Freud in 1920 when he
published his work "Beyond the pleasure principle". He defined agression as a
merging between the sexual insitinct and the instinct of death with the latter
being dominant - i.e. all agressive acts have a sexual subtext. This is
supported by the fact that, statistically, most serial murderers had sexual
disorders and\or suffered from sexual dissatisfaction. "As we know, the
greatest pleasure available to us - the pleasure of a sexual act - is the
pleasure of the instant dissipation of high arousal". But people, who are
denied this pleasure, are forced to find a "replacement". Violence is a part
of the sexual instinct, so maniacs finds sexual pleasure in killing. Put
simply, according to this theory, killing for them is like getting laid for
normal people.
Now let us observe Eddie: a defensive agression builds up inside him (seeing
how agression is a product of both the sexual and death instincts - arousal),
then he lets it out on his victims. Not even on someone, who insults him. The
dog obviously couldn't do that! Eddie needed to show others and himself his
ability to attack and the insults were just the "trigger", that released this
defensive agression. And when he lets it out, Eddie feels pleasure. His
victims were obviously shot more than once. And the dog? "Yeah, I killed that
dog. It was fun. It tried to chew its own guts out! Finally died all curled up
in a ball" - Eddie feels pleasure even from talking about it. Accordingly,
Eddie's condition after killing someone is similar to that of somebody, who
has just had sex (read: who has experienced instant dissipation of arousal).
This is most clearly seen in Toluca Prison, where Eddie is sitting in a
trance-like state, reflecting on how easy it is to take a life.
In the game, the author always mix themes of death and sexuality ("To make
like a death scene. Like somebody died, or monsters died, or if you make that
kind of scene... we tried to mix erotic essence") and the strong sexual
subtext is of course found in Eddie's actions.
-------------
James was shocked by what he saw in the plant. He didn't even think that he
too was a murderer ("Don't get all holy on me, James. This town called you,
too. You and me are the same. We're not like other people. Don't you know
that?!") . No, James clung to his own illusion of innocence. And that is why
he judges Eddie ("Eddie, have you gone nuts?... You think it's okay to kill
people! You need help, Eddie!").
But Eddie already knew the truth about James' crime ("You and me are the
same") and probably saw him killing "monsters" (remember, that Eddie sees
them as people). No wonder he was so offended by James lecturing him. This led
to their final confrontation and Eddie's death.
--------------
c) A marked heart
During the last meeting with Eddie, we can see a mark on the left side of his
chest - a circle, inside which there is another circle. With the markings in
the area between the circles, it looks kinda like the Halo of the Sun. It
could be a shooting mark, a symbol, at which James should shoot. But also it
is reminiscent of the HOLES of Walter Sullivan. Remembering the meaning of
HOLES in SH2 and SH4, this mark could be a representation of the darkness in
Eddie's heart...
---------------
Eddie learned how to destroy his fears - but with that he achieved the only
goal in his life and had no Hope left. He became a simple-minded killing
machine, while Sunderland still had to find Mary, which nurtured his Hope and
allowed him to kill Eddie. Once again we see that Hope is a terrible weapon in
human hands. But with Eddie's death James finally starts to remember. "Eddie!
I... I killed a... a human being... A human being... Mary..." - he says
thoughtfully, looking at Eddie's lifeless body.
Quote: "It doesn t matter if your smart, dumb, ugly, pretty...it s all the
same once you dead. And a corpse can t laugh." (Hiroyuki Owaku said that he
wrote this line himself and it is his favorite piece of monologue in the game)
Metaphor: "Don't play around with death"
Symbol: the "Gluttonous pig" tablet
Music: "The darkness that lurks in our minds", "Ashes and Ghosts", "Noone love
you".
Name: Initially, he was supposed to be a cheerful character (a reference to
Eddie Murphy?), but soon after the creators decided to completely change his
personality (now the name is more associated with Ed Gein). The last name is
probably a twist of the word "Dumb" (so every "joker" could easily offend
Eddie by making fun of his last name) and also a way to show Eddie's
non-american heritage.
2-4. Laura. The events of Silent Hill 2 through Laura's eyes.
Age: 8 years
Social status: orphan
First, let's clear up Laura's past - LM states she has no mother ("Having no
mother of her own"), and, probably, no father. How could this come to be?
Let's see:
1) In Restless Dreams we can find photos of Laura in the hotel - this means
she stayed there at one point. Maybe she lived there with her parents.
2) Laura's name is taken from the story "No language but a cry", in which a
little girl is put on a frying pan by her parents - this inflicted not only
burns, but also a very deep psychological wound on her.
3) The Lakeveiw Hotel BURNED a year before the events of SH2.
4) And exactly 1 year before the events of SH2 Laura finds herself in
St.Jerome's Hospital.
1 year ago Laura came to Silent Hill with her parents - they stayed in the
Lakeview Hotel. Then the hotel burns down and her parents perish in the fire,
while Laura survives with burns and is taken to st. Jerome's Hospital
(Ashfield) for treatment.
There she met Mary, who'd been in there for about two years now. Ironic, how
such different people - a woman, living her last days in despair and a young
girl, hoping to find the love and happines that she never had (not unlike
Alessa and Claudia). They spent hours talking about Silent Hill ("Me and Mary
talked a lot about Silent Hill"). It was as if Mary relived the happiest
moments of her life, which helped her fight back her sorrows, while Laura
found in her the mother she lost year ago. This continued for about a year,
but, of course, such things can't go on forever. One day Mary left the
hospital ("It s not that I m getting better. It s just that this may be my
last chance..."), but she was so eager to go back home to see her husband for
the last time ("I m glad to be coming home. I ve missed you terribly") that
she didn't even tell Laura anything and only wrote her a letter. Laura, when
she couldn't find Mary anywhere, thought that Mary got better and finally went
home (people always hope for the better). To better understand the situation,
she stole the letters from Rachel's locker ("But don t tell Rachel, okay? I
took it from her locker." - later, she admits her "crime", but she doesn't
feel guilty, so she is not stalked by a ghost of Rachel wearing a pyramid on
her head %) ). After reading the letters, she thought that Mary actually went
to Silent Hill, so she runs away from the hospital (because she'd be sent to
some orphanage if she had waited for her treatment to end) and makes her way
to Silent Hill. On the way she meets another kind person, that agrees to take
her there. This happened to be Eddie Dombrowski, who was "running away from
the police". He didn't really care where to go, so he agreed to help the girl
out. They came to Silent Hill together (see the seventeenth scene of the SH2
intro movie - we can see Eddie resting next to his van and Laura, urging him
to move on). More accurately, they arrived at the observation deck and went to
the Woodside apartment building (probably to rent a room)
James first meets her in Woodside when he tries to get the key. She kicks it
away, exacting her own little revenge for Mary.
----------------
a) The encounter in WSA
Tell me: do you often see metal bars in hallways of apartment buildings? Of
course not. The bars are an element of James' world (prison\cage bars), which
affects only James. Now, we know that Laura doesn't see any
monsters\bars\meat\blood\Marias and the town looks pretty normal to her - "To
her the town appears to be normal; she does not see any monsters, nor does she
see Maria." Now try to imagine how stupid James looks to her - he is trying to
grab a key through the bars. But SHE doesn't see any bars! I wonder what she
thought about James back then...
"Huh? Are you blind or something?" Not surprising, that she decided to play a
little "joke"
----------------
She will continue to get in his way for the length of the game. Why doesn't
she like James? It's simple - when she was in the hospital she noticed that he
rarely visited his wife (these visits were very hard on James, but she decided
that she just didn't care about her: "You didn t love Mary anyway!"). Plus, he
probably never even noticed her during these visits, while she remember what
he looked like well enough. Also, her childhood egoism played a major part
here - she didn't want the bad James to have HER Mary. That is why she tries
hard to get to him.
After that James meets her outside Woodside, she is sitting on the wall,
thinking about Mary's whereabouts. The drawings on the wall are important, as
they are symbols of Laura's character.
--------------------
b) Meaning of the drawings
-- Flowers - metaphor: "children are the flowers of life". Yellow flowers mean
happiness. This could mean that Laura is searching for happiness. Also, there
are yellow flowers on the walls of Wish House in SH4. A symbol of orphans?
-- A cat - metaphor: Cats see in the dark. That means that despite all she had
to suffer in the orphanage, Laura holds no darkness in her heart, thus she
sees no monsters. She does not want to hide in a dream-world. She wants to
find happiness IN THIS WORLD (similar to Vincent in SH3) - to live a happy
life with a loving family.
We could say that even though she has immense psychical potential, Laura
didn't form a subconscious world. She perceives Silent Hill as a typical
resort town, a little foggy, but without any monsters\blood\railings etc.
Maybe she does see elements of her own world, but her vision of "paradise" is
very similar (if not identical) to the real world.
Another meaning for the cat - "the cat walks around by herself" - a symbol of
Laura's loneliness - she is trying to find a close person, who would support
her in life.
-- Teddy bear - in psychology, a teddy bear symbolises infantilism and
nostalgia. This can be applied to Laura: wouldn't you call someone, who tries
to find parents infantile? Most children of her age want to be free of their
boring "parental units", nostalgia = Laura wants to get Mary, her "mother",
back, because Mary is strongly associated with happiness in the little girl's
mind. On the other hand, it could represent her love for Mary (who also wanted
to bring back her happy days = nostalgia). Thus, the Teddy Bear and the Car
represent Mary and Laura in St.Jerome's. I think that this wall is the main
way of understanding Laura's character and her past.
--------------------
After her meeting with James near WSA Laura goes to the Bowl-o-rama to ask
Eddie if he found any info on Mary.
------------------
c) Why the Bowl-o-Rama?
The advertisement for Pete's Bowl-o-Rama is right above Eddie's van on the
Observation Deck - it was the first thing they both saw and decided to visit
the place. Maybe they arranged to meet there later.
------------------
Obviously, he could care less about some Mary - he was too deep down in his
problems (don't confuse Eddie with the altruistic Henry!). After realizing his
indifference and uselesness, she leaves with a stingy remark ("You re just a
gutless fatso!", "a fatso like you would just slow me down" ). By the way,
Eddie's reaction to James' question (Eddie: "...Huh?... Laura...? But
why...?") is curious - Dombrowski believes that she's some sort of a guardian
angel, a figment of his imagination and is surprised by the fact that James
asks him about her.
At this time, Laura starts to doubt the fact that Mary got better. She decides
to visit Brookhaven Hospital, thinking that Mary could've been transferred
from Ashfield to Silent Hill. James finds her playing with teddy bears. Laura
is playing out the scene of her future meeting with Mary: two cute teddy bears
- how touching. But, again there is tension between the two. James, convinced
that what he thinks is true, yells at her. And she decides to pay him back by
locking him in one of the rooms so that he would think how to behave himself
in the future. If only she knew what was going through James' head at that
time... A few minutes later she started to feel bad about it and opened the
door (James was too busy fighting his delusions to notice, of course). This
means Laura is not a spiteful person.
Now, Laura isn't sure if Mary is in Silent Hill at all! And she decides to
check one last place - Lake View Hotel, of which Mary told her so much (note
that she KNOWS that the hotel is no more, it's the last place she checks, her
last Hope for happiness i.e. meeting with Mary). Her desire to meet Mary is so
strong, that she really starts to see the hotel - it exists for her.
-------------
d) The "nostalgic" hotel.
The hotel burned down... but why does Laura sees it, then? That is stimple -
at the same time James arrives there and his mental energy, the power of
James' thoughts and memories starts to affect Laura and makes her see his
"nostalgic" hotel. But the image is taken not only from James' memories. The
photos, the timetable from one year ago... all this could not have been in
James' memory. The FAIRY TALE puzzle also leads to some suspicions. The Hotel
is not just a part of his subconscious. It is the merging of his and Laura's
memories of it, their subconscious worlds. Also note that the "nostalgic"
hotel disappears as soon as Laura leaves and James realizes the truth.
---------------------
For the last time we meet her in Room 312. She didn't find the letter, yet she
still retain her hope and wishes to continue the search, not realizing (she
couldn't accept that) that Mary is dead. "So there you are, James. Did you get
the letter? Did you find Mary? If not, let s get going already." - she urges
him to go. Even when James tells her the truth ("Mary s gone. She s dead. I
killed her"), she still can't believe that her hope is forever lost ("Liar!
That s a lie!"), but finally accepts the truth and pours out all the pain of
this acceptance on James ("I knew it! You didn t care about her! I hate you,
James! I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!" - another similarity to Mary: "I
was so angry all the time and I struck out at everyone I loved most.
Especially you, James.") and leaves the hotel.
So, what will happen to her next?
If we take the Leave ending into account, then James and Laura accept reality
and leave the town together to start a new life, keeping the sweet memory of
Mary in their hearts. But according to SH4 Leave never happened. Then, maybe
Laura left the town and found her happiness alone? Or does she retain her hope
and keep on searching the town?
Team Silent decided to leave the end of Laura's story open...
Quote: "Huh? Are you blind or something?"
Metaphor: "Looking for happiness"
Symbol: Cat
Music "Theme of Laura" , "Laura plays the piano"
Name: According to LM, the name is taken from the book "No language but a
cry", written after real events, in which a little girl was fried on a frying
pan by her mentally sick parents (remember Alessa and Dahlia). After this
Laura didn't speak ("a tale of birds WITHOUT A VOICE" and "SILENT Hill" - see
the similarity?).
By the time she was 12, she was deemed schizophrenic and was sent to a
catholic church to spend her days as a "vegetable" (remember Wish House and
the flowers).
In short, nobody believed that this girl could be returned to normal - but one
doctor doctor D'Ambrosio didn't lose hope and took her in for treatment. Was
he successful? Can Laura deal with her shock and speak again? Can she find
happiness with D'Ambrosio's help? Read the book :)
I think, the conceptual link between this book and Silent Hill is obvious.
2-5 Mary Sunderland (Shepherd) - the path of life of Mary Sunderland
Age - 25
Occupation - Unknown
In the Midwich school level of SH1 we could find a drawing of a cat (a very...
strange cat, indeed) labeled "Mary" - could Mary have spent her childhood in
SH? At that time Mary was... hey, it fits quite nice - by that time Mary
should've been in school.
In her early twenties, Mary was living in Ashfield, which is not far from
Silent Hill, as we know. There she met James Sunderland (whose father, Frank
Sunderland, probably gave them a room in South Ashfield Heights for free). For
some reason, the gloomy clerk attracted her (She writes about him: "It's true
he may be a little surly sometimes, and he doesn't laugh much. But underneath
he's really a sweet person." Well, maybe it was just the free room that
attracted her. Just kidding =) )
And so, they married and began their happy new life together ("We had some
wonderful years together"). James worked as a clerk and Mary was a good
housewife, tried to learn to play the piano ("I remember how much Mary likd
playing the piano"), paint ("She even showed me all her pictures." - says
Laura) etc.
A kind housewife + an introverted melancholic clerk = ideal family. Or does it?
Three years before the events of SH2, the young couple visits the nearby
resort town of Silent Hill. Why Silent Hill? As we know, it is advertised on
the Ashfiel radio station ("Come 2 Silent Hill 4 the ultimate peaceful
getaway!"). They were right with their choice (or wrong. In the long run.).
The time in Silent Hill was the best time in their lives - they spent a whole
day in Rosewater Park, staring at the lake, spent a fun evening in the
Lakeview Hotel (maybe Mary even played the piano there) and room 312 became
their "special place". And everything would be good, if not for the fact that
Mary already had a terminal illness then (remember James' tape), but refused
to accept it ("I just didn t want to accept it.") and James also didn't
notice, that his beloved wife is ill (or didn't WANT TO notice? When looking
at the photo, he still says that she was healthy, although she obviously
couldn't have been). Probably, Mary caught the thing in Ashfield.
After their vacation ended, they came back to Ashfield, and only then James
started to take action. But it was too late and Mary couldn't be saved ("I m
afraid I m not sure. 3 years at most.... Perhaps 6 months... It s impossible
to say with certainty. "). The happy days departed.
Mary was admitted into St.Jerome's Hospital (the Sunderlands' neighbor -
Rachel - was a nurse there), but she didn't believe in any miraculous cure
("It s be easier if they d just kill me. But I guess the hospital is making a
nice profit off me, they want to keep me alive..."), yet didn't want to die
and WANTED to believe in the possibility of it, but knew, that death was
inevitable. Pain, sorrow, despair. This suffering, paired with the suffering
from her inner conflict, she took out on James.
She realized, that this illness is not only taking her own life, but is
hurting her husband. She always wanted him to leave ("Just go home already",
"Get the hell out of here" , "Leave me alone already!" , "Are you still
here?", "Don t come back!"). The central word here is "Leave". In reality, she
wanted him to leave her, to stop suffering for her, to start a new life. She
wanted to end his pain, but couldn't find the right words and just inflicted
more pain. Although, Mary also couldn't sever her link with this world (i.e.
with James) - she still wanted to believe that she could be saved, wanted him
to chase away her despair ("James.... Wait.... Please don t go.... Stay with
me. Don t leave me alone. I didn t mean what I said. Please James.... Tell me
I ll be okay. Tell me I m not going to die. Help me...")
This went on for 2 years. For 2 long years, during which Mary lay in her
hospital bed, staring at the ceiling most of the time, living only in her
memories. In her thoughts, she returned to Silent Hill time and again, going
deeper and deeper into her subconscious world, her Sacred Grounds. Even though
her body was in the hospital, her mind was in the foggy resort town. Thus, she
got more and more stuck in her world of memories. How she wanted to return
there with James...
She waited for James, but didn't want him to come, because he would have to
suffer seeing her again. During her third year in the hospital, she met a
small girl named Laura there. The two quickly became friends - a girl,
striving to find the happiness she never had, and a woman, who can only
remember the happiness that will never be again. She held onto Laura to keep
herself from drowning in sorrow - they talked about Silent Hill, reviving
Mary's sweet memories of the town, and Laura found in her the mother, whom she
never had ("I love you like my very own daughter. If things had worked out
differently, I was hoping to adopt you."). Mary even wanted to adopt her, but
knew that this would never happen.
This went on for a year, but one day Mary finally left the hospital ("It s not
that I m getting better. It s just that this may be my last chance..."). She
was so eager to get home that she probably didn't wait for Laura to show up
and left her a letter, same as she did for James and asked Rachel to give it
to her husband (she asked Rachel because she was their neighbor).
She returned to SAHapts to James and wanted to visit Silent Hill for the last
time in her life. But her condition was getting worse and worse and it was
obvious that she wouldn't survive the journey. And so, she spent her remaining
days with her husband, slowly dying before his eyes. One night, he decided to
end this three-year long nightmare. He waited for her to fall asleep and
smothered her with a pillow. Here's a lullaby to close your eyes...Goodbye.
Rest in peace, Mary and may you have the sweetest of dreams in your pocket of
eternity.
Now he only had to comply with her last wish - take her to Silent Hill. "The
real reason I came to this town.I wonder what was I afraid of? Without you,
Mary, I ve got nothing...."
But did Mary's personality really die, or was she left to forever wander the
restless dreams of Silent Hill?
"Be then released from the bonds of the flesh, and gain the Power of Heaven."
Mary is dead - long live Mary! WIll her memories go on living in the town of
her dreams? "Well, I'm alone there now... In our "special place" Waiting for
you..."
Will she meet her husband and dive with him into the world of their memories,
or is she doomed to wait for him in her world forever alone? Will James
abandon her? This will be decided by your actions in the game.
Quote: "In my restless dreams, I see that town... Silent Hill" (the famous
quote that send the heart of SH fans all over the globe racing)
Metaphor: "Drowning in memories"
Symbol: Water
Music: Promise, Magdalene, Waiting for You
Name: If James' name was inspired by Jack the Ripper, then we could try to
find Mary under the same topic. The name is derived from Mary Kelly - Jack's
victim, who lived with a man named Joseph, who was suspected of being the
Ripper.
2-6. Maria, part 1 (real)
Age - 25
Occupation - dancer in Heaven's Night
When visiting Heaven's Night, James saw a strip dancer, performing under the
stage name "Maria". Looking at the posters in the restroom at the beginning of
SH2 and in SH3 we can see that she actually has LONG DARK HAIR. James did not
remember her face, but her name was stuck in his memory (probably because the
similarity with his wife's name and their age. )
2-7. Maria, part 2 (subconscious)
Mary is still imprisoned in her coccoon of suffering and loneliness, the
restless dreams of Silent Hill. But some day, a beautiful butterfly will
emerge from this coccoon. What will it look like?
The long three years went on. Three painful years. James was tired, tired of
waiting, tired of hoping - he already knew, that Mary is lost to him, that his
happiness will die with her.
Suffering, despair, loneliness... "And that s why you needed this Maria
person?" James needed someone, who would be close to him, who would support
him, someone to replace Mary for him. And then, he created a new Mary for
himself - a perfect woman, who would fulfill all his dreams and give back his
lost happiness.
---------------------------------
a) Appearance analysis.
So, how would a "girl of his dreams" look? She must look like Mary, of course,
but be much more open ("I can be yours..." - "Don t you want to touch me? Come
and get me "), always cheerful and kind ("And I ll never yell at you or make
you feel bad."). For some reason, James associated the image of a perfect
woman with a certain strip dancer from the bar Heaven's Night - "Lady Maria".
Thus, her name. I should note, that James still loved Mary, so his image of a
"dream girl" was highly affected by the image of his wife. She must be a
blonde, because, according to some stereotypes "Don t you think blondes have
more fun?". Red and pink colors prevail in Maria's clothing - this is
obviously the result of his frequent visits to Heaven's Night.
She has a butterfly tattoo - James' association with "night butterfly". Also,
there is coin hanging on her neck. It means love for money and is just a cute
strip accessory.
For these three years, James dreamt of this perfect woman, his wife dying from
the disease. And, after some time, this image took root in his subconscious
world and became part of it.
---------------------------------
So, Maria exists in James's world (his memories of the town), because James
associates her with this place. Her only purpose is the fulfillment of his
desires ("I can be yours... I ll be here for you forever. And I ll never yell
at you or make you feel bad. That s what you wanted"). James himself the
reason she exists - her Fate, her God. Can this be called love? To live only
for the lived one, to bring him\her happiness - is this not love? Maria has no
past (at first she thinks she is a real strip dancer, but soon realizes that
she knows nothing about herself, apart from a few of James' speculations) and
not even a future (she's not even real!).
To live only for the loved one. The most terrible thing is that her love is
already doomed - James has rejected her ("Maria...? It s you... But I don t
need you anymore." - the "dream girl" was just a toy for his injured mind and
now James tosses IT away), he needs Mary - the Mary he knew, dressed the same,
acting the same (nostalgia at its worst!).
Now that he has once again gained Hope (the letter), Maria has lost her
purpose ("I don t have any reason to go on living" - says Maria, holding the
revolver to her head). She is left alone, abandoned by the person she loves
("When I woke up, I was all alone.") - what is she to do? Try and get James'
love back ("Do I fight and live?") or give up and cease to exist?
Maria cannot stay alone - she has been created for another purpose: to beclose
to people, to be social, thanks to James' imagination. Thus, she tries to find
at least one person in the town. Somebody, who could become a new reason for
her to exist. But it is all for naught, the only denizens of James' world are
monsters and herself.
But, as I have already stated in this PA, the subconscious world (and their
energies) have the ability to mix ("other worlds began to force their way into
his universe and it began to swell horribly") and merge into "White Noiz". At
one moment, James' world comes in contact with the world of Ernest Baldwin.
Maria finally finds a person to communicate with (and to explore his world -
the mansion from his memories). But she confronts the very same problem - he
does not need her ("Would you leave me alone?"). No matter how she tries to
get closer to him - all useless. He just uses her to get the White Chrism,
needed to resurrect his daughter.
-------------------------
b) Interesting fact concerning Maria's hair color
In "Making of SH2" Sato Takayoshi makes an interesting remark about Maria's
hair color: "I think she is a brunette. She's not blond, she dyed red, but
then she dyed... she bleached". Notice the three colors - black (brunette),
red ("she dyed red") and white ("she bleached"). Remind you of anything? What
color are the tablets she has to arrange in her scenario? Black, red and
white. And what are the ingredients of the ritual to "resurrect the dead"?
Blood (red), Obsidian goblet (black) and White Chrism (white). Another link to
the theme of Rebirth.
-------------------------
Thus, Maria could not escape her fate. She is bound to James and no one else.
And she obeys fate (Maria: What if I had said I believed in Fate? Ernest: That
James, he s a bad man. Maria: James...? Y,yes...... I know.") - she decides to
fight for James' attention and love. She decides to play her part of the
seductress.
Will James reject the girl from his dreams, or will he love her back?
At this time, the worlds continue to mix... James's world gradually draws in
Mary's world of memories, that still exists in the foggy town.
-----------------------
c) Rebirth
Do you remember what happened to Eileen Galvin in SH4? "She's being taken
over...The Mother Reborn" - Walter's memories, that existed in his world,
forced their way into her mind.
Maria is a similar case - Mary's memories are reborn through her ("...Maria
has Mary's memories" - LM). Memories of the hotel, for example ("Remember that
time in the hotel... You said you took everything... But you forgot that
videotape we made. I wonder if it s still there... Äæåéìñ: How do you know
about that! Aren t you Maria?").
Mary's memories (and her psychic energy as well) merged with James' world and
were channeled through Maria (because Maria was somewhat of an impersonation
of Mary, thus she absorbed Mary's energy) - this was the beginning of Mary's
Rebirth (and Maria starts to show signs of a split personality. Or rather,
"mixed personality" - "It doesn t matter who I am..."). Out of the coccoon of
pain came a beautiful butterfly.
-----------------------
But can James see the shadow of his wife in Maria? Or does he only need his
"nostalgic" Mary?
Quote : "It doesn t matter who I am... I m here for you, James."
Metaphor: Butterfly of Rebirth.
Symbol: Butterfly
Music : "Heaven's Night" , "Overdose Delusion"
Name: The name "Maria" comes from the Chrisitan Mary - mother of Jesus, the
Godmother. In some way, Maria is also a Godmother (similar to SH4's "Mother
Reborn") because the memories of Mary are reborn in her. The memories, which
are to become one of the "Gods" of James' subconscious world.
2-8. Ernest Baldwin.
Ernest Baldwin was a member of what one might call Silent Hill's aristocratic
layer of society, owning a large luxurious mansion filled with "difficult
books" ("The bookshelf is lined with complete editions of difficult-looking
books.") - overall, an intelligent man. Some years ago he lived happily with
his daughter Amy, who was center of his attention and the meaning of his life.
But then...
November... A sad month... 10 years ago in November little Amy Baldwin fell
out of the window. An accident, nobody's fault. She was taken by God at an age
of 7 ("She was loved too much by God. Seven years was not enough time."). But
the death of his beloved daughter turned Ernest's life in a different
direction - he has lost his child, lost the meaning of his life, his hope and
future ("Along with you died joy. All that remains is despair and a future of
meaningless tomorrows.")... His life has stopped, he could not go on without
Amy (remember James: "Without you, I just can t go on. I can t live without
you, Mary.") But he still hoped. Somehow he learned of a ritual known in a
cult, indigenous to Silent Hill, as the ritual of the Holy Assumption. Will
the ancient Gods hear Ernest's plea? Will they return the life of his
daughter? In any way, he had nothing else to try, and so he did. He sacrificed
his life to bring her. Did he believe that a miracle would happen? Simply put,
no. He didn't. When Maria asks "Do you really think it will work?" he only
gives her a doubtful "I don t know...". Moreover, he didn't even complete the
Holy Assumption because he couldn't find the White Chrism - we see that deep
down in his soul Baldwin never believed that some sort of occult ritual could
bring his daughter back. After he freed himself from the chains of the flesh
and gained the Power of Heaven, he became trapped in the world of his
memories, his subconscious world. But as he didn't believe in Amy's
resurrection, no miracle happened in this world. Now he is doomed to forever
"haunt" the mansion in eternal loneliness and despair. If only he BELIEVED,
everything could turn out differently.
A lot of time passed since then, but the Baldwin mansion was never occupied
(the new owners risked a similar fate as the owner of Room 302 in SAHapts).
Sinister rumors have spread over the town about the "Baldwin Haunted Mansion".
Ernest's consciousness has been trapped in his world all this time - he could
not leave the house of his memories. At first, he did not realize that he was
death, but soon he found out the truth ("By the time I found out about it, I
could no longer leave this house."). He will forever be in this lonely world,
where there is no place for people - but it is for the best. Others would just
annoy him, disturb his solitude, his reminiscence of the times when Amy was
alive. He did not forget - that day still lives in Ernest's memory. There are
things, that we can forget, and there are things, that we can never forget. He
did not know what was worse - to forget, or to remember... On one hand, these
memories were painful, he suffered, but on the other hand - Amy continued to
live in her father's thought and to forget her would mean forgetting the
dearest memories.
Thus, Baldwin drowned in his endless mourning of his daughter, became a part
of Silent Hill... But strange things have been happening lately. Ernest's
world started to flux and overlap with the world of another - James
Sunderland. Could it be because these people were similar? Both James and
Ernest lost their loved ones and because of this lost their will to live? This
cannot be known. But the fact remains - the silence, that has claimed its
place in the Baldwin Mansion, is broken with the coming of Maria from James'
world. She has yet to realize her purpose, but Ernest can perceive James'
world just as Maria can perceive his - and he learns the mystery of her birth
("You were born in this town."). Now, Ernest has once again gained Hope - even
if can't leave the mansion to get the White Chrism, he can use Maria to fetch
it from another's world ("Maria...? So you must be... That s why. That s why
you could see me. So perhaps that means that I can hope for a miracle as well?
In the apartment next door, there is a bottle containing a white liquid.").
Although, Ernest is still doubting the success of his endeavor, he at least
hopes that if the ritual is performed correctly a miracle can happen.
It is understandable, that after getting the White Chrism Baldwin will once
again try to perform the Holy Assumption - but will it bring his daughter
back? This question is left open. Well, it is his own world and only that will
come to be, what he believes in.
Quote: Along with you died joy. All that remains is despair and a future of
meaningless tomorrows. But I will never give up. One, to see your beautiful
smile again. One, to beg the blessings of the Gods. I wait for that day.
Metaphor: Prisoner of sad memories
Symbol: The three tablets
Name: The meaning of his name is revealed in the game itself. It is taken from
Ernest Hemingway, who, by the way, committed suicide in 1961.
2-9. Amy Baldwin
Ernest's seven-year-old daughter lived a happy life with her father in Baldwin
Mansion. She liked plush toys, fairy tales and loved playing with matches -
just as all little children do. But most importantly - she loved her father
more than anyone else. His birthday was in November - Amy even bought him a
pretty postcard ("TO MY DEAREST DADDY HAPPY BIRTHDAY! FROM AMY BALDWIN") and
gloves to keep his hands warm during winter - with these gloves it would be
fun to play snowballs... She wanted to make it a surprise and decided to hide
the presents in the attic. Apparently, the attic was quite dark and she forgot
the matches in her room, so she couldn't light the lamp. So, the girl opened
the window to look at the postcard again, but suddenly Ernest came into the
attic, startled her and she fell out of the window. That is why she was
holding an open envelope - Ernest realized it only after all that time
("Now... when it s too late, I finally understand why. Why she was there...
Why she was holding the empty envelope in her hand when she... when she
fell."). Now, without his daughter, Ernest's life has lost its meaning, his
joy died. But he has one last hope - he tries to resurrect her through an
ancient ritual...
Worthy of note is the occult magazine from SH3, which says that people, who
died a sudden death, can still exist (as psychic energy), not realizing their
death. And when Maria picks up the postcard, she hears a girl's voice: "Give
it... to my daddy...". Is this just Maria's imagination, or does Amy still
live in the mansion after death, just as her father does? Could it be that she
is living in her world and some day it will come in contact with Ernest's
world, just as James' world did? Then Amy and Ernest can once again be
together and find happiness after death.
2-10. Walter Sullivan in the context of SH2. (also see Part 4, 4-1)
We find mentions of Walter in SH2, but, of course, in the light of the
different psychological themes, the meaning is a bit different.
Judging by the newspaper (not taking SH4 into account for now) we can assume
that Walter Sullivan killed two chldren, but could not take the weight of
guilt and also descended into a world of delusions. He believed, that he
wasn't guilty ("...it wasn't me!"), tried to hide from the truth, but deep
down knew that their death is his doing. Note the phrase "I did it, but it
wasn't me!" - he says he did it, but instantly contradicts himself. But, [now
he's talking about SH4 too - Translator's note] maybe there are two identities
inside him - a bloody murderer (the man in coat, who perform the 21
Sacraments) and the other - a weird university student, who "didn't look like
the type of guy who would kill kids"? So, Sullivan murdered the children, but
it was the other Sullivan - the man in coat. This explains his phrase quite
well.
Walter also mentioned a Red Devil (from SH4 we learn that it was Jimmy Stone),
who was trying to punish him. Does this remind you of something? We can assume
(again, without taking SH4), that Walter's feeling of guilt started to pursue
him and finally drew him to suicide. Walter stabbed himself in the neck with a
spoon. The very same way the PyramidHeads do. This is not a coincidence, but a
result of James reading about the maniac. For some reason, James associated
himself with the maniac... hmm... what kind of reason is that, I wonder? Did
James do something bad? %)
James and Walter have similarities - both carry the weight of guilt, both are
prisoners of delusions.. And if remember the Rebirth ending, in which James
perform the Holy Assumption to resurrect Mary...
By the way, in SH2 we can visit Sullivan's grave. Interesting... "Walter
Sullivan" is written on the gravestone. It becomes even more interesting after
we learn, that Walter was buried in an unmarked grave ("His body was buried in
a cemetery just outside his hometown of Silent Hill in an UNMARKED grave"), so
his name couldn't have been there. So why did Walter see it? Do the memories
of Walter Sullivan still live in the foggy town?
=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
3. CHARACTERS OF SILENT HILL 3
=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
There aren't that many main characters functioning in the SH3 plot, but
that shouldn't be considered a shortcoming, since the authors have done a
great job making the characters deep without making the plot overly
complex. Thus, while the main plotline is relatively simple (yet well
thought-out still), the main highlight are the characters, their
interactions and their deepest secrets.
--------------------------------
a) Douglas and Silent Hill
In his line of work, Douglas heard many rumors about a strange town called
Silent Hill. Ever since the disappearance of the "Little Baroness" and the
mysterious deaths, the town's had a bad reputation. But one day he
actually had to go there himself on a missing person case (the pay must've
been good if he agreed to go all the way from California to Maine). He
didn't find anything, but there really was something wrong with the town -
he felt it ("I ll tell ya, that s one screwed up town"). And he probably
felt it on his own skin - he carries the haunting guilt from losing his
son and we know what Silent Hill does to people with darkness in their
hearts. It's no surprise that he's tried to avoid the town (note that he
says he'd been there only ONCE), but soon he will have to come back.
----------------------------
Sometime ago, Douglas was commissioned by Claudia Wolf to find a girl, who
was kidnapped by one Harry Mason 17 years ago. The name of the girl was
supposed to be Alessa Gillespie. It turned out to be a dead case - the
only lead was in Silent Hill papers, which stated that a girl with that
name died in a fire 24 years ago and the client probably just couldn't
accept the loss of a close person.
After a long search, he finally finds Harry Mason and his daughter, who
are now living under fake names in Ashfield. They must be hiding
someting... Alessa Gillespie is supposed to be 31 by now, but the client
believed that the girl couldn't be older than 17. Nevertheless, according
to all records the age of Mason's daughter is 24. Maybe she really is his
daughter and Wolf is just chasing phantoms? In any case, this should not
concern him. He just needs to arrange for the two women to meet - his job
will be over then.
-----------------------------------
b) Secret agreement
There was another commission. Not long before Douglas informed his client
that he had found Alessa and presented her with a photo, another important
member of the cult, Vincent, secretly offered him a bigger sum to get rid
of the "Holy One" if strange things begin to happen ("Find the "Holy One".
Kill her?" is written on the back side of Heather's photo, which was
obviously taken by the private detective). Could the respectable detective
agree to such a criminal deal? In the course of the game we learn exactly
what he told Vincent, but the scene where he almost shoots Heather is
certainly not a coincidence.
----------------------------------
We first meet Douglas in the Ashfield shopping mall - the pesky detective
is trying to get her to see somebody ("Hold on. There s someone who wants
to meet you. Just let me have an hour, no half an hour of your time. This
is very important. It s about your birth"), but she runs away from him
after a short conversation and hides in the toilet. Strange, doesn't she
want to know the truth about her birth and meet a childhood friend?
Douglas shouldn't have said anything about birth. The "Mother of God"
begins to recall her "lost memories" and her power grows dramatically,
engulfing the mall in darkness. Douglas is also trapped in the nightmarish
world and sees monsters ("And that monster, what the hell was that?").
---------------------------
c) Mystery of the gun
So, what was Douglas doing between his first meeting with Heather and her
victory over the Splitworm?
It is strange, but in a clothes store, Heather finds a pistol that looks
exactly the same as that carried by Douglas (could he have dropped one of
his guns? Cybil in SH1 also has two). And it has only seven bullets in it.
Where's the other three? Who was the original owner shooting at? And
there's also a body in the store... Was this person killed by the Closer
or with that gun? And Douglas later mentions seeing a monster and later
even he tell Claudia that he has killed before... And later Vincent tells
us that monsters are...
--------------------------
After the boss fight, we once again meet Douglas. He is shocked by the
recent events and cannot explain them. But something is telling him that
the reason for all this is the "holy one" girl. But, befitting a
detective, Douglas keeps his ideas for himself, carefully asking Heather
"What s so special about you anyway?"
But Heather sees in him another enemy, she thinks he is on Claudia's side
("It s you... You must be one of them! You re in on this with that
Claudia, aren t you?") and that he got her into this ("I can t feel sorry
for you, cause you dragged me into this. If you hadn t found me...") and
escapes into the subway.
Next time we meet Douglas in the Masons' apartment...
How did he get in anyway?
------------------------
d) Friend or foe?
Note that Douglas is always following Heather. First in the mall, then he
comes to her home, then volunteers to take her to Silent Hill. But we
never see any "combat" help from him (he didn't even help Heather against
the Missionary, even though he remained in the apartment long enough to
search Harry's body). It's as if he is only an observer, who follows
Heather around, doing nothing. (Just like Valtiel, only Valtiel follows
Heather in the Otherworld)
Perhaps he cares about her, but maybe he's got something on his mind?
Maybe he's just following her to see whether he should kill her or not?
Who is he? Friend? Foe? An innocnt bystander or Claudia's ally? Or a
treacherous murderer, looking for a good chance to shoot her in the back?
But we know the answer. Even when Heather attacks him (Normal\Possessed
Ending), he doesn't kill her. So he is a friend. The young girl reminds
him of his own son ("You... you remind me of my son" - says Douglas) and
he also feels partially guilty for her father's death ("Besides I m partly
responsible for this") so now he's trying to help her to atone for his
past failings.
-------------------
At first Heather vents her anger on him (was the missionary not enough?),
blames him for all that's happening ("Get out! This is all your fault!! If
it weren t for you..."), but he manages to calm her down, helps her lay
Harry on the bed and offers to give her a ride to Silent Hill (he makes up
a confused face and asks "What's in Silent Hill?" but we know better after
reading his notebook in LSAP). After some though, she finally accepts his
offer. Maybe that is because he reminds her of her deceased father?
------------------------------
e) Meeting at the car
Cartland leaves the Masons' apartment to get the car ready, but also to
let Heather be alone with herself for a while. Now she has to leave her
former life behind, she is ready for revenge, for the trip to Silent Hill
and they meet up at the entrance to the Daisy Villa Apartment Building.
And again, the detective's actions are confusing. He somehow got Harry's
"legacy", which, he says, he took from Harry. But when did he search the
body? He also says that just now he "met a guy named Vincent". As if he
had never heard of this Vincent before - in reality, they had met each
other (Heather's photo in Hilltop is evidence of this). It seems as if the
whole thing was planned by Vincent in advance and he used Douglas to
execute his plans:
-The trip to Silent Hill: Vincent could've told Douglas to follow Heather
("Find the Holy One. Kill Her?")
-Stopping at a certain room in a certain motel - how could Vincent have
known WHERE they stopped, if he didn't tell Douglas where to beforehand?
-Looking for Leonard. Vincent gave that idea to Douglas.
-The way to the church. Vincent tells Douglas to go to LSAP and then
convinces Heather that Cartland asked her to go through the park to the
church.
I'd say these are spy games worthy of Metal Gear Solid
f) The trip to Silent Hill
Again, like 17 years ago, Heather is in car, going to Silent Hill, trying
to remember the events of her past life.
Things repeat themselves, the carousel makes another turn. But this time
the Mother of God is not holding a sketchbook, but her father's "legacy",
stained with his own blood. And the driver of the car is not Harry... then
again, Douglas looks so much like an older version of Harry. But can he
become a father for our heroine and can she forgive him? Perhaps she opens
up form because she associates him with her father. Douglas is doing his
best to help Heather, because she reminds him of his deceased son, whom he
couldn't save. Notice his caring, almost fatherly attitude towards her: he
asks her if she is cold, if she is feeling well and tries not to offend
her in any way ("Sorry. I didn't mean to offend you")...
Two people, who have lost their loved ones are coming closer. Through
their whole trip to Silent Hill it's raining and sad music is playing on
the radio to emphasize the mood.
-----------------------------
Arriving in Silent Hill, Douglas goes to Leonard's home and asks Heather
to look in the Brookhaven hospital (where Leonard was interred), giving
her the only map of the town. He's worried about her, asking if she's
going to be alright - more examples of his "fatherly" behavior. It's not
surprising that Heather finally feels it and retorts - "I m not a child,
you know". It is also possible that Douglas himself is afraid to be left
alone. He's lost his wife and his only son, his life became a living
nightmare - can he now bear losing his "newly-found daughter"? Even if
killing her is the only way to save the world from the coming of God? And
this world... he has never seen anything more horrible in his whole life,
which was quite long, but he's getting the feeling that it's just a
nightmare. Better wake up soon and get a smoke... But what if the only way
to wake up is to kill Heather?
Thinking of that, Cartland leaves Jack's Inn. We don't know what happened
to him during his search for Leonard, but when he got back, he encountered
Vincent, who told him to go to the church through LSAP and maybe asked him
to "remove" somebody ("What do I want? Well, for the two of you to die.
That would be nice. Then I could relax")...
By the time Douglas arrives in LSAP, the influence of Alessa\Heather's
world has grown so much that he sees the Otherworld version of the park.
There he meets his original client - Claudia Wolf. In awe she awaits the
Rebirth of Paradise, and of her childhood friend Alessa. Two lonely people
with different worldviews come into conflict. Douglas, wishing only good
for his new "daughter" and Claudia, desiring the return of the only person
in the world, who could understand her - her beloved "sister".
Cartland accuses Claudia of lying ("You lied to me about Heather, lady") -
she told him that Alessa was kidnapped by Mason, but in reality she was
happy with her father and the memory of her past life didn't bring her any
joy. He thinks she used him ("I don t like being used") to hurt Heather
and bring the nightmarish world to life. Claudia, on the other hand,
believes that she's doing the right thing - she believes that Paradise is
what Heather's true personality desires, and thus - her Fate, her destiny.
She also believes that Alessa's Rebirth will bring happiness to all people
- create a world with no pain, no war, no hunger. Both of them justify
their goals, but Alessa's return means Heather's death and vice versa.
There is no peaceful resolution for this - Douglas and Claudia are forever
locked in conflict. The detective laughs at his opponent's idealistic
dream and points a gun at her. Yes, he would kill the priestess without
remorse to finally put an end to his loneliness and prevent the coming of
"Paradise". After all, he's killed before.
Religious dispute resulting in violence... Just like the story of Leonard
Wolf
-------------------------------------------
f) What happened to Douglas?
When Douglas is pointing his gun a Claudia and says "I've done it before"
we don't see even a shade of fear on her face - she is only pitying the
sinner, who is unable to comprehend the Truth... God punishes sinners.
Next time we see Douglas on the ground, bleeding from a neck wound. What
happened to him? The answer is his phrase: "But if THIS is how a god of
mercy acts, I don t want to see any more of him". Douglas was punished by
God herself? In LM and SH3 it gradually becomes known that Claudia also
underwent the "Mother of God" "training" and, like Alessa, possessed some
sort of power - her own detailed subconscious world and great powers of
suggestions. Probably, Douglas was drawn into her world, where her God
punished him according to her beliefs. It could be that Douglas, thinking
that he is being attacked by some kind of God, actually shot himself in
the leg. But, these are just guesses. Claudia could just have another
cultist to help her.
-------------------------------------------
When Heather next sees the wounded Douglas, we see her as a caring
daughter - she is worried about him ("Are you hurt?.... You... you old
fool! Getting yourself hurt like that.. What ll I do if you die?"), she
even forgets where she is and almost goes to call an ambulance. Now it is
time for Douglas to open up to her and tell her of his loneliness.
But when she turns around, he aims his gun at her... (reminiscent of the
scene in SH1, where Cybil attacks Harry) he has always wanted to be
Superman and now is his chance to fulfilll the dream, save the world with
a single shot. Just one shot, and the world would be safe from the
"Paradise". But only at the cost of Heather, the person who became a
daughter for him. He wants to kill her not because Vincent told him, but
to ease her suffering and save the world ("Maybe killing you here is the
only way to end this nightmare..."). But even if the nightmare ends with
her death, how will he live on? Alone still? The world itself will become
a nightmare, so there is no difference - either the lifeless world of
Alessa's nightmares or endless pointless reality.
Douglas can't pull the trigger. And Heather walks away towards the church
to finally confront her dark past.
----------------------------
g) Normal Ending
After the final battle, Heather returns to LSAP, where Douglas is waiting
for her. She decides to play a joke on the detective - this is the
developers' way of showing how deeply he cares about her: if he shot her,
he would've destroyed his own happiness (and probably take the next bullet
himself), but he only mutters "Heather... oh, Heather... no...", he
doesn't even consider killing her, even in self-defence. We see how dear
she is to him. She asks him to call her by the name her father gave -
"Cheryl". We can theorize that later Cartland will adopt her and they will
lead a happy life, just like the Good Ending in SH1.
But if everything repeats itself... was Heather really able to completely
repress Alessa's personality? Did Valtiel stop turning the cycle of
rebirth? Perhaps, Douglas is now doomed to repeat Harry's fate?
h) Possessed Ending
Heather becomes possessed by Alessa's hatred and upon returning to LSAP
kills Douglas. Now the events of SH1 will repeat themselves, only now
there will be no cult, no life at all. Just blood and monsters... and in
the center of it - the hateful Mother of God, enjoying the Hell she has
created. What of Douglas? Will he finally find peace, or is he doomed to
become a prisoner in Alessa's world, eternally suffering in the purifying
flame?
i) The Hanged Man (Tarot card analysis)
What does the Hanged Man symbolize? Let's take a closer look at the
illustration. It's quite sad: a hanged man and no one around. This
loneliness is further emphasized in Alessa's poem:
"The upside-down man under the ground:
To his right, to his left, there's no one around.
Leave him alone, though his tears are profound"
The Hanged Man's loneliness is Douglas' loneliness. To his right, to his
left, there's no one around - he has lost both his wife and son. No wonder
we find this card in the morgue - it is another reference to death.
Going ahead, the man is hanging upside down, his right leg is tied to the
gallows and Douglas was wounded in his right leg in LSAP.
The theme of this card is self-sacrifice. The will to sacrifice anything
for the sake of those dear to you - quite appropriate for Cartland's
"Superman" ideals. Once attempting to sacrifice himself and ending up tied
up, he was unable to help anyone - just as Douglas once tried to help
Heather and ended up with an injured leg, losing his ability to help her
in any way ("in the end is not of any help at all" - LM).
j) Fun Facts
Quote: No one s going to cry over my grave anyway.
Metaphor: Hanged Superman
Symbol: "The Hanged Man" Tarot card
Music: "Never forgive me, never forget me"; "I Want Love"
Name: The name was borrowed from a famous 1920s actor Douglas Fairbanks.
No connection is made, just an old-fashioned name that would sound good
for an old detective.
Appearance commentary: Douglas was also not supposed to be an ideal hero.
The "Superman" was given old-fashion and worn clothes and an appropriate
face. Douglas is not without his complexes: if you look at his head,
you'll notice that he is balding and combs his hair back to hide that
fact. The hat probably serves a similar purpose. According to the Making
of SH3 movie, Douglas was modelled after such actors as Ian Holm and
Giancarlo Giannini.
Actor: Douglas was voiced by Richard Grosse. He died of liver failure soon
after SH3 was finished.
3-5. VINCENT
Age: 24 ~ 26
Occupation: priest in The Order
This man's past is shrouded in mystery. It seems that nobody knows his
real age, or even name. Maybe he's trying to hide something?
Vincent came to Silent Hill after the events of the first game and entered
the ranks of the local religious organization. He knew Claudia Wolf and
witnessed her father's cruelty ("I saw the way he hit you, kicked you and
made you cry"), which he still remembers in detail ("The memory of his
cruelty is forever burned into my mind"). After Leonard is taken to the
Brookhaven Hospital (we can suspect Vincent of moving him out of his way),
his closeness to Claudia allowed him to take a high position in the cult.
Despite his interest, the young priest never really believed in the cult's
teachings - the religion was more like a toy in an aristocrat's hands.
Ever the materialist, Vincent never forgot about his personal interests.
To popularize the cult, he had the church repaired and moved the Order out
of the underground. He then began to collect donations from followers and
spending them on himself ("People are starting to voice their
dissatisfactions about Father Vincent using the organization's money for
his own personal benefits. I've also heard rumours that Father Vincent has
been extorting donations from some followers. Is he really the right
person for such a position?").
Even though he lacked faith and look out for himself more than anyone
else, Vincent was still close to Claudia (possibly, Claudia, busy with her
studies and dreams, never really looked after the cult's infrastructure).
But as time passed, Vincent was growing more and more amazed with her. He
noticed that she had powers of premonition ("Her Sight rarely fails her.
Maybe it s because of her great faith") and suggestion. But amazement does
not mean respect. On the contrary, he was sure that these were signs of
her madness (he calls her insane on several occasions in the game), caused
by her devotion to the religion and Dahlia's influence ("She was totally
brainwashed by that crazy old hag"). No, Vincent did not want to follow in
her steps ("But I could never be like her. I wouldn t want to"). Deep
down, he was afraid of her, afraid of her dream coming true. Fed up with
the material world's pleasures, he longed for new experiences, and wants
to see Paradise. But the thought of rejecting the real world forever
didn't appeal to him that much. He didn't like the uncertainty and the
risk it presented ("It wouldn t be convenient. Much too unpredictable").
Claudia believed Paradise to be a place of universal happiness. But how
would she know God's will? If she is mistaken, Vincent risks losing
everything he's achieved in this world. He was never sure, whether he
desired the coming of Paradise, or not.
Attempting to predict the risks, Father Vincent begins researching the
concept of Paradise in the Silent Hill religion and, naturally, the
history of Alessa and the mysterious events 17 years ago (the tape
suggests that he questioned other cult members about the events of SH1).
He stumbles upon a book called "The Book of Praise", which tells of a
cruel way to ensure the Birth. And for some reason he gives this book to
Claudia. His motives in this are unknown - maybe that day decided to help
her bring forth Paradise and changed his mind later, or maybe he thought
the cruelty would turn the compassionate Claudia away.
While researching the events of SH1, Vincent goes as deep as unraveling
the true nature of the events and the world that swallowed the town. It
was the manifestation of a young girl's nightmare ("Isn t this nothing
more than your own personal nightmare? Just like Alessa 17 years ago").
The Paradise is not just a myth and the Otherworld can really be summoned
through rituals. But then Leonard leads him to believe that 17 years ago
the Birth was prevented using the Seal of Metatron.
One day Vincent learns that Alessa, the Mother of God, has been found. To
play safe, he contacts the detective who found her and orders him to kill
the Holy One if strange things start to happen ("Find the Holy One. Kill
her?"). Wishing to find out what Paradise is really like, he goes to
Ashfield with Claudia and is drawn into Alessa's nightmarish world.
Heather first meets Vincent in the alternate Hilltop. An
intelligent-looking man in formal clothing is sitting behind a
psychotherapist's table in Green Ridge Mental Health Clinic. The player
may think that he's a doctor, who fell asleep at his table. Vincent seems
to be in deep thought, but he regains his bearings as soon as he notices
Heather, whom he instantly recognizes from the photo. Who is he? Friend or
for? The word "FRIEND(?)" scribbled on the wall is a reflection of
Heather's thoughts.
He tries to talk to Heather and calls her name ("Heather... That's what
you're called now? Isn't it?"), but as we can see, he is not sure if he
used the right name. After introducing himself, he tells Heather not to
forget his name (we may think that he himself tends to forget names). He
then immediately tries to persuade her, that he is her friend, criticizing
Claudia and even mentioning Dahlia ("She was totally brainwashed by that
crazy old hag. Vincent: I guess crazy old hag" is a bit harsh. She is
your mother after all..."), but is surprised to find out that the Mother
of God remembers nothing from her past life ("You don't remember?"). He
thinks that it's some kind of trickery from Harry ("That figures. He's a
pretty sneaky guy"), which triggers an angry outburst on Heather's side
("Don't talk about my dad like that!"). Notice how noticeable scared
Vincent is ("Sorry, I apologize. Please, calm down") - he is afraid of
Heather! According to LM, Vincent is deathly afraid of any kind of
physical harm ("The prospect of putting himself in physical danger scares
him" - LM). He then proudly announces that he knows everything (which,
considering his extensive research into the religion, psychology and
history of Alessa, is not that far from the truth). But when Heather asks
him to explain what's going on and how to end it ("If you know something
then tell me how I can put an end to this") he decides to play with her -
it seems that he doesn't want the nightmare to end. He tells her to take
her time in this world ("Why not enjoy yourself a bit longer?"). And here
his motives become more apparent - he sees the nightmarish world as an
amusement and wants to enjoy it himself. He even admits that he finds it
"most fascinating". Do you still think Vincent is right in the head? He
only believes himself to be more sane than Claudia ("I haven't lost my
mind like you") - but isn't it typical for crazy people to consider
themselves "normal"? It becomes clear why we meet him in shrink's office.
Convinced that Vincent is crazy, Heather leaves the office and refuses to
enter it again.
------------------------------
a) Beyond pleasure
An educated and intelligent man with a wealth of knowledge in psychology,
an aristocrat, who knows all about the pleasures of this world. Vincent
only pretended to be a respectable priest. It is not unusual for people of
high social standing, who need to always look out for their reputation, to
have all sorts of perversions. Vincent wasn't an exception, he sought new
pleasures. Being a closet sadist but unable to fulfill his desires in the
real world, he was enchanted by Alessa's world. "It gets to me alright. I
find it most fascinating...". But of course he didn't want to stay in this
world FOREVER - it was a place for new experiences, a kind of amusement
park from which one can return to normal life. Note his speech in the cult
library - he believes that killing monsters brings Heather immense
pleasure. Just listen to his description of the killing: "You come here
and enjoy spilling their blood and listening to them cry out. You feel
excited when you step on them, snuffing out their lives". We can also
assume that Vincent's fear of physical harm comes from his desire to
inflict such harm on another.
However, "In the otherworld , the world is seen differently depending on
the person". Heather and Vincent see different things. For Vincent it is
much closer to reality and that is why he sees people instead of monsters.
"Monsters...? They look like monsters to you?".
b) How did Vincent end up in a shrink's office?
Many fans believe that Vincent worked as a psychiatrist in Ashfield.
Indeed, what was he doing in that office? How could he have known that
Heather would come there? Or was their meeting accidental? We mustn't
forget that Vincent is also trapped in Alessa's world. Remember that SH1
ending, where it turned out that Harry's physical body had been dead all
that time? Remember SH4? It is possible, that during their first meeting
Vincent was asleep and his consciousness was drawn into Alessa's world,
randomly appearing in the shrink's office. Although in truth, this is a
question we will never find an answer to.
c) Appearance analysis
According to MoSH3, Vincent's formal clothing is supposed to hide his true
nature. Indeed, the clothes do nothing to reveal his personality, and most
of it is expressed through his behavior. He is always trying to look calm,
with a smug smile on his face - but in reality he is constantly afraid,
always expecting other to play some trick on him. Secrecy is his most
prominent character trait - he uses other people to reach his goals,
keeping them in secret for as long as he can. Also, one of his eyes is
looking in a different direction, creating a slight sense of mistrust
("Watch his eyes... when he speaks, you'll notice that one of his eyes is
not looking at the observer. Take attention, it's subtle"). Early sketches
of Vincent's face were inspired by Ethan Hawke.
----------------------------------------
Some time later Vincent meets with Douglas, gives him a map of Silent Hill
and tells him to look for a man named Leonard. Then he departs to Silent
Hill himself.
----------------------------------------
d)The phone call
While in the alternate Brookhaven Hospital, Heather receives a strange
phone call. Let us try and find out the identity of the caller
- According to LM, the phone call is an example of two minds connecting.
That means the caller must also be in the Otherworld.
- The caller forgot Heather's name for some reason ("Oh, I forgot your
name")
- The caller likes to joke, but his sense of humor is terrible ("Happy
birthday dear 'Hooaryou'")
- We know it is not Leonard or Stanley
- He knows that Leonarad is a murderer
- He is very secretive - he never states his name, only dropping small
hints. It's almost as if he takes pleasure in this.
- He knows about Alessa's history of reincarnations ("Happy 31st birthday!
Today is your 24th birthday").
- He knows that Heather hates Claudia ("You can have the one you hate the
most")
- His voice sounds strangely familiar. The voice on the phone is Clifford
Rippel. If you check who else he's voicing in SH3, you're in for a
surprise.
- After finding the birthday presents, Heather remarks: "If I didn't
really need this stuff right now, HE wouldn't have given it to me. THAT
WEIRDO, I mean". If we recall her calling Vincent a "weird guy" in
Hilltop, the answer becomes clear. We can also theorize that the shotgun
was also a present from him.
Apparently, while in Alessa's world, Vincent decided to use one of the
cut-off phones for fun (the Otherworld is all fun for him) and call
Heather. But since the Otherworld is governed by very different laws, such
a phone allowed him to "connect" to Alessa, i.e. Heather.
It is almost as if Vincent is following the Mother of God everywhere in
her world, watching her kill monsters etc. "You show up everywhere don t
you?"
e) Discussion with Claudia
After defeating Leonard, we are treated to a scene of a conversation
between Claudia and Vicent in room 106 of Jack's Inn. Vincent, who sent
Heather to Leonard, is now making fun of the fellow cult member, telling
her that Leonard's death is his sign of closeness to God.
A conflict becomes imminent: Claudia believes that the real world brings
only suffering and God is needed to make everyone happy. Vincent, on the
other hand, is satisfied with the world as it is ("I know about the
pleasures of this world. And I want to find my happiness while I m still
here") and, having seen the reality of Alessa's nightmarish world, opposes
the coming of Paradise. He also tells Claudia that her desire for Alessa's
return is akin to a child's desire for love (which is true).
------------------------
We next meet Vincent in the same room of the motel. How could he know
where Heather and Douglas stopped? Suspicious, as always. He keeps his
meeting with Claudia secret ("Was there someone else here just now?" -
"No, no, just me") and to lure Heather into a trap gives her a message,
supposedly left to her by Douglas ("The church is on the other side of the
lake"). Nevertheless, the explanations Vincent goes into make Heather
doubt that he learned of the church from Douglas ("Douglas really said
that?" - "What s wrong, you don t trust me?"). Notice that he suggests
going through the Amusement Park, since NOW it's the only way to the
northern part of town.
We can think that Vincent actually explored Alessa's world and learned the
locations of all collapsed roads. But it also may be that he prepared
*something* for her in LSAP and wanted her to choose that route.
----------------------------------
f) Vincent and Douglas
Both men are suspicious and until the very end, Heather can't decide who
to trust, who is friend, and who is foe. It's evident they know each
other. Their meeting is the only one not shown in the game, to keep the
nature of their connection secret, so that we have to resort to small
hints to uncover it. First is the photograph of Heather (obviously made by
Douglas) next to the office where we find Vincent. Then the instruction to
look for Leonard. And Vincent knows where Heather and Douglas stopped. And
then Douglas attempts to kill Heather (as was written on the photo) in the
park, where Vincent sent her. There is definitely some sort of secret
agreement between the two.
But despite that, their motives are completely different. Vincent is
trying to get rid of Heather and Claudia and prevent the coming of
Paradise for his own gains, while Douglas tries and fails to kill Claudia
and Heather to end the nightmare and save the Mother of God from suffering.
----------------------------------------
He makes his next appearance in the cult library, right after Heather
obtains "The Moon" Tarot card. That would mean he followed her to the
church... Heather immediately remarks on his ubiquitousness. By now she
already knows he is also a member of the cult, which is evident in her
saying "Yeah, you re on Claudia s side". However, Vincent, who is
convinced that he is absolutely normal, is offended ("I told you not to
put me in the same category as that madwoman"). Once again he tries to
make her realize that he is different from Claudia and persuade her that
he is on her side, since he also wants to prevent the Birth and coming of
Paradise ("The point is that now I really am on your side. I don t want
God to be born"). He reveals his motives - the risks carried by such
drastic changes are inconvenient ("It wouldn t be convenient. Much too
unpredictable"). And only now Heather begins to realize that all this time
he's been using her to stop Claudia ("So you ve been using me to stop
Claudia, is that it? Do your own dirty work"). Despite their seeming unity
of purpose, the characters are in conflict. Heather believes her actions
to be right and good, while seeing Vincent as a villain. She doesn't know
all the truth about herself, though. Angry at her, Vincent accuses her of
sadism ("Don t stand there looking so smug. You re the worst person in
this room. You come here and enjoy spilling their blood and listening to
them cry out. You feel excited when you step on them and snuff out their
lives!") and reveals the monsters' true nature ("They look like monsters
to you!?"), which shocks the heroine greatly. Look at Vincent's face at
this moment - his expression is one of triumph.
He then makes sure she has the Seal of Metatron (notice how startled he is
at first, thinking she forgot to take it) and gives her an old book, which
describes the talisman's properties. His part done, Vincent leaves for the
Birth chamber.
----------------------------------
g) Fatal delusion
Leonard led Vincent to believe that the events 17 years ago were resolved
using the Seal of Metatron. Thus, Vincent though that by using the SoM he
can play safe and prevent the Birth and the coming of Paradise. That is
why he says "As long as we have that, we re fine".. That is why he sent
Heather to Leonard for the Seal. He may also have given her the book
"Otherworld Laws" specifically to make her believe in the Seal's powers
and secure its effects in Aleesa\Heather's world.
But in SH3 Heather admits that she doesn't believe in anything occult and
her fledgling faith in the Seal is destroyed by Claudia: "It's just a
piece of junk. What do you think you can do with it? I'm sorry you fell
for my father's foolishness". Claudia, also having some psychic powers,
can also influence the world and doesn't believe in the Seal. Thus, since
no one believed in the Seal's power, it didn't work.
----------------------------------
In the next scene, we first see a continuation of Claudia's conflict with
Vincent. Standing in the nightmarish birth chamber, the two cult members
argue. Perhaps, the power of Alessa's world became so great that now both
of them see the same horrible world. Vincent tells Claudia that she cannot
know God's will ("Who do you think you are? Claiming to know God s
will!?") and wonders if this world is just a reflection of Claudia's soul
("You think that this is the work of God? Isn t this nothing more than
your own personal nightmare? Just like Alessa 17 years ago"). But Claudia
is too blinded by her faith to realize the horror of this "Paradise" and
understand her "sister" fully. And in any case, now it is too late, she
decides to walk the path of delusion right to its tragic end. She is even
willing to go to hell, just to see her childhood friend.
Enter Heather. Vincent is encouraged by the appearance of his ally
("Heather, go ahead and kill this crazy bitch. This demon who claims to
speak for God"). Claudia, unable to take his mocking of her dream, pierces
him with a knife ("You ll go to Hell!"). It is ironic that Vincent, who
was deathly afraid of coming to physical harm and always expecting others
to betray him is stabbed with a knife the moment he turns his back on his
fellow cult member. However, his death wasn't instanteous - with his last
breath, he implores Heather to use the Seal of Metatron. But it doesn't
work and Claudia finishes him ("You re pathetic. But God loves even you").
-------------------------------------
h) Vincent's body disappears?
Notice that after Claudia absorbs God and is taken into the birthing hole
by Valtiel, Vincent's body vanishes. What could this mean? There is no
definite answer here.
"God loves even you" says Claudia of her former comrade. This maybe a hint
that Vincent has gained salvation and eternal "Paradise"? Having died
while in the Otherworld, Vincent is now doomed to forever exist in it,
repeating the fate of Lisa Garland. Then again, the disappearance of his
body may be interpreted as him exiting the Otherworld (remember Henry
vanisihing from Walter's world). In that case, Vincent is saved from
eternal suffering.
As you can see, there are many ways to interpret this and, based on
various facts, make up your own end for this character's story.
i) The Moon (Tarot card analysis)
The Moon is the card we find in the library immediately before meeting
Vincent. It represents an aristocrat. "I don't think it's an expecially
good card" says Heather after looking at the card. Alessa writes of The
Moon arrogance: "The moon is up above the sky, Full or crescent, floating
high".
Let's analyze the image to better understand Vincent. We see a dark night,
which is made even more dismal by the bright moon and gloomy wasteland
landscape. In the foreground, emphasizing the desolation, are two figures
- a dog and a wolf, both howling at the moon. In some way this image is
representative of Vincent, who pretended to be a dog, but turned out to be
a wolf for both Claudia and Heather.
According to LM, the Moon also symbolizes uneasiness, mistrust or
inconstancy. A 100% match for Vincent. The card is also often associated
with people, who are attracted to the mysterious and frightening (the wolf
and the dog) - and Vincent found Alessa's world "most fascinating".
i) Lack of true faith
The image of a distrustful materialist is in contrast with the idealist
image of Claudia. Despite being members of one cult, the difference
between them is colossal.
The main theme of Vincent's character is lack of true faith. It is evident
in all parts of his character. Being a sort of parson in the cult, he did
not really believe in the cult's teachings and only participates in it out
of interest and greed. His faith is limited to allowing the possibility of
God's existance. Afraid of the risks that follow the birth of God and the
coming of Paradise also shows his lack of faith in a good outcome (then
again, Vincent knew a lot about the true nature of God and Paradise, to
blindly believe in this).
But his lack of faith is not limited to religion. Constant uneasiness,
expectation of betrayal - Vincent also distrusts people. Heather can't
trust him herself - how can she trust this aristocrat when she doesn't
even know what's going on in his head. Ironic, that the only thing Vincent
believed in was the Seal of Metatron - and this faith failed him, because
it wasn't shared by the other characters.
k) Fun facts
Quote: I know about the pleasures of this world. And I want to find my
happiness while I m still here.
Metaphor: craving for material pleasure kills faith
Symbol: "The Moon" Tarot card
Music: Sickness unto Foolish Death, Stray Child, Innocent Moon
Name: named after Vincent Gallo who starred in the movie "Buffalo '66".
The choice was probably because of stubble, but the SH3 Vincent is not as
cool as his movie namesake.
Actor: Clifford Rippel. Some fans believe the same actor provided the
voice Jasper Gein in SH4, but that is NOT TRUE, as Jeremy Blaustein stated
that Rippel did not take part in the development of SH4.
3-11. Christie
According to a note in the special treatment ward, one of the nurses -
Christie - sometimes mistreated her patients. Intially, the hospital
administration tried to cover up for her to keep the hospital's reputation
clean ("The trick is not to leave any marks!"), but this soon proved
inefficient, so Christie was locked in a special treatment room as
punishment for 12 hours. Many in the hospital thought that it would've
been better for her if she had been fired ("Christie would have been
better off if she had been fired"). There were also rumors that the
hospital chief had been making passes at Christie ("The Chief is a
pervert!"), so it's possible that he threatened to fire her if she did not
submit. He may have been the one to devise such a weird punishment.
By the way, we know that Claudia Wolf was originally going to be called
Christie. Perhaps, the mention of a Christie in the hospital was meant to
be hint that Claudia once worked there - out of a desire to help others,
no doubt - but was too short-tempered and sometimes attacked her patients.
Later, after the name was changed, the hospital part of her history was
scrapped, but stayed in the game for some reason.
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4. CHARACTERS OF SILENT HILL4 THE ROOM
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The main character of SH4 is, of course, Walter Sullivan. Basically, the whole
plot revolves around him and his tragic story. So, in this section he will get
the most attention. I'll try to make my analysis as good as it is possible.
4-1. Walter Sullivan. The way of Walter.
Age: 24 (+10 years in his world)
Social Status: Univeristy Student
34 years before the events of SH4 a boy who was to be named Walter Sullivan
was in born in Room 302 of South Ashfield Heights. But this new life brought
joy neither to him, nor to his parents. He wasn't wanted, nobody needed him
("I told you we shouldn't have a baby, didn't I?!"). His parents abandoned him
soon after he was born and left him to die in Room 302 ("Ran off just like
thieves in the night." - Walter writes in his diary), leaving only a few
blurry images in his memory.
Abandoned babies usually died (and Walter had a good chance of not being found
in time, which is probably what his parents wanted - else, they could have
given him to someone). But what does not kill me, makes me stronger, right?
Memories of their first moments in life seem to haunt abandoned children for a
long, long time and Walter was not an exception.
For some time, he lay in Room 302. This apartment was the FIRST THING HE SAW
(many higher animals, including humans, tend to remember the first thing they
see as their mother - this is one of the reasons to Walter's delusions later
in life). Also there was his umbilical cord. He thought that it was the cord
that connected him to his mother (see how the image of his mother as an
APARTMENT forms step by step), but now this cord has been cut ("There once was
a baby and a mother who were connected by a magical cord. But one day the cord
was cut") and he was left in this cruel world, alone ("The baby was left all
alone.").
The newborn boy was supposed to die, Room 302 was supposed to be the first and
the last thing he saw. But, fortunately for him, this did not happen. The
superintendant - Frank Sunderland, found the baby before he died, called an
ambulance and Walter was taken to St.Jerome's hospital (the hospital not far
from SAHapts, where Rachel works and where Mary and Laura will be receiving
treatment), where he was at last saved. But did he really need or want to be
saved, only to be left in this life which brings only suffering? Maybe he
would've preferred to die in the apartment, next to his mother, than to
continue his existance in the horrifying "Hospital World"? As we see in the
game, the hospital made a terrible impression - his mother was somewhere far
away and he was surrounded by evil strangers.
The boy was named Walter Sullivan and soon sent to Silent Hill - to an
orphanage, belonging to the Silent Hill Smile Support Society charity
organization. To the Wish House. This was yet another unfortunate turn in
Walter's destiny - Wish House was run by the "red" sect, the members of which
believed in creating Paradise (and reviving God, of course) through violence
and blood sacrifice, refined in the ritual of the 21 Sacraments and the
Descent of the Holy Mother. The children were taught that the surrounding
world is hostile, that they should fear it (remember the note near the gate?)
and that only in the confines of the sect's temple were they safe. Safe like
in a mother's womb. Also they were taught the "red" scriptures and the sect's
understanding of God and Paradise. Jimmy Stone and George Rosten helped the
children learn to read (so that they could study the holy scriptures) and
write ("I like to write. Teacher told me how."). They told Walter about the
five sacred swords for fighting the souls of the dead, which fear only these
swords, magic medallions and candles. It was in the Wish House he learned
about the 21 Sacraments. When they got older, the children were influenced
more actively - to convince them that the outside world is evil, they were
taken "outside" - to the Water Prison, where Andrew DeSalvo fulfilled his
sadistic fantasies. Thus Walter's life became a "zebra": reading holy
scriptures (no suffering) - sitting in the tower (suffering). Soon he got the
impression that without the scriptures there is only suffering.
Even though "the baby made lots of friends at Wish House, and everyone was
very nice to him. The baby was happy.", Walter was not happy in the orphanage
(how could he? with people like DeSalvo... "He beat me up after it.") - the
cult was using him to reach its own goals and didn't care about him or his
feelings.
Sullivan wanted someone to care about him. Someone like his mother.
-----------------------------
a) Walter Sullivan's Diary.
When he was 6 (i.e. 28 years before the events of SH4) Walter started a diary.
Although, in the game we don't see the diary itself - it's Walter's memories
of what he wrote there, implicated through these writings.
October 1st.
Walter starts a diary. Even though he understands that no one will see it, he
still like to write - he need to express his thoughts and feelings. Maybe,
laying his thoughts on paper he wants to make his link with the world
stronger, hoping that someday somebody will find this diary and read it (the
writings on stones is just that - his desire for his thoughts to live on
forever). He hoped to somebody, who would be interested in his fate. Maybe he
should've become a writer like Harry Mason? %)
October 2nd.
Walter found a friend at last - Bob. But, playing with him, he went outside
the orphanage grounds and wandered into the cemetary. As we know, leaving WH
was prohibited (because there was a danger of children learning that the world
is not as terrible as they are told). When DeSalvo caught them, he beat
Sullivan up.
Note: Bob is not Bob Randolph. He wasn't born then.
October 3rd.
The two boys left the orphanage again. This time they saw the Mother Stone,
which made a strong impression on Walter, though it seemed a little spooky.
Walter was again beaten by DeSalvo.
October 4th.
Looks like Andrew went a bit too far with his beatings - Walter still feels
pain ("My cheek hurts."). His hatred is growing ("I hate him!"), which fits
the cult's way perfectly. But a God born from hate can never create a perfect
Paradise...
October 5th.
Now the beatings continue even though Walter does nothing bad ("I got hit
agein. I didn't do aneething wrong") - of course, DeSalvo is using Walter for
his own pleasure, but there is also something else. "There is another reason:
to fill your heart with hatred. It must be this way. One day you will
understand why." (though Andrew wasn't really a believer). Walter's hatred is
growing rapidly, now he really wants DeSalvo to die ("I wish he wuz ded!").
October 6th.
Reading lessons start in the orphanage. Children, who can't understand the
scriptures are taken to the Water Prison. Just a few days ago another friend
of Walter was locked up there - John. Now Walter is very scared - he is afraid
of being taken there.
October 13th
Walter failed at reading and was locked up for a week (during which he
couldn't write). But today they let him go, though John is still in there.
There are reading lessons tomorrow and Walter is going to try very hard not to
get into the Prison again.
October 14th.
Today Walter read "21 Sacraments for the Descent of the Holy Mother" - it was
hard, but he made it. Today he is happy.
October 15th.
Bob is dead. Walter is sure that DeSalvo murdered him. Probably, the sadist
overdid it and accidentaly killed the kid. Or was Bob used as a sacrifice? In
the Forest World we can find something wrapped up in a cloth and pierced with
metal spikes - somewhat reminiscent of the executions in Toluca Prison. Maybe
Andrew knowingly killed Bob for misbehaving?
October 16th.
Immediately after DeSalvo killed Bob, the orphanage was visited by several
important members of the "yellow" sect. Among them was Dahlia Gillespie, who
has come to meet with her friend Leonard Wolf. Strange - an important visit
just after a murder (sacrifice?). Maybe it's linked somehow? Maybe Dahlia came
to check if the "reds" were able to summon God?
October 17th.
Walter is becoming more and more disappointed in people. He wanted to find a
person, who would be close to him, but no one was there. Not even his loving
mother, whom he wanted so much. But with each passing day he lost hope.
And the Dahlia Gillespie felt sorry for him (right - what good is a cult
member who's losing faith?). She looked through the children's files and told
him a fairy tale. A happy fairy tale, in which Walter still had his mother
waiting for him in Ashfield. In his absence she was asleep and only Walter
could wake her (yep, you got it right - it's a remake of "Snow-white"). To top
it off, she lectured him about Succubi (remember the Succubus card in Walter's
world). And Walter believed her (Dahlia was a VERY persuasive person) - maybe
somewhere deep down he knew, that his parents abandoned him and he was alone,
but he couldn't accept this thought and chose to believe in a fairy tale. Now
he had a goal in his life, he knew that there was someone waiting for him. Now
he was happy - he passed all the challenges and acquired Hope.
October 18th.
The sadistic tortures become more and more widespread in the cult. The
children are taken to the Water Prison even if they didn't do anything wrong
and however good they are at reading. But Walter is strong, he will endure for
God and for his Mother. DeSalvo often comes into his cell on the second floor
and forces him to drink water with leeches - "I had to drink something with
black things in it." (the consequences of Dahlia's teachings about the Incubus
- idiots like DeSalvo thought that by feeding them leeches they could make
them "Incubators"). Sullivan wants him dead ("That guy, the fat one...Next
time I'll stick this triangle sword into that pig!") - this wish found its way
into Walter's subconscious world.
Over time, Walter gets used to confinement. Being unable to see the real
world, he begins to imagine his own world, in which, for example, the tower
stands in the middle of a large body of water, works as a hydroelectric plant
and that it rotates. After a short time he is unable to tell his fantasies and
reality apart.
At the same time he hears rumors among the orphans that there's a morgue next
to the Prison's dining hall and that they serve human meat there ("I heard
there's a death chamber behind the kitchen, and they take meat straight from
the dead people and cook it.").
October 21st.
Now they only let him out on Sundays when he has reading lessons. Walter is
already quite good at reading and understands some of the scriptures better
("I read realy good today too!" - "That kid, Walter... He was really into that
mumbo jumbo... Especially that "Descent of the Holy Mother" business... ") and
when Dahlia learned about it, she decided to encourage the talented child -
she told him that if he can read the 21 Sacraments really good, he will see
his Mother.
October 28th.
Dahlia has kept her word and Walter is let out of the Wish House so that he
can make a trip to Ashfield. This is going to be quite a long way for a
6-year-old kid and his teachers are preparing him for the worst, telling him
again and again how horrible the outside world is. Thus, Walter is already is
already expecting to see a bad place.
The lessons pay off and Walter is scared of the big city around him. He's used
to expect the worst from people and here he is surrounded by them - each of
these people seems very scary and evil to Walter, who associated them with
DeSalvo. He wanted to hide - he would feel more comfortable in his cell, than
in this hostile world, but he had a goal - to find his Mother.
Somehow Sullivan makes his way to SAHapts and finds Room 302, where his mother
slept. But no matter how much he knocked on the door and screamed, Mother did
not let him in. He even tried to offer her gifts ("Mommy, I'll giv you this so
pleez wake up soon.") but still had no luck. Despite this failure, Walter
still knew that she is there and she WANTS TO LET HIM IN, but she is sleeping
and cannot open the door, so he need to wake her up. Let us try to rebuild
Walter's trail of thoughts:
"I need to wake Mommy so that she can let me and I can be with her, protected
from these evil people. But how do I do this? In the fairy tale, the prince
kissed Snow-white and she woke. So, what do I have to do with Mommy? The
important lady said that I can see Mommy if I can read the 21 Sacraments
really well. That means Mommy is somehow linked with "21 Sacraments for the
Descent of the Holy Mother". Alright, what does this book say? It say that to
bring the Holy Mother into this world a ritual must be performed ("Walter
became preoccupied with one particular tract from the cult's Bible.. "By the
Sacraments, the Holy Mother shall appear in the countries of the world" -
Joseph Schreiber). Holy Mother... Mommy... I got it! I need to perform this
ritual - then Mommy will wake up and let me in. Okay, don't forget, Mommy is
in Room 302, Mommy is in Room 302, Mommy is in Room 302" - thus, in Walter's
mind the word "Mommy" became associated with "Holy Mother" (which practically
had no connection whatsoever to Walter's mother) and "Room 302". Over time
"Mommy is in Room 302" transformed into "Mommy is Room 302".
February 10th.
Walter makes a second trop to Ashfield. Again, he didn't see his mother. He
becomes more and more convinced that only the ritual can wake her up. In the
subway he met some "mean girls" (hookers?), which told him something which
scared him ("Some mean girls in the train said mean stuff to me"). Most
probably this "mean stuff" is something about sexuality because in Walter's
subconscious world the subway is associated with "Temptation".
In Wish House, Walter is again beaten up by DeSalvo.
March 17th.
As we can see, Walter doesn't write much now and prefers to keep his feelings
to himself. March 17th is his fourth visit to Ashfield. He still believes that
his mother is in Room 302 - he once again tries to open the door and it opens!
But, to his disappointment, his mother is not there. There was someone renting
Room 302 at that moment ("the apartment where mommy is has a scary guy in
it"). It could've been anyone - Schreiber, a total stranger, even James!
Walter was shocked. Mommy was not in Room 302. That means he is really all
alone. But he couldn't accept this as reality, couldn't think that Dahlia was
lying, and gave in to his delusions: when he realized that mother is not IN
Room 302, he decided that his mother IS Room 302. The apartment is his Mother
(his earliest memories also contributed to this).
Then Mommy is an apartment. She is asleep and the only way to wake her up is
"21 Sacraments for the Descent of the Holy Mother"
-----------------------------
During the following 10 years, Walter is obsessed with his Mother, visiting
Ashfield every week. It is the only meaning of his life (not even life, his
whole existance). Of course, his visits are not welcome by the residents,
especially Richard Braintree, who can't stand children ("Braintree, that
prick. He's always yelling at kids."). He threatens Walter with a gun. A real
GUN!
Walter saw nothing good from other people - DeSalvo beat him up in Wish House,
Braintree almost killed him in SAHapts, in the Garland's Pet Store he turned
over a cage and angered Steve Garland... He hated the world, wanted to hide,
but couldn't ("I want to hide , but i can't hide"). He wanted his mother to
protect him from the outside world and all the evil people. If only he could
come back to Mother's womb and leave the world behind.
"He was still filled with bitterness and resentment towards the rest of the
world.". Note that he doesn't think of his mother as a human being (something
like "All humans are evil, Mommy can't be one of them"). He probably didn't
think HIMSELF a human being - he's a son of an apartment (this is emphasized
by the clearly inhuman moan when you deliver the final strike). People have
rejected him, so he has rejected them. Walter is clearly misanthropic (just
look at how the "people" in his world). In part, his real parents are to blame
(see below).
------------------------------
b) Walter Sullivan and his biological parents.
Walter must have realized that he had real parents - not Room 302, but
ordinary people - they just abandoned him. But this thought made him suffer,
led into despair and he refused to believe it, rejecting the thoughts and
memories of his real parents. But deep in his subconscious, these thoughts
still live, feeding his hatred towards them.
Young Walter, when asked about his parents, says: "Yeah...but I never met
'em... They left South Ashfield Heights right after I was born. But soon I'll
get to see my mom." He KNOWS that they abandoned him, but on the other hand,
he wants to believe that they were not his real parents and that his mother is
Room 302.
c) Memories of his real mother
Walter saw his biological mother only once - right after he was born. Since
then he has been trying to forget her, convince himself that she does not
exist and that he was born of thr apartment, his ideal Mother.
But memories don't disappear easily - thus, Henry Townshend gains Walter's
"lost memories" when he picks up the umbilical cord. For a moment, we can see
Walter's mother. It seems she was a blonde. Yeah, "blondes have more fun"...
Note that the body being dissected by Walter in the beginning of the Hospital
World is that of blonde-haired woman, symbolizing his mother. Also note that
he is cutting into her belly. In fact, he is performing an abortion - his
thoughts that a child would be better off dead than born into this world by
such a mother and be doomed to suffer for the rest of his existance. And THEN
we encounter these horrible "mothers" with holes in their wombs (yes, they're
NOT nurses or patients. They are monsters, embodiments of Walter's hatred for
his mother). I should also point out that in the "spiral" we can female
corpses with their bellies pierced by spears - also a symbol of abortion.
Even though he believes in Dahlia's fairy tale, Walter still acknowledges the
existance of and hates his real mother, which later transforms into a general
fear and loathing of women (that's why the "mean girls" scared him so much).
d) Memories of his real father
We can also find mentions of the father in Walter's world. On the first floor
of SAHapts there a 6 bodies of hanged men. These are the memories of Walter's
father mixed with his hatred for him. Walter wanted to punish him for
abandoning his own son ("Hurry up -- get packed!") and here he is - hanging
here, even though that's just Walter's imagination.
Also, in Walter's sketchbook we can see a drawing of his father - a figure
with a crossed out head. This means that Walter is trying to forget him - he
made an image of him, but then destroyed it to never see him again. Also we
can hear Walter say "Dad , I can't see your face" - he has forgotten his face
completely, erased the memories.
e) Walter Sullivan and Eileen Galvin
When he was 16, Walter met Eileen Galvin, who was a small girl then: "She was
younger than me back then... She looked so happy holding her mother's hand..."
- this meeting made a stong impression on Walter. Eileen was kind to him, even
gave him a doll: " I got this from Miss Galvin a long, long time ago..." -
note the kindness and respect with which he adresses her - "Miss Galvin" -
this little girl became the only person, who did not reject him. She just gave
him a little attention and a doll - not much, it would seem, but Walter was
delighted to finally feel, that he is not alone.
But, unfortunately, the link with the imaginary Mother (and imaginary world)
proved stronger that the link with Eileen (and the real world) - in the
future, Walter will choose the apartment, but will he wholly accept this
decision, or will some part of him protest against sacrificing her?
-------------------------------
Three years later (Walter's 19) Claudia comes to power, the sadist Leonard is
removed from the Holy Mother sect (removed to Brookhaven) and Toby Archbolt is
placed in Wish House. Now children are just brainwashed and are not used to
summon God (they're looking for Alessa to do this - "Have you found Alessa
yet? Send me a report.") and Walter finally leaves the orphanage.
He moves to a nearby town of Pleasant River and enters the university to study
medicine ("All 10 of Sullivan's victims were found with their hearts cut out
and their chest wounds sewn together EXPERTLY with thread." - it seems the 21
Sacraments were not his only area of expertise).
-----------------------------
f) Doctor Walter Sullivan
But why did he choose medicine? Lisa Garland became a nurse to help people,
but Walter had other goals in his mind - maybe he was preparing for the 21
Sacraments all this time and became a surgeon to perform all the gruesome
parts of the ritual as precise as possible? Or maybe he wanted to perform
abortions to "save" children? Or maybe he just got his kicks by dissecting
human bodies?
In any case, Walter wasn't going to save any lives with his knowledge - his
main goal was to "reanimate" Room 302, so that it can take him in.
------------------------------------
For the next 5 years Walter lives in Pleasant River, studies in the university
and is overall an ordinary student ("He didn't look like the type of guy who
would kill kids."). On weekends he works part-time in Albert's Sports store in
Ashfield (which means he still visits Ashfield each week). But, as Schreiber
notes in his diary, "he was still filled with bitterness and resentment
towards the rest of the world." - he couldn't come to terms with this cruel
world ("I guess now that I think of it, he was kinda crazy.") and couldn't let
go of his delusions. Thus, on the 8th day of an unknown month his desire to
unite with Mother takes over and he starts the ritual of 21 Sacraments for the
Descent of the Holy Mother.
---------------------------
g) The meaning of the ritual.
So, why didn't Mother wake up? According to Walter's beliefs, people are the
cause of all the suffering in this world and Mother doesn't want to wake up
into this "bad" world. So, he needs to cleanse her from the taint of the human
world ("He decided to "free" her from the stains and corruption of this world.
At the orphanage, he learned of the "21 Sacraments," the only way to purify
her.").
Walter studied the Silent Hill religion (he even read the "blasphemous"
Crimson Tome of the rival sect) and knew that through the 21 Sacraments (and
the Holy Assumption) he could create a new world ("Through the Ritual of the
Holy Assumption, he built a world.") - maybe in this world Mother would be
more willing to wake up?
This was his last hope - for his Mother, for his childhood dream and for his
life, he decides to perform this ritual.
---------------------------------------
Walter comes to Silent Hill to fetch the White Chrism and Obsidian Goblet from
the Wish House basement and, according to the Victims List, kills Jimmy Stone
- "01121" (Walter chose his victims carefully - see Part 2 14-2. Stone was the
first because he symbolised the "Mage" Tarot card), returns to Pleasant River,
kills Randoplh and Martin, then Garland and Albert in Ashfield, then Rosten,
the Lockanes in Silent Hill and finally William Gregory and Erik Walsh in
Ashfield. He removed the hearts of all his victims, sewed the wounds together
and cut out the numbers and his own name - the name, which was given him by
people ("That's what everybody calls me, but I don't really have a name.").
There was no turning back and with each murder Sullivan got closer and closer
to his Mother, leaving the real world behind.
It took him 10 days to make these sacrifices. The police was shocked. By the
time they gathered their wits, Walter was preparing to perform the Holy
Assumption, but he didn't get that chance. On the 18th day of the same month
he was arrested and put in jail.
Sullivan's consciousness has already shifted into the "misty" stage and he saw
the real world through the lens of his subconscious world - saw his victims,
drawn into this world and probably was horrified: "He's trying to kill me.
He's trying to punish me. The monster... the red devil.". The Red Devil is, of
course, the ghost of Jimmy Stone, whom Walter has seen in his own world - the
victim pursued his murderer, continuing his existance in Walter's world.
Walter spent 4 days in the Silent Hill prison, surrounded by his victims, his
mind submerging into the subconscious world more and more. He couldn't take
this anymore and finally, on the night of the 22th day comitted suicide by
stabbing himself in the neck with a spoon.
Rejected by all, he died a terrible death away from his Mother, to whom he
devoted his whole life. He couldn't perform the Holy Assumption and complete
the 21 Sacraments. He only wanted to be reunited with his mother. Was his
dream still to come true, or was death the end of it all?
Early on the 22th day Walter's body was found by a guard and it was determined
that he died from blood loss. After that it was buried in the Silent Hill
cemetary not far from Wish House. Fans can pay their respects to Walter
Sullivan in SH2, when James finds his grave.
People and the media were shocked by these murders, but mostly by the fact
that the killer didn't even try to hide his name. The case became known as the
Walter Sullivan Case and Walter himself became a hero for all psycho satanic
freaks and fans of SH ("After that, his name became famous all over the
world").
Ironically, nobody wanted him when he was alive, but after dying he became
somewhat of celebrity, whose life was open to the public (remember Schreiber's
research); only after rejecting the world completely he became a part of it.
IMPORTANT NOTE: I never pointed out WHERE Walter was arrested because there is
no info on that whatsoever and the article in SH2 leads us to believe that he
was caught in SH, so I have two theories:
1) Sullivan was caught in Ashfield after he killed 09121 and 10121 and was
taken to Silent Hill to be judged for the murder of the Lockanes (especially
if Ashfield is really that close to Silent Hill - APD just handed him over to
the SHPD) and then he comitted suicide.
2) Sullivan killed Gregory and Walsh on the same day he killed Garland and
Albert, which would imply that he killed people according to their association
with the Tarot card and not in a strict order.
For now, I'm like the first variant more, but the second one is also quite
possible.
-----------------------------------
h) To die twice: Walter Sullivan's self-sacrifice. 11121.
There was no turning back for Walter - with each sacrifice he moved a step
closer to his Mother and further away from the real world, into his
subconscious. "Maybe killing you here is the only way to end this
nightmare...". When he comitted suicide, he just trapped himself in the
eternal prison of his "Otherworld".
Some time after his death, Walter found himself in the cemetary of the Forest
World - he came back to life, just like the Son of God. Did he realize, that
he is dead? The answer can be found in the occult magazine in SH3: "The souls
of those who had died suddenly BY SUICIDE or accident don't realize they're
dead.". That means Walter did not know that he only continues to exist in his
subconscious world (just as Lisa and Harry, if you got the bad ending, didn't
know they were only a part of Alessa's world).
Walter still had his fanatical faith and desire to reunite with his mother and
they brought him back to existance in this twisted world. He decides complete
the self-sacrifice (actually, he has already completed HA: he has "freed
himself from the chains of the flesh and gained the Power of Heaven" - he just
hadn't realized it yet. See Part 2, 14-2). In his world, he gets the hearts
and the items he needed for the ritual and then uses the Subway World to reach
the Building World, from where he finally gets to the Apartment World.
Finally, he will be able to see Mother. He has waited so long for this moment!
The joy is overwhelming, of course he will sacrifice his own life for her, he
will do anything for her. As his desire grows, so does the influence of his
world (i.e. the strength of the psychic energy affecting people) and for a
short time draws in Frank Sunderland and Richard Braintree.
Walter climbs the stairs to the 3rd floor of Soth Ashfield Heights apartments,
carrying the Great Knife (that "heavy tool", which is mentioned in the game
and which we find in the secret room), the Obsidian Goblet ("an old-looking
bowl") and the 10 hears ("and a bag that was dripping blood"). In his world no
one can stop him and he finally enters Room 302. First and foremost he must
lock it with many locks so that nobody can enter and taint his mother with
human presence. Then he enters his secret room and performs the Holy
Assumption next to the "birthing hole" - he uses blood, the Goblet and the
White Chrism, cuts 11121 on his legs and literally sews his body on the black
cross with raven feathers (note that the "thread" looks organic in nature - an
umbilical cord? "magical cord"?). Finally! The Holy Assumption is complete and
now Walter can move on.
i) Division
In the beginning Walter was bound to the real world by his physical body. With
its death his consciousness continued to exist in his subconscious world. But
the division did not end here.
After Walter performs the Holy Assumption his identity is split in two: one is
the 24 year old Walter, and the other is the 6 year old Wally. The "real"
Walter still hangs in the secret room as a mixture of Walter's thoughts about
the ritual and his belief that it is his real body - "The souls of those who
had died suddenly BY SUICIDE or accident don't realize they're dead.". It is
unknown wether either of them knew that this world is not real, but it's
worthy of note that in the end young Walter says "I'm gonna stay with you,
forever.." - is this just a metaphor, or does he really know that they will
exist forever?
Thus, even two deaths did not stop Walter on his way to wake Mother - now he
continues the 21 Sacraments - "Now...he's become nothing more than an inhuman
killing machine...Well, he's dead now...but he's trying to complete...the "21
Sacraments."
j) Young Walter
This is the felicitative side of Walter's personality, which desires happines
and reunion with the Room. Note that Walter doesn't really care about the
Room, only about his own happiness ("Mom , let me in!!") - this is typical
childhood egoism. Also note, that young Walter uses words like "I", "me",
"my". Let's look at some quotes.
Henry's meeting with Wally:
"That's what everybody calls ME, but I don't really have a name." ;
"Yeah...but I never met 'em..." ;
"They left South Ashfield Heights right after I was born." ;
"But soon I'LL get to see MY mom." ;
"Yeah, of course -- right where I was born" ;
"Lots of people tried to stop ME." ;
"I gotta hurry." - during this one small meeting Walter mention HIMSELF 9
times.
Now let's look at Walter's meeting with little Wally:
"I'M going to see MY mom!" ;
"Stay outta MY way!" ;
"But that's MY name..." ;
Also, when we see Wally knocking on the door of Room 302, he yells "Mom, let
ME in!!" and in the 21 Sacraments ending he says:
"Mom , I'M home..." ;
"I won't let anyone get in MY way..." ;
"I'M gonna stay with you, forever......"
So, as we can see, his egoism is overwhelming. It's hard to blame a 6 year old
child for this - he wants happiness, of which he was stripped at birth (and it
was NOT his fault at all). His happiness is in finding a loving Mother, who
would care about him and protect him from the evil world. In other words -
Walter just wants peace.
Also interesting is the fact that Walter's memory split with his personality -
young Walter doesn't know anything about the 21 Sacraments ("And what are the
"21 Sacraments"?") but he remembers the basic scriptures of the cult ("It said
in the Scriptures that I'll be with her.").
k) Adult Walter
This is the destructive, yet altruistic side of Walter's personality - his
only reason to exist is the completion of the 21 Sacraments and the awakening
of the beloved Room, i.e. young Walter's happiness ("Hey there, little
Walter... Just a little longer now... ") - we see that adult Walter exists not
for himself, but for his young "half" (he says "I" only three times in the
course of the game - feel the difference!).
This is quite sad - to exist only for the sake of an imaginary world,
imaginary apartment, a childhood hope - but he has no other reason to exist
(reminds you of Maria, doesn't he?). Even sadder is the fact that he has no
future - he lives only to wake Mother and as soon as the 21 Sacraments are
complete and Wally attains his happiness, Walter's reason for existance will
be gone and he will disappear. That means that even completing the ritual
won't make him happy and even young Walter won't say a word of gratitude to
him, oblivious to his "brother"'s sacrifice. But Walter has already accepted
his fate - he must play his role in this, whatever it takes... he will
sacrifice himself and everybody else... for Mother, for a childhood dream.
Let's take a look at Walter in the 21 Sacraments ending. He is standing
against the wall, hands and head down - it seems as if he is asleep. Is he...
dead? After Mother's awakening he has no reason to exist. He has done all he
could - gave life to the Room, happiness to Wally. And got nothing in return.
There is only one thing left for him to do for his "brother" - leave Room 302
forever. And for little Wally he does, drowning into oblivion.
Here's a lullaby to close your eyes...Goodbye...
He has finally found the peace he longed for.
l) Physical Analysis
Let's start with the face. Look at his eyes, it seems that he is look
somewhere far away, not noticing anything\anybody around here (this is
especially visible in the final cutscene before the boss fight). This could
mean that he is a very distant person, and also means thoughtfullnes and\or
persistance.
An interesting point is his hair: according to the Victims List Sullivan is
100% blond, but in his world his hair is a much darker color. Why? As we
recall, his mother was a blonde (which means he inherited the hair color from
her) and Walter, believing in the Room and hating his real mother, tried his
best to erase her image and the fact that he is her son from his head. Thus,
the change of this color comes from his delusions.
Now let's take a look at Walter's long hair. Psychologists say that long
haired people are usually easy to hurt and\or are very persistant. That, or
Walter was a metallist (yeah, I can already imagine Walter shaking his head to
something like Cradle of Filth %)) ). Or maybe he just couldn't afford going
to a hairdresser...
Now the clothing. What does Walter wear? A coat. When do people wear coats?
When they're cold. In this case, the cloak is a symbol of Walter's loneliness,
or the coldness of his hear. Although, it could also symbolize his wish to not
"taint himself" with human blood. It is somewhat reminiscent of Claudia's
clothes, so the coat could also have some religious significance.
Next let us look at the color of the coat. It's dark blue. What is the meaning
of blue color?
-Blue is "deep". It never ends, draws you inside (think, think!). The meaning
of color is often underestimated. It creates a good atmosphere for
philosophical reflecting on life, searching for truth and reason... It doesn't
give any answers, though, but it can create a very melancholic mood and even a
kind of weakness. It provides not sensual, but spiritual experiences. Blue is
the color of persistance, loyalty, a solemn color.
-In many myth blue is a color of the divine, a mysterious color.
-Blue can symbolize LOSS OF REALITY, DREAMING, FANATISM - in one way or
another it means escaping reality. Fictional mages and sorcerers are often
clothed in blue, so it's not suprising that the "conjurer" in SH4 wears a blue
coat.
-Dark blue is the color of dreams ("Oh, man...What a dream... "). It is very
deep and can be depressing, summoning uneasiness, solemnity, sadness and
despair.
-Blue can create a physical desire to rest.
Professional psychologists often use a theory of "colored children", which
helps to determine a child's personality according to his or her favorite
color.
-Children that like blue are usually calm and like to do things thoroughly,
without haste
-These children think things through. They tend to be selfless because they
get more pleasure from giving than receiving. Appropriately, adult Walter
works to complete the ritual not for himself, but for Mother and Wally.
-Often children choose blue not because they are calm and peaceful, but
because they need peace at the given moment. Remember Walter's wish for peace.
-"Blue" children have a RICH INNER WORLD (remember SH4), are sensual and
artistic. They are also easily give in to outside influence and suggestions
(Dahlia's fairy tale)
As we can see, blue color is THE color for Walter Sullivan.
Walter's coat is stained with blood - this can have different meanings. On one
hand we have the blood on his victims, but on the other hand, if you look
carefully, you'll notice that most of the blood is on the upper part of the
coat, near his neck. And Walter pierced his neck with a spoon, so this could
be HIS blood. Summing it up, the coat means "despair and desire of peace that
lead to escape from reality through death", where "death" would mean either
his sacrifices, or his suicide.
m) Good Walter, bad Walter. Which one of the Walters is good and which one is
bad?
A good question, that has been discussed among the fans for a long time.
According to most fans, young Walter is the good guy. Let's take a closer look.
On one hand, Wally is quite an egoist and desires only HIS OWN happiness, but
on the other hand, let's remember Vincent's words: "I m just looking out for
myself. Everyone does it.". So, young Walter acts quite ordinarily and thus
his link with reality is a bit stronger than that of the "altruistic" Walter.
Accordingly, Wally wants his Mother to wake, but his connection to the real
creates self-contradiction and he saves the only close HUMAN - Eileen Galvin.
Unlike Wally, adult Walter has distanced himself from the world so much that
he would kill anyone to wake Mother - even Eileen (although even he has doubts
- remember the conversation on the stairwell). Schreiber writes "Now...he's
become nothing more than an inhuman killing machine...". But is this really
so? Walter may have become a killer, he may not think of himself as a human
being anymore, but all he does he does not for himself - maybe "love" is not
the most appropriate word, but he really does love the Room and Wally and is
willing to sacrifice anything and anyone to make them happy.
"A game of turning white to black and black to white..."
Thus we come to the conclusion that the characters of the Silent Hill series
(in this case Walter and Wally) are too complex and rich too put into the
traditional bounds of "good" and "bad" (though Walter could be described as
"badass" %) - translator's note).
n) The secret meaning of the "Killing Machine".
In the final confrontation the player can get a clear look at the "Killing
Machine". It was "invented" by Walter when he was 6. Look at the child's
drawing near Room 105 - we see that a man was thrown into this machine and
chopped into pieces. This means that the Killing Machine was born from
Walter's hatred for people and its main purpose is to... well, kill. These
fantasies have found their place in his subconscious world - will Eileen be
chopped up, or does Sullivan still doubt his own decision and she can escape
the terrible fate?
Now let's take a closer look at the machine itself: several huge spiked rings
spin around a massive metallic core like pendulums. Anybody who approaches
this contraption probably won't live to regret this. In actuality, the Killing
Machine symbolizes Walter, who, after being rejected by the world, surrounded
himself with similar "spikes", so that no one could approach him and cause him
pain. And inside this Killing Machine the child (the core) can finally hide.
But to make it work, the Machine needs to be placed in a pool of blood. That
means that the Machine works as a sort of hydroelectric plant. Now, I think,
the meaning of the Killing Machine is made obvious.
o) Walter Sullivan and the Umbilical Cord.
One of the strongest of Walter's memories is that of the umbilical cord. He
thought that it was that very "magic cord" that linked him to the Room, but at
one point was cut, parting him with his mother ("There once was a baby and a
mother who were connected by a magical cord. But one day the cord was cut, and
the mother went to sleep. The baby was left all alone.") - thus, on one hand
the child should hate the cord, but on the other hand it is a symbol of being
close to Mother.
The real cord was taken by Frank Sunderland, but the memories of the "magical
cord" continued to live in Walter's mind - it even came to life in his
subconscious world!
It resembles a disgusting worm ("greedy worm"), probably because Walter blames
the separation from Mother on the stupid Cord. But it is not a monster and
never threatens Sullivan, Henry or Eileen (a non-dangerous monster? Hmmm... I
swear there was something like that in SH3...).
The Umbilical Cord used to link Mother with her child, so for Walter it is a
symbol of his upcoming reunion, a symbol of closeness to the Room. Hey!
Haven't we heard it before? Let's see:
-Valtiel - a symbol of closeness to God, non-aggressive. God as the primary
feeling\desire.
-Umbilical Cord - a symbol of closeness to Mother, non-aggressive. Reunion
with Mother as Walter's primary desire.
So, the Greedy Worm is the "Valtiel" of Walter's subconscious world.
p) The fetus.
Obviously you've noticed the giant monstrous creature in the final battle. The
location of the final confrontation is the "Mother's womb" and the creature,
that is literally CONNECTED to it is the Walter-fetus, the God of Walter's
subconscious world and the embodiment of his strongest desire, on the
psychoenergy of which this whole world is built - the desire to be reunited
with his loving Mother. Will his wish come true? And will it make him happy?
------------------------
If you still think that the creature is Walter's Mother, then I'm going to
burst your bubble now:
-When you hit WALTER, the Fetus feels pain.
-The complexion of the God is obviously male.
-Quoting the Crimson Tome: "you must bury part of the Conjurer's mother's
flesh within the CONJURER'S TRUE BODY." - in WALTER's body.
------------------------
Note: although the Fetus is anthropomorphic, there is something inhuman in its
appearance and behaviour, something demonic, that instills horror (also
remember the inhuman moan). This is the result of Walter believing himself to
be a child of an apartment. Also, according to the Crimson Tome the fetus is
Walter's TRUE BODY, i.e. his most true and strongest consciousness.
q) Idea analysis
The whole story of Walter Sullivan spins around "un-existance": a child that
spent his whole childhood in "un-freedom", rejects the world. And what happens
when he finally gains freedom? He was unprepared for the world and protecting
himself from it became his main wish - he cannot rejoin the world and as a
result he locks himself in a cage of his own making. He dreamt of the Room, of
eternal peace, gained with leaving the world behind and locking himself inside
his own prison ("Mom! Let me in!"). That would seem against human nature and
are signs of a self-destructive attitude (a.k.a. Thanatos), but further in the
game we realize that it is just a mind's way of gaining stability. A person
who has grown used to confinement (he was TAUGHT that - we can't put down the
society's role in the development of this problem) cannot accept freedom in
any way because it turns their world and system of values upside down. Thus,
Walter continues to seek his "un-freedom" (of course, "freedom" and
"un-freedom" are extremely relative terms, but I think you understand the
difference) and, having found the Room, can no longer accept reality, because
it would destroy everything he believes in and kept believing in his Mother
until the very end.
We see that when the much needed stability, associated with "un-freedom", is
unreachable (when there is "un-satisfaction" in the desire for stability), the
desire only gets stronger and is transformed into a desire of "un-existance":
in a sense, Walter has been enchanted by his "un-existance" for all his life
(even by his own death - here you have suicidal tendencies). People, obsessed
with an idea of leaving this world usually imagine the moment of their death,
but in Walter's case the "un-existance" is quite different - coupled with
infantilism and his nostalgic wish to go back to the past ("I want to go back
to that time... Things were so good then..") he associated it with the time
before he was born, where he "un-existed" in this world. Thus, death has been
replaced by "being born back", but despite the seeming difference between
those two wishes it's still easy to see that this is just a different
realization of suicidal tendencies, developed from Walter's unwillingness to
accept the fact, that his dreams are suicidal in nature.
And so, the natural desire of stability, which is in itself not
self-destructive, when unsatisfied, becomes extremely self-destructive. If
this desire becomes too strong it grows into a wish to stop existing, leave
reality and turn to "un-existance". There's a distinct logical link in Walter
Sullivan's image - "Peace=un-existance".
Actually, Walter's self-destructive ideas were associated with his definition
and image of his Mother (who, according to his views, could be reached through
"un-existance") and became the main idea of his life, leading to tragic
consequences in the end. Even when he is put into the Water
Prison("un-freedom") he still wanted to attain oblivion, peace and finally
finds himself trapped in a world of his delusions. And again this is not
enough for him - he still wants "un-existance", on the concept of which his
whole world is built. Thus, he is doomed to exist forever in this unending
circle.
Of great importance is the fact that in his world Walter kills himself in Room
302 (desire of peace+subconscious desire of "un-existance"\death+association
of peace with Mother+association of Mother with the Room=suicide in the Room).
Also interesting is the fact that Walter is, in a sense, giving his Mother
back the life she gave him. By sacrificing himself, he return Mother to life
in a different world, where she may be happy.
Completely different from Walter is Henry, who fights and goes at lenghts to
get out of Sullivan's prison, but, ironically, every time he escapes, he gets
trapped in another cage and this desire for freedom and existance finally
brings him to the same womb as Walter. Before the final fight, when these two
different people finally meet face to face we can see, that they have much
more in common than we may have imagined.
r) Victims List Info
Name: Walter Sullivan
Occupation: Unknown (though it is hinted that he worked in the sports store in
Ashfield)
Gender\Special Info: middle aged white male (died at 24)
Height\Weight: 190 cm, 84 kg
Hobbies: Unknown (in the game we find out that he's interested in religion and
medicine)
Other: Unknown
Motive: Assumption
Method: Suicide by stabbing himself in the neck with a spoon.
Place: Cell of Silent Hill Prison
Item left: Spoon
s) Miscellaneous info
Quote (Wally): "Mom! Let me in!"
Quote (Walter): "Hey there, little Walter... Just a little longer now..."
Metaphor: Child of delusions
Symbol: Umbilical Cord
Music: Room of Angel, Melancholy Requiem, Resting Comfortably, Confinement
Additional sources of info:
Mishima Yukio - "Newspaper"
Murakami Ryu - "Coin Locker Babies"
I am sure you will find a lot of similarities with SH4 in these books. They
may help you get a better look and feel of Walter's world.
4-2. Henry Townshend, the way of Henry.
Age: unknown, probably around 30
---------------------------------------------------
a) Victims List info:
Victim 21/21
Name: Henry Townshend
Occupation: Unknown
Gender\features: White male
Height\Weight: 185 cm, 85 kg.
Hobbies: Photography, travelling.
Other: Visited Silent Hill.
Motive: Receiver of Wisdom
Method: Unsuccessful?\Unknown
Place: Unknown ("Otherworld" would be suiting)
Item left: Unknown (Well, Room 302 is left after Henry - that is his item)
---------------------------------------------------
Before the events of Silent Hill 4 Henry was an open person: he was interested
in photography, loved to travel, visited Silent Hill numerous times ("I went
sightseeing there a few years ago" - "I visited Silent Hill a lot of times
when I was that age")... So, he could just enjoy his life and go on as a happy
person (he has a happy smile on his childhood photo). But 2 years ago
something strange happened. Something changed in Townshend's soul.
Henry decided to rent an apartment and, strangely enough, he chose South
Ashfield Heights. As he remembers: "I was immediately attracted by the outside
of the building, as well as the view from the window here. When I moved here
two years ago, I almost felt like I was being drawn here". Indeed, it was like
some unseen force lured him to one apartment - apartment 302, which was the
place, where all hopes and dreams of a man named Walter Sullivan lay.
--------------------------------------------------------------
b) Why did Henry choose Room 302?
Answer: Room 302 was the place, where Walter's feelings and memories continued
to exist unseen in an endless cycle of his subconscious world (it was the
center of his psychic energies. See Part I).
What were Walter's feelings towards the apartment? Love. So, when Henry was
near SAHapts, he became influenced by Walter's energies and he also became
attracted to this apartment.
--------------------------------------------------------------
A lot in his life has change since he moved. He started a NEW life (yes, "new
life" in the SH4 intro is not just pretty words). The life, which Walter
dreamt of... Or was it life anyway? Let's look at Henry's life during these
two years.
During these two years living in SAHapts Henry never met his neighbors. Only
Eileen knows him a little ("I know his name and face, but that's about it."),
while, for example, Richard Braintree, does not know him at all ("he guy who
lives here... What's he like, anyway?"). Seems like Henry just closed himself
off from the world, locking himself in Room 302 (wasn't that what Sullivan
wanted?). Left the world, like a hermit.
The superintendant of SAHapts - Frank Sunderland - was the only man in SH4,
who knew Henry at all. But, as we see, their friendship did not last long -
Frank wanted to establish friendly relations with Henry and, when he learned
about his hobby, gave him a photo ("I got this photo from Frank Sunderland,
the super here at South Ashfield Heights." - note, that Henry doesn't say "I
got this photo from my friend Frank...", but only "I got this photo from Frank
Sunderland" - a formal way of adressing means that they weren't really close).
But Henry never supported this relationshiop, probably keeping their
conversations at the basic "Hello-Hello" level.
And now let's look at Henry's comments. He says that several years ago he went
to Silent Hill, but he hardly ever says anything about his two years in
SAHapts. All his comments about the apartment could be boiled down to one
sentence: "Everything's as it was when I moved. I didn't change anything."
Henry brought books, but didn't read a single one. His boots were bought in
Silent Hill and he never changed them. A reasonable question - how long has he
been walking around wearing those? And has he been walking around at all?
Maybe he just doesn't need new boots because he only leaves the Room when he
really needs to?
If, for example, he dies, will there be something left to prove that he ever
lived those two years? What would he leave? A child? Art? Memories? Nothing.
Even his neighbor next door does not remember his face.
So, what was Henry's life like during these two years? I think the answer is
obvious now...
These were two years of "un-existance", two years, that passed momentarily, a
series of gray, monotonic, useless days, blurring together and leaving no
memories...
---------------------------------------------------------
c) What was Henry's occupation?
Answer: What's Henry's job? Oooh! It's a great mystery - even the Victims List
only mentions that he was interested in photography and travelling, but his
occupation is unknown. Makes you think, doesn't it? Maybe he doesn't work at
all? Look at the place where he lives! A wealthy man wouldn't live in a cheap
motel with bloody handprints and meat on the walls %)
We know, that Henry doesn't GO to work (else, Richard Braintree would know
him), and, looking at his complexion, it becomes obvious that his work does
not require physical exertion. Thus, even if he has a job, it involves art and
allows him not to leave the Room. Now, let's take a quick peek at Henry's
desk. A pen, a ruler, several sketchbooks and a few big tomes, that look like
dictionaries. Maybe Henry's a writer? Works in some magazine and just sends
them his new works.
Also, there are some brochures there - one with a photo of a woman, another -
an empty room. So, maybe he creates small brochures, like Roger Widmark in
SH2\3?
In any case, we can only guess here. I think Konami leaves the player to think
this up for himself - without official info any version is right.
d) Appearance analysis.
Henry's looks are simple - a shirt, jeans and boots. Looks like Henry doesn't
care much about fashion or how he looks. Why look after that anyway if you
know, that in your loneliness no one will be here to notice that? Messy hair
is a feature of an artful person (heh, just watch "Secret window, secret
garden" and note the main character's hair style - you'll see what I'm talking
about). Also, it looks like Henry hasn't shaved in quite a while. Of course,
in a state of "un-existance" one quickly comes to a state of "un-shaving" %)
Henry's colors are white and light blue. Accordingly, these are usually
regarded as colors of purity (or death - in Asian cultures). White has a
meaning in many religions (color of the final sacrifice?). Blue means
everything associated with peace - relaxation, sleep, descent into dreams,
escape from reality etc. - fits Townshend neatly.
By the way, note how Henry looks so much like young Walter - hair style,
facial features... Very similar. It is not coincidental - I will adress this
question a few paragraphs later.
e) What is Henry's typical day like?
Answer: "Oblomov-style". No, seriously. If we look at the Room, there are...
center-points. The TV - seems like Henry spent a lot of time watching it. The
second one is the most important - it is the bed. Here's a rough picture of
Henry's day: he woke up, spent some time procrastinating in bed, got up,
walked to his couch, watched TV. He may have done some work inbetween. Work,
and drinking - note the bottle of wine in the fridge. Sometimes he just spent
time thinking about Silent Hill.
Well, there you have it. A very active lifestyle.
f) Why doesn't Henry speak much?
Answer: Yeah, Henry's a very quiet person (unlike, for example, Heather, who
talked about everything she saw). The reason why he doesn't say anything about
himself we have already uncovered (what can a man, who spent the last two
years in an apartment tell about himself?). Let's see: Henry is living away
from everyone, closed to people. Does he even need words? Words are needed to
transfer information to other people. Who did Henry communicate with? Nobody.
He could only talk to himself, which would mean just thinking aloud.
g) The meaning of the globe
Note the globe in Henry's room. This is a sign of his past interest in
travelling... Before his change, Henry wanted to see the world, visit
different countries and make photographs of the places he visited to remember.
But now, everything is different. The wish to see the world gave place for the
wish to hide from it in the apartment, and the wish to make good memories (and
leave a memory of himself) was replaced with the wish to drown into a dream
and leave this world behind.
Thus one system of values replaced another. Henry was more and more influenced
by the spirit of the Room, Walter's feelings. But he was happy. "Henry was
happy and enjoying his new life. One other thing... He couldn't leave Room
302... "
h) What does the message on the door mean?
"Don't go out. Walter."
Answer: Remember the notice in the Wish House? "The Outside is filled with
dangerous things. If someone goes Outside without an adult's permission, the
Master is sad." That's just it. This thought, being one of Walter's strongest,
manifests itself in his world and Henry sees it when he is drawn deeper and
deeper into Walter's world. Thus, "Don't go out" became somewhat of Henry's
motto. He "lived" with it for the past two years and was happy. But when he
sees his lifestyle from a different angle (Walter's angle, horribly distorted
and scary), when he sees his "motto" written on the door, Townshend says only
"What the hell...?"
Indeed, "What the hell...?". Without leaving this "hell", not going out of
this "hell", Henry lived (lived?) happily.
i) Why does Henry talk when he knows he's alone in the apartment?
Answer: We often hear Henry talk to himself ("Oh, man... What a dream... "),
especially in the beginning of the game. Question is - why does he do that?
Nobody can hear him, nobody hears his yells for help, nor his screams of
despair... Now Henry Townshend is left in complete loneliness and complete
silence, in the Room of absolute peace. In the Room of complete "un-existance".
This loneliness is exactly the reason why Henry speaks to himself so much. In
the absence of real people, Townshend tries talks with an imagined person to
create at least a shade of an illusion of life. Left in complete silence, he
tries to break it, fill the emptiness. But can he fill his empty soul alone?
Can oppose Walter's crushing desire for peace?
--------------------------------------------------------
Henry is more and more influenced by Walter's feelings, desires, dreams,
thoughts, his world... And one of these gray and uneventful days Henry found
himself inside Walter's horrible world - this was when he started seeing the
nightmares.
Five days ago Henry realized, that his life has stopped (at 10:06) - outside,
life goes on, but for him it has come to a grinding halt, he is completely cut
off from the world - neither the TV, nor the phone work. Even the windows
can't be open or broken. And nobody would know, that his world has suddenly
turned inside out, nobody will even know if Henry dies in here. What's even
more strange - the door was locked from the inside.
Could there be someone INSIDE Room 302 other than Henry?
He says, that "Five days ago...My whole world has suddenly turned insane...".
But was it really 5 days? No. It was two years ago when Henry locked himself
away in his apartment, closing life off.
The Room is just a sad metaphor of his "happy" life in the past two years and
only after seeing it from a Walter's point of view, Henry starts to realize,
what has happened two years ago.
All this time, he could've just opened the door and walked outside, to freedom
- yet he refused this freedom and stayed in the Room, immersing himself in
"un-existance". And only when he is faced with a risk of never seeing freedom
again, Henry understands his true nature - finds his will to "be". This is how
people are: we only know the value of something when we lose it (Yeah, it's
too late to give up smoking if you already have... well, you get it. Just like
James - when Mary was healthy, he cared little about her - spent time in bars
etc. But she dies - and NOW all his world is centered around her!).
Accordingly, Henry recognizes his will to live, he wants to be with people.
But it is too late... Soon, he won't even be able to look at others through
his window, completely drowning in Walter's dark and lifeless "Paradise".
Henry did not find himself in time, couldn't escape Walter's influence in
time. "But now it's over... It's over... " The door leading to freedom is
forever closed.
In SH4 we first see Henry at the beginning of this realization - he's just
starting to realize, that he cannot continue this meaningless existance in a
sealed, isolated world, that he wants to hear somebody's voice again (the
scene with the phone), that he wants to see a human face again (Henry watching
Eileen through the peephole), that he wants to get out of the Room and return
to the human world. This "freedom" becomes the main goal of the former hermit,
it is what drives him and to reach this goal, Henry will do anything.
------------------------------
j) Scene with the phone
Five days of nightmares and realizing his own loneliness... Henry wanted to
hear another's voice so much... and, surprisingly, he receives a phone call!
But, ironically, Henry can't ask the caller to call the police, to free him...
Instead, he just says "Hello...?", hoping that the call is not just another
dream and that he will really hear a voice again. And how strange it is to
hear someone ask Henry for help. Moreover, the cord is cut. Just like the
umbilical cord was cut, severing Walter's connection to his Mother, the phone
cord is cut, severing Henry's connection to the world. This should've prompted
Henry to doubt his sanity. Maybe he wanted to hear a voice so much, that his
mind just made up this phone call? The answer, as always, lies in the world of
Walter Sullivan.
k) Henry's "voyerism".
What makes Henry watch his neighbor? What makes him wait impatiently for the
moment to see her? Before the realization of his confinement, he could've just
walked out of the Room, approach her and watch her all he wanted, talk to her,
give her flowers, ask her out on a date... But it never occured to him before
(or maybe it did, but he couldn't get himself to leave the peaceful world of
the Room?). And only now he finaly sees what he is losing. He wants to see
another living person just one more time (maybe the last time in his life...
). This "voyerism" gives double the pleasure, because seeing a human being
creates a hope of escape from this prison (yeah, and watching a girl is nice
in itself %) )
But, this also has a much deeper subtext. Henry realizes that he does not
live, can not live - but he WANTS to, despite all that. Thus, he tries to
compensate for his own "lifelessness" by watching the life of another.
Watching Eileen, he feels that he is living her life alongside her and is more
worried about her life than his own (remember the "Eileen's death" ending -
the saddest of all). And so, Henry begins to live the lives of others,
replacing his empty life with theirs. Just like a crazy soap opera fan %). A
sad picture, but that is all he can do.
------------------------------------
Oh, how Henry wants to escape his prison... And on the sixth day he finds a
HOLE in his bathroom. Impossible, such a HOLE cannot exist, there are no such
things in the world - the world of humans... But it is his chance - there's a
HOLE in his cell, there is Hope for him, Hope to escape confinement.
Note that when he sees the HOLE, Henry can't believe his eyes - he is shocked:
"What the hell?!". Maybe that is when he begins to doubt his own sanity? But
right after that he asks: "S-Somebody in there?" - there is doubt and fear in
his voice, but alongside them there is... hope. Henry wants to see somebody in
the HOLE, but we only see darkness. Darkness and void of the human soul
(yes-yes, "From the Darkness and Void, bring forth Gloom").
The HOLE's existance is unexplainable, it is against all the rules, it
contradicts common sense! But the HOLE is Henry's last and only Hope. If he
doesn't give in to this Hope, he can only embrace Despair and die, like
Schreiber did. And Henry makes his choice: "I wonder if I can get out this
way...?". The desire to live makes him try his last chance. Henry delves into
the HOLE...
-----------------------
l) Scene with the HOLE.
This scene is one of the most symbolic moments of SH4 and has at least three
meanings - it will be explained fully in the analysis of Silent Hill 4. For
now, let us look at it from Henry's side.
Armed only with his Hope [the bottle of wine and steel pipe don't count just
because I said so! - translator's note], Henry crawls into the HOLE - does he
believe that it leads somewhere? Wants to believe, yes, but his rationality
opposes it.
So, what does he see there? A weak light at the end of the tunnel - the light
of Hope. At first it is very weak, but as Henry gets closer to it, it gets
stronger and stronger. It's not only a representation of some sort of goal,
but also of Henry's Hope. Where will this blind Hope lead him?
-------------------------
Where does this desire to escape the Room lead Henry Townshend? To the outside
world, the scare outside world... of Walter Sullivan. From one cell right into
another - a world of an endless dream, an endless delusion, filled with the
twisted and disfigured spirits of Walter's victims and manifestations of his
fears. Maybe Henry should've take his advice and stayed in the Room? But no,
Henry can't stand it anymore. Escpecially towards the ending. He is willing to
walk through Walter's fears, to fight his desire for "un-existance" with his
desire for life, for freedom, for all that Henry had and lost.
-------------------------
m) Henry and the victims
At last Henry meets other people. People, drawn into the world of Walter
Sullivan. Can he even be sure that these are real people? It may be just his
dream... "It's just...a dream, right...?". What can a man, who has lost the
very ground under his feet, be sure of?
Nevertheless, Henry finally finds a person. Finds something, which he refused
himself for the past two years and which is what he want so much now. Notice
how through the course of the game Townshend displays disturbing, almost
inhuman altruism: he always tries to help the victims, tries to save them,
values their lives higher than his own... all for nothing. His Hope is
crumbling before his eyes - as soon as he finds love, it is destroyed. Little
by little, Hope gives place for despair and helplessness...
Note that the "story" of each world is built upon Walter's relationship with
the victim. Henry is just an observer. No matter how hard he tries, no matter
how much blood he spill, he can't change anything. He is unneeded, just as
Walter was in our world...
n) Self-preservation instinct.
Remember that episode of SH2 when James race with Maria towards the elevator
to save ONLY HIS OWN @$$? Well, you won't see anything like that in SH4.
It seems that Henry's self-preservation instinct has been replaced with
hyper-altruism (he even GRABS an electric chair, trying to save Braintree!).
What is it? A typical Hollywood-style SuperHero? Or is there something more
deep hidden in his character?
Let's look at his first encounter with the dogs. Henry is disturbed, he can't
believe his eyes, but we don't see any fear on his face. We never EVER see him
fear for his own life - "I wonder if Eileen is Okay" , "Eileen... Are you
still alive...? Eileen... ". He doesn't scream "Ahhh! Monsters! Help!". What
could that mean? Could that mean that he understands, that no one can help him
here? Probably not. Or does he think "It's okay...it's just a dream..." and
see the dogs as just illusions? Nope. Later he tell Eileen "if you get killed
here... Then you die in the real world too...". Yet, he protects her, risking
his own life. Yeah, that just it. What does Henry risk protecting the victims?
His own life. What life? The one he led for the last two years? Was it life at
all? A difficult question. But now, Henry would rather die, that continue this
confined existance.
p) Lost Memories
What did Henry's "life" in the past 2 years consist of? Mostly of memories
about the days spent in Silent Hill. He stayed in the past, going deeper and
deeper into the "un-existance". His interest in photography only puts emphasis
on how much he values his past. But look at how his comments change through
the course of the game. Henry's memories are being replaced by Joseph's (and
Walter's too) - Henry is losing what he values most and now has no past and no
future... The new owner of Room 302 is doomed to become a "blank paper" for
Walter's "wisdom" and dissolve in Sullivan's subconscious world.
q) Henry's influence on Walter's world.
Note how each victim (and other visitors of Walter's world) bring some feeling
and\or memory of theirs into Walter's world (Schreiber's diaries, Cynthia's
make-up and the other "items left behind", Frank Sunderland's diary, Mike's
diary etc.). But what is Henry's "contribution"? Some fans think that it is
the Toluca Lake, insisting that it is the representation of Henry's memories.
So, what did Henry bring into Walter's world? Or was he so "blank", that there
was no image or memory to manifest? Wrong. Room 302 is one big memory of
Henry's. Remember the 21 Sacraments ending - the Room is not an image from
Walter's or Joseph's mind. It is Henry's memory of his last living place,
still existing in Walter's world.
So, in the context of the "21 Sacraments" ending, the memory of the Room was
the strongest in Henry's mind, because in there he spent 2 "happy" years of
"un-existance".
r) Henry as the 21st victim.
As we know, the victims are associated with Tarot cards. The 21st card is "The
World", sometimes also known as "The Crown of Mages". It is a "positive" card,
that symbolises Wisdom, Love, prevailing over one's weakness etc. Accordingly,
Townshend is full of this Wisdom\Love\Altruism stuff - so full that it just
gets over the edge. That's why he became the 21st. Also, all the way we see
him fighting his main weakness - his attachment to the Room. Also, the meaning
of victim 21121 is reflected in the Halo of the Sun ( see Part 2-16).
s) Henry as the Receiver of Wisdom.
It is important to note, that in Walter Sullivan's mind the Receiver of Wisdom
was strongly associated with the next owner of the apartment (his "Mother")
after the Giver of Wisdom ("Whoever lives here after me... You'll be the 21st,
the last of the sacrifices..." - Joseph Schreiber). This choice stems from the
strange link between the Mother and the apartment in Walter's world. If try to
compare victims 15121 and 21121, we see that "Wisdom" was associated with
"Mother", which is in turn associated with "Room" in Walter's sick mind. Thus,
the next resident of Room 302 is the "Receiver of apartment"="Receiver of
Wisdom" and brings this "wisdom" into Walter's world in the form of his
memories about the apartment. The memories merge with Walter's world - voila,
Wally is free to reunite with his mom! %)
But, there are other hidden meanings to this.
Firstly, Schreiber, the Giver of Wisdom, researches Sullivan's personality and
"gives" this "wisdom" to Henry, the Receiver of Wisdom, in the form of his
letters (though Walter never expected him to do that).
Secondly, Schreiber's theme was Despair - so, the wisdom he is supposed to
give could be this very Despair? And Henry was supposed to receive Despair
through reading Joseph's diary and seeing all his hopes fall before his eyes.
Last but not least, something Walter never predicted and could not predict
anyways. Only by seeing Walter's world, Henry looks at his life from a
different angle - from Walter's angle. Henry's discovery of his real "self" is
triggered by Walter's influence ("Into the Depths of Self Discovery"). Only
when faced with losing freedom forever, he realizes how terrible it would be
to be left without others' attention and how dear he holds the world he risks
to lose now. Only in Walter's world he understands this. But isn't it too
late? Can this realization change his dark fate?
The answer to this question is the ending you get.
t) Comparative analysis of Walter and Henry
I think everyone has noticed, that Walter and Henry are similar in several
ways - it's even reflected in their appearance (Henry and young Walter). Let's
make a comparative analysis:
---Both are impressionable and artistic.
---Walter used to be an explorer - he went out of the orphanage to see the
outside world even though he knew he would get beaten, but under the cult's
influence he started to close off from the world. Finally, he created a prison
for himself.
---Henry was also a very open person, loved to travel. But when he gets under
the influence of Walter's world, he began to change and also closed off.
---As a result, both Walter and Henry arrive at the idea of "peace in the
Room". This similarity is what allows Henry to enter Walter's world so easily.
---Both are lonely. Both can't live in our world without support... Walter
tries to fight off this loneliness by creating an imaginary Mother. Henry
tries to convince himself of his own happiness.
---Just like Walter was taken away from his Mother ("But one day the cord was
cut , the mother went to sleep. The baby was left all alone."), Henry is taken
away from the world completely ("The cord's cut... ").
---Walter is struggling to help his Mother. Henry is struggling to help the
victims.
---Walter was unneeded in the real world. Henry is unneeded in Walter's world.
This could go on and on, but I think now it's visible, that Henry and Walter
are two sides of one coin. The coin is loneliness. Walter had nobody from the
start, while Henry was a little more lucky - his life with his parents (see
photo of little Henry with his parents) was filled with happiness, he enjoyed
life, wanted to see everything (the globe). But when he left his nest and
moved into SAHapts, he was left without support and started to distance
himself from the world.
-----------------------------------
If Sullivan really was an "inhuman killing machine", as Schreiber wants Henry
to believe, Henry wouldn't have a chance (a book in Silent Hill 1 states that
negative emotions are always stronger than positive ones). But there is doubt
in Walter. He can't make the final decision to sacrifice Eileen Galvin ("The
boy protected me from the man with the coat"). This is similar to SH1, where
Alessa could not decide wether she wants Samael to be born - wants the people
she so hates to die... we all know where she ended up. It is Walter's doubt
that gave Henry a chance to save Eileen - he gains Hope. This is really the
LAST Hope. And so, Henry Townshends sets out to brave the dangers of the
Hospital World. "Eileen... Are you still alive...?"
-----------------------
u) Henry and Eileen
Eileen has been living next door from Henry for two years, but he never showed
any interest in her (or maybe he was interested in her, but could not show it,
enclosed in his shell of un-existance). Only when Henry risks to lose her
forever does he realize how dear she is to him.
The nightmare brought the two people together: Eileen knows, that she cannot
escape Walter's world alone ("You're the only chance I've got... I'll stick
with you. ") and Henry feels, that even if he can make it out alive, he won't
be able to live without her - Eileen has become his closest person (Walter's
influence again?), so he makes all the efforts to keep her from being harmed.
Rephrasing James from SH4, "Without Eileen, I just can t go on." (or, straight
from the game texts - "I can't just leave Eileen."). So there you have it.
Eileen can't survive without Henry, Henry can't live without Eileen (remember
the "Death of Eileen" ending).
Well, now that Henry has Eileen, he gains Hope and his life now has some
meaning - something to defend against Walter's desire of peace with. Although,
he still has no Faith that Sullivan can be defeated.
v) The Ultimate Truth.
Through the second half of the game, Henry and Eileen make their way into the
depths of Walter's subconscious world, hoping to find the Ultimate Truth, that
will allow them to defeat him and end the nightmare. But what do they find?
What is this Ultimate Truth? Just another lie... Schreiber insists, that
Sullivan is just a mindless murderer ("he's become nothing more than an
inhuman killing machine..."), that ther's nothing human left in him (even
though we know that he has his doubts). So, why does Henry need this lie?
Because he needs Faith and Hope.
Schreiber tells him, that it is not too late to save himself ("Even now...it
may not be...too late..."), and tells Henry that he MUST kill Walter without
any doubts or regrets ("You must kill...him... You must kill him...
Kill...... Kill... Kill...... Kill......").
Now everything should make sense. After realizing his nature, Henry wants to
live, after meeting Eileen, his life gains a meaning and now he believes that
he can get out alive. It may have been a lie, just another illusion, but as
long as Henry believes in this illusion, he holds the pickaxe of Hope firmly
in his hands.
-----------------------------
In the end, his quest for freedom brings Henry to the same "Womb" as Walter.
The grand finale... We see the clash of two hopeless altruists - the adult
Walter, struggling to complete the 21 Sacraments for his Mother and his
childhood dream (he cares for Wally), and Henry, willing to sacrifice his own
life only to save Eileen, because without her his life will remain the gray,
lonely nightmare it was before.
Wish to live and wish to die, Eros and Thanatos confront each on the
battleground of the endless cycle of Birth and Death.
Who will win?
Will Walter win and sacrifice the lives of Henry and Eileen only to go into an
endless sleep ("Mom...... I'm home.. I'm gonna stay with you, forever...")?
Or will Henry prevail? But what awaits him if he loses Eileen? Was it all in
vain ("Eileen...")?
And even if Henry manages to save her, are they strong enough to begin a new
life and forget the nightmare? Will they find their happiness together, or are
they to continue their lonely lives in SAHapts, doomed to return to the dark
world?
-----------------------------------------
w) Ideological analysis of Henry Townshend.
Henry's image is not that of a hero or a maniac. Just an ordinary middle-aged
man. A lonely person, who closed himself from the world in his Room. His
neighbor is another lonely person - Eileen Galvin - whom he has no interest
in. Another neighbor of his is Mike - yet another lonely person, drowning in
his unrequited love for Rachel. Room 105 is the room of Frank Sunderland, who
has lost his son and wanted to find a friend in Townshend. Room 205 holds a
gamer, who, like Henry, never leaves his apartment. 102 - a woman, who loved
cats so much, that she never found a human being to love. And numerous other
instances of the same thing. This is reality - millions of lonely people,
languishing in their own cages ("coin lockers") and living their only life in
"happy" loneliness, dying little by little every day of this existance. Deep
down they want to find somebody to love, but this wish is always thrown back
by the walls of other people's hearts. People, forever locked in their
"cages", living in the gray world of a Room, afraid to open the door to the
world, believeing that nobody needs them and nobody can know their heart. Dead
ends, walls everywhere - no exit, no escape. There have to be alternatives -
but there are none. Looks like some sort of an existencionalist drama. A
drama, in which the sole actors are ordinary people, the residents of South
Ashfield Heights, Henry Townshend included.
Can this circle be broken? Can the walls be broken and freedom achieved?
Maybe, maybe... As we see from Henry's example, when one locks himself away,
the first step to freedom is realization of one's nature. But this cannot be
done alone - someone has to give them a push. For Henry this "push" was the
hell he walked through, the world of Walter Sullivan, a person, whose
personality is so similar to Henry's. Only after seeing his world, Henry
starts to see the futility of closed existance and makes his first steps on
what would be a long way to opening the door and leaving the Room of Despair
and Loneliness.
But even this realization will not have any results, if the others are as
closed, as you once were. You need to be understood by others. But, again,
they need to be set on this path before they take it.
Maybe the release of Silent Hill 4: The Room will be that push? Fans of SH
will follow Henry in realizing their true nature, recognizing their true
wishes and loves and use the Wisdom of Walter's failure to look at their own
life from a different angle. Maybe this game (as a trip to another world) will
turn somebody's life around and change them for the better? Maybe someone will
achieve true Wisdom with the help of this game? It depends on you - the push
has been delivered, now it's up to you to walk the path...
x)
Quote: "My whole world has suddenly turned insane..."
Metaphor: "Receiver of Wisdom"
Symbol: The Room
Music: Melancholy Requiem, Into the Depths of Self Discovery, Your Rain.
Name: The meaning of Henry's last name can be found in one of Eileen's lines:
"Hen...ry... Towns...hend...". Notice how she puts emphasis on separating
"Towns" and "Hend". Almost sounds like "Town's hand", doesn't it? Henry -
Town's Hand. Sounds funny and gives interesting associations, but I doubt
there's some real meaning here. The role of "Town's Hand" is more fitting for
Walter. But he and Henry ARE alike, so...
In reality, Henry Townshend is a musician and a singer - talk about artistic
persons.
4-3 Eileen Galvin
Age: Around 20
Occupation: Sexy nurse? %)
Before she moved into SAHapts, Eileen used to live with her (quite wealthy)
parents in North Ashfield ("I used to live in North Ashfield..."). She was
happy just feeling that she's not alone in the world ("She looked so happy
holding her mother's hand..."). But now it's all different - she left her
"nest", finished college ("I studied archaeology back in college") and rented
an apartment in South Ashfield. She keeps her childhood memories close to her
heart (doll key), but we don't see her communicating with her family (which is
strange - could they be dead?). Moreover, she doesn't even have a boyfriend
(well, there's Townshend, but only if you get the "Escape" ending), so she's
expecting the upcoming party as a good chance to "catch" somebody to liven up
her gray day-to-day life. This is an important point - it sets Eileen apart
from Henry, who, while also lonely, does not look for anyone and prefers to
lock himself in his apartment.
Eileen sees a simple party as some big event that will turn her life in
completely new direction (which makes you think - maybe it's her first
party?). Well, the evening does hold many surprises for her, but wether her
expectations will be fulfilled is up to the player. We all know what kind of
party she's going to get to.
------------------------------------------
a) Around 20 years earlier.
Around 20 years ago young Eileen was coming home with her mother to celebrate
her father's birthday. In the subway they met a homeless young man - Walter
Sullivan. He was out in the cold, lying in his tattered sleeping bag in the
South Ashfield subway station... He had no home, no parents to come to, nobody
to care for him (except from an imaginary Mother, who didn't even exist).
Eileen had it all. But what's more important is that she is a compassionate
person - she decided to help Walter and gave him her doll, a tiny piece of her
happiness. But even that was enough for Walter, who never had any joy in his
life. Even after all this time, he remembers it and it is what warmed his
heart all that time... "I got this from Miss Galvin a long, long time ago...
She was younger than me back then... She looked so happy holding her mother's
hand..."
b) Compassion
We all know that children are generally much more compassionate than adults.
With time, they become too busy with their own troubles and have less and less
time to care about others' problems. People change, it's a known fact. But did
Eileen change in these 20 years? Did the child in her heart, that wanted to
make Walter happy, disappear completely?
Let's look at the game facts:
---Eileen is the first to notice that there's something wrong with Henry. Even
though "They can't hear me...". Maybe Eileen was somehow able to feel
Townshend's pain and desperation?
---She cares about little Wally, even though the "man in coat" is ready to
kill her. "Hey kid... Thanks... Did you find your mommy...? This
place...it's dangerous... You need... Hurry and get out of here..."
---Eileen wants to help Walter when she learns about his terrible fate: "It's
terrible... That poor little boy... His parents just threw him away right
after he was born... Poor thing... He really thinks that Room 302 is his
mother... I've gotta...I've gotta help him..."
So we see that even after all these years, Eileen is still a "good girl", who
feels the pain of others and can't watch them suffer. Although, from the
example of Lisa Garland we know, that this kind of personality won't get one
anywhere good...
c) Robbie the Rabbit in Eileen's bedroom.
Through the peephole we can see a pink rabbit from Lakeside Amusement Park.
This toy could mean, that:
1) Eileen used to live in Silent Hill before Ashfield, or visited Silent Hill
with her parents, and now has sweet memories of that time.
2) Seeing as how she gave Walter a doll, he might have given her something in
return later. And what would a boy from Silent Hill give as a gift? Right, a
plush Robbie the Rabbit. This is further supported by the fact, that the
rabbit points at Henry, as if saying: "You're Next!".
d) Eileen and Walter.
Eileen was the only person that Walter felt was close to him... The memory of
her is his only happy memory, the only memory that connects him to reality.
Because of it he can't fully believe, that people can only bring suffering.
It's what prevented him from fully believing in the Room. "But now it's
over...". Now it's time to break all the chains and sacrifice all for the sake
of his Mother:
Denounce the truth ("You must defeat the One Truth. Do so and this door will
open"), to believe in the imaginary Mother-Room...
Sacrifice the people, who brought him only pain and suffering ("Offer the
Blood of the Ten Sinners")...
The life, spent in darkness and fear ("Be then released from the bonds of the
flesh")...
And offer one final sacrifice - Eileen Galvin ("separate from the flesh too,
she is who is the Mother Reborn").
Of course, the first three sacrifices are easy for Walter to perform, but
Eileen is not. But he must do it - and the "man in coat" puts aside his only
happy memory ("Here, I'll give it to you... ") and gets ready to complete the
"Mother Reborn". But the seed of doubt is still withing him - a part of his
consciousness cannot allow the death of a dear person ("The boy protected me
from the man with the coat...").
-----------------------------------------
So, after sacrificing Richard Braintree, Walter's psychic energy increases and
Eileen is drawn into his world ("I can see Eileen Galvin from here... I'm
pretty sure that's Room 303. What's she doing in this world?"), where she is
attacked by the "man in coat". But the 20121 sacrifice goes wrong due to
Walter's inner conflicts and Eileen is left alive. She is taken to St.Jerome's
hospital. Although, it's only her physical body that is taken there - her mind
is still trapped in Walter's world. This time, the Hospital World.
It is there that Henry finds her.
---------------------------------------------------
e) Eileen and Henry
Eileen feels helpless and vulnerable in Walter's world ("I just feel so
scared..."), she does not understand where she is ("This place...what is it
anyway?") and how to return home ("What am I gonna do?"). She can't survive
alone. And her last Hope is Henry Townshend, the Receiver of Wisdom, who knows
how to defeat Walter ("I might know a way to save you...").
The nightmare brought the two people together: Eileen knows, that she cannot
escape Walter's world alone ("You're the only chance I've got... I'll stick
with you. ") and Henry feels, that even if he can make it out alive, he won't
be able to live without her - Eileen has become his closest person (Walter's
influence again?), so he makes all the efforts to keep her from being harmed.
Rephrasing James from SH4, "Without Eileen, I just can t go on." (or, straight
from the game texts - "I can't just leave Eileen."). So there you have it.
Eileen can't survive without Henry, Henry can't live without Eileen (remember
the "Death of Eileen" ending).
----------------------------------------------
Together, they go on a search of the Ultimate Truth and Hope, hidden deep down
in Walter's subconscious. With time, Eileen seems to change...
----------------------------------
f) Eileen's metamorphoses.
Basically, Eileen undergoes the similar process Heather and Maria did.
The more damage she receives, the more her true identity is weakened and she
is more and more influenced by Walter. Soon, her memories are replaced with
Walter's (Obviously, the phrase "I used this subway all the time when I was
younger..." is about HIS past, not hers. By the way, a similar, but weaker,
effect we can see on Henry). Over time she becomes "posessed" by Walter ("I'm
cold... Help me..." , "Where's mommy??" , "Mommy... Wake up... Let me in.." ,
"And God said, thou must return to the wellspring of sin..."). This is also
noticeable in her appearance - her eyes turn red, which sends us way back to
SH1, in which it was established, that red is the color of memory, rebirth
and, uh... blood - three things, that are always connected in the series. It's
ironic, how a girl, who can feel the pain of others starts to feel all of
Walter's fears and sufferings ("Oh, my head hurts... Th-That boy...he's coming
in... His pain...I feel it... ") - somewhat reminiscent of Lisa.
g) Eileen as the 20th victim
As we know, the victims were chosen according to Tarot cards. The 20th card is
"Judgement", sometimes also known as "Rebirth". A group of people stand in awe
around an open grave, a man is looking at an angel, floating in the air with
horn. Next to the man, a woman is kneeling. People, awakened by the call of
the Angel's horn are walking out of the grave to a new life.
This is why Walter's memories and feelings are "reborn" through Eileen in
Walter's world and that is why the 20th sacrifice is called "Mother Reborn".
The meaning of 20121 is also reflected in the Halo of the Sun (see Part 2-16)
-------------------------------------
The further course of events is determined by your actions in the course of
the game and the "degree" of Eileen's "posession":
1) She begins to feel the pain and despair of Wally and decides to help him
("It's Walter... He's crying... Even finishing the 21 Sacraments... It won't
help that boy...") - after obtaining the Ultimate Truth, Hope and the
umbilical cord, she goes to the Womb to end Walter's unending nightmare
forever ("I'm going back, Henry...To the room where he is... We're the only
ones... The only ones that can stop him..."). In this case she won't be
walking so fast in the final battle.
2) Eileen becomes fully posessed by Walter's feelings ("Daddy...? Mommy...?
Why did you leave me? I'm scared... I'm so scared... It's dark, and I'm so
scared...") and believes in the awakening of the Room ("Mommy... Mommy......?
Are you asleep...? Mommy... I'll wake you up... I will..."). Obsessed with
young Walter's wish, she goes to the Womb to sacrifice herself for the Room.
In this case she'll be walking towards the "killing machine" faster, because
Walter's influence on her is much stronger.
-----------------------
h) The Final Battle
In the end, Eileen's compassion brings her to the same "Womb" as Walter
Sullivan, where his will takes her over and step by step she approaches her
death and the moment of the Mother's awakening. Deep down, she is in conflict
with herself. Her will to live stands against her wish to help Walter fulfill
his dream, supported by her kind nature and his influence (the progress of
this conflict determines her moving speed). Outside we see the clash of two
hopeless altruists - the adult Walter, struggling to complete the 21
Sacraments for his Mother and his childhood dream (he cares for Wally), and
Henry, willing to sacrifice his own life only to save Eileen, because without
her his life will remain the gray, lonely nightmare it was before.
i) Victims List info
Victim 20/21
Name: Eileen Galvin
Occupation: Unknown
Gender\features: White female
Height\weight: 170 cm, 68 kg
Hobbies: Unknown
Other: Gave Walter a doll around 20 years ago
Motive: "Mother Reborn"
Method: Beaten to death\unsuccessful
Location: Room 303 of South Ashfield Heights apartment building
Item left behind: Bag
j)
Quote: "It's terrible... That poor little boy... I've gotta...I've gotta help
him... "
Metaphor: "Mother Reborn"
Symbol: Doll
Music: "Your Rain", "Didn't know, didn't know"
Name: Eileen is a distinctively feminine name, emphasizing her personality.
And, personally, the name Galvin reminds me of Garland - there is similarity
between the two.
k) Bonus: Sexy nurse
After you finish SH4 for the first time, you'll have a chance to see Eileen in
a costume of a... sexy nurse. In this article, I'll try to seriously [! -
translator's note] analyze it. When they are drawn into Walter's world, the
victims begin to "play by Walter's rules" and even their appearance may change
according to that (yes, Walter believed that after death they would become
ghosts and voila - there we have geniune, grade-Am floating, moaning ghosts).
But why would Eileen appear as a nurse? For some reason in Walter's sick mind
she was associated with a sexy nurse. let's try to find this reason.
1) It is a known fact, that nurses have always been objects of sexual desire
of men and many erotic classics involve nurses [yeah, he watched them all!
This guy is THAT perverted - Translator's note]. If take into account Freud's
theories (and remember SH2 by the way) we may even assume, that such an
appearance is a result of Walter's fantasies involving Eileen. Mhhmmm, maybe
his feelings towards her weren't really "pure and uncorrupted"? %)
2) The main idea of Eileen's image is compassion - isn't that a characteristic
of nurses? If we compare SH1 and SH4, Eileen's counterpart would be Lisa, who
was a nurse. Maybe in Walter's mind Eileen's image was that of a kind-hearted
nurse? And the weird dress is, again, a result of his sexual unsatisfaction.
3) St.Jerome's hospital is close to SAHapts and Eileen's personality is
fitting for a nurse. If we put two and two together, the connection become
obvious.
4) Eileen is the "Mother Reborn" - she plays an extremely important role in
the Mother's awakening. Awakening=reanimation?
5) And, finally, the most probable version. It's the doing of the Great Dog -
the queen of Silent Hill fan-service! Or could it be Samael? Or did they
cooperate?
4-4. Frank Sunderland. The way of Frank (+a short history of SAHapts)
Age: around 60
Occupation: SAHapts superintendant.
Frank Sunderland has been the superintendant of SAHapts ever since it was
built and has seen his share of strange things in his life, but one thing he
will never forget... There was no place for mysticism, just ugly reality.
34 years ago Frank found an abandoned newborn baby in Room 302. Even though he
did all he could for the baby (found him, called an ambulance - he practically
saved the baby's life) this made a terrible impression on him, made worse by
the fact, that he had a young son of his own. For 34 years Frank could not
forget this ("Some things we forget and some things we can never
forget......") and for 34 years he has kept the umbilical cord in his room 105
as a sad reminder of the baby's life gone wrong from birth. What happened to
him? Did he find his parents? Is he happy? These questions assaulted the
superintendant's mind. Sunderland cares about other people, and he is very
self-critical and tends to rethink his actions (it runs in the blood, doesn't
it? Just look at James!), and, just as Eileen Galvin is, he is compassionate.
10 years ago another strange event took place in SAHapts: Frank saw a man in a
long coat climb up the stairs. He was carrying a heavy tool (Great Knife), a
goblet and a pack, that was dripping blood (what he really saw was the
subconscious image of self in Walter's world, just before he performed the
Holy Assumption). And Richard Braintree later reported seeing someone in Room
302 (it was the "White Noiz" - a result of Walter's psychic energy
concentrated in the Room). Well, "There are a...lot of strange things in this
world..."
But that wasn't the last thing. Around 7 years ago Frank's son (James) and
daughter-in-law (Mary) disappeared in Silent Hill (If you still don't
understand who are James nad Mary -- PLAY THE F***ING SH2 , DAMMIT!!! [Don't
mind him, he just hasn't been fed - Translator's note]). Now Frank is left
alone.
After all these strange events Joseph Schreiber moved into Room 302 and soon
disappeared without a trace (before that, strange sounds could be heard from
the Room) - when the door finally could be opened, no body could be found.
Truly, "There are a...lot of strange things in this world...". Maybe that was
the moment Sunderland started to suspect there was something wrong with this
apartment and the disappearance is somehow connected to it directly ("There's,
uh, somethin' wrong with this whole apartment...")?
In any case, six months later, a new resident moved into the Room... Henry
Townshend.
After losing his son, Sunderland longed for friendship and wanted to make a
friend in the new resident. When he learns about Henry's interest in
photography, he immediately gave him a photo. But Sunderland's naive attempt
shattered on the wall of Henry's heart.
Today, Sunderland had a strange dream (he saw Walter's world). In it, the man
in coat was crying, he was looking for his mother. And today Frank learns that
Room 302's door won't open again, and there are strange sounds coming from
inside - just as before. Today, Frank is going into Walter's world.
--------------------------------
Sunderland's Diary.
In the depths of Walter's world we can find Frank Sunderland's diary, written
ten years after Sullivan's death. Of course, a question arises: how could this
dieary get into Walter's world? As we know, the memos are either bits of
thoughts of the world's creator, or the thoughts of people, drawn into this
world (Schreiber's diary). So, that means Frank is also in this world? The
answer lies in the ending.
--------------------------
21 Sacraments: "Once again, we've got late breaking news...Five unnamed police
officers have been found dead, for reasons unknown, in the South Ashfield
Heights apartments, along with its superintendent, Mr. Frank Sunderland. All
other residents of South Ashfield Heights have been rushed to St. Jerome's
Hospital, many complaining of severe chest pains.These strange incidents are
similar to the ones which occurred in Silent Hill some years ago. More news to
follow."
The 21 Sacraments ending implies, that the world gained so much influence,
that Frank is drawn into it and his physical body dies, dooming him to become
a victim and "haunt this realm as a spirit". Just like that time in Silent
Hill a few years back...
There are a...lot of strange things in this world...
4-5. Joseph Schreiber. The way of Joseph.
Age: around 40
Occupation: Journalist
Joseph Schreiber has always believed that it is his duty to show the "Ultimate
Truth" and set people on the "Ture path" (quite similar to the cult's beliefs,
don't you think?). That is why he became a journalist. But can he really tell
truth from lies? Joseph believed he could. Around 10 years ago he decided to
uncover the dark deeds of Silent Hill's cult and published an article, telling
about the true purpose of the Wish House and about the dark side of the cult
in the Concord magazine. But, as we know from SH3, Claudia and Vincent could
care less about this article. The Cult disappeared later due to other reasons
(play SH3 and read Dying Inside to see what REALLY happened to the cult and
the town).
After the "strange incidents which occurred in Silent Hill some years ago" (as
we know from DI, Silent Hill is pretty much abandoned - drawn completely into
Alessa's world), Joseph moves to Ashfield and, ironically, rents a room in
SAHapts - Room 302. His life's somewhat old-fashioned - he listens to old
records, types on an old typewriter. Notice that there is no TV in his
apartment. And he's a JOURNALIST - a person, who's supposed to be in touch
with everything that happens in the world. It seems as if time has stopped for
him and he lived in the Room, closed off from the rest of the world.
But 7 years ago he learned something, that turned his life around. A murder
victim with the numbers 12121 on their chest has been found, marking the
second killing spree of Walter Sullivan. According to his own diary, Joseph
felt afraid ("Right away I had this terrible feeling and couldn't stop
shaking"), but he became greatly interested in the story of the maniac ("The
police think it's a copycat crime and are calling it the Sullivan Case Round
Two. But something about it bothered me..."), probably in no small part due to
the influence of Walter's memories.
With time he becomes more and more interested in the Sullivan case, an
interest slowly turning into a mania. He digs deeper and deeper, finds out
more and more info about Walter (guess what drives him ;) ) and starts his own
investigation of the recent murders.
------------------------------
a) Joseph's diary
April 4th - feeling, that his life is in danger, he starts a diary, in which
he writes down all he has found on Walter (basically, it is the "Wisdom" he's
supposed to give).
April 8th - Joseph believes, that the murderer is not COPYING Walter, but, in
fact, IS Walter ("I'm investigating two people. Or maybe I should say just
one.") and that the Sullivan case is connected to Silent Hill and the dead
Cult ("Although the cult itself is gone, I'm sure the spirit of it is still
alive. There are too many strange things happening in that town."). He wants
to get this "Ultimate Truth" no matter what.
April 10th (this is a secret memo, which can only be found on Silent Hill 4's
official site) - using his old connections, Joseph enters the Wish House and
finds the Crimson Tome.
Since then, no one has seen Joseph. At first he was thought to have gone
insane and locked himself in the Room (strange sounds) - but, after the door
was finally opened, nothing was found. From this we can say that Joseph never
returned from Silent Hill. It is unknown what fate exactly befell him in the
foggy town, but we know, that his consciousness existed in Walter's
subconscious world - he even continued writing his diary.
May - Schreiber still thinks he's in the apartment. He starts having
headaches, but continues his search for the "Ultimate Truth".
June - Schreiber thinks, that he goes to Silent Hill. Obviously, it's not the
real Silent Hill cemetary he comes to, but the one in the Forest World ("I'm
still in shock...There was no body in the grave... And on top of that, written
on the coffin were the numbers "11/21"...").
July - Schreiber is starting to realize that he's actually inside Walter's
world ("You've seen that world as well... That horrible nightmare."). He finds
Holy Medallions, Swords of Obedience etc. Soon it will come to him, that he is
just another ghost, trapped inside Walter's world.
August - Room 302 is locked. Schreiber tries to break throught the wall, but
to no avail - "The faint hope I had is slowly changing to despair.". Joseph is
slowly drowning in despair... Soon, the "victim" of Jimmy Stone will find his
way inside. But it doesn't matter... The real Joseph Schreiber is not in the
apartment (his body will never be found). Only bits of his consciousness still
flicker in the Room, reliving the moment of their "death".
6 months later Henry Townshend moves into Room 302.
Two years later Henry Townshend (under the influence of Joseph's memories,
concentrated in the Room) starts having a recurring nightmare - the last
moments of Joseph's conscious existance. Also, he starts to find pieces of the
journalist's memories and "receives" his "Wisdom" (the red diaries). Soon,
Henry will also be drawn into Walter's world.
b) The Ultimate Truth
Even after death, Joseph is still trying to show the "Ultimate Truth". Before,
he used logic and facts to do this. Now he relies completely on the Crimson
Tome ("Follow the...Crimson Tome... Stop him..."). As a prophet, he sets Henry
on the "True Path". It may have been a lie, just another illusion, but as long
as Henry believes in this illusion, he holds the pickaxe of Hope firmly in his
hands.
c) Ideological analysis of Joseph Schreiber.
Basically, Schreiber is just your typical ghost, who can't realize his own
death and continues to live in the Room - just as the occult magazine in SH3
said: "The souls of those who died suddenly by suicide or accident don't
realize they're dead. Sometimes they stay put and haunt that particular place.
These spirits have lost their human senses and memories and can only keep
replaying the pain and sadness of the moment they died."
Joseph Schreiber spent all his life uncovering the "Ultimate Truth". But Truth
often betrays people - it can be cruel and lead to Despair. In turn, sweet
Lies can give one Hope (remember James). Thus, this "Ultimate Truth" threw
Joseph into Despair (the truth was that he was just a victim - a pawn in
Walter's world). Now he exists not to find the Truth, but to give Hope, even
if it is through Lies ("Even now...it may not be...too late... Follow
the...Crimson Tome... Stop him...").
We see that the main theme of Jospeh is the connection between Truth and
Despair, Lies and Hope. Along with Wisdom, Schreiber brings Despair to
Walter's world, becoming a par t of it...
d) The Devil
As we know, all the victims correspond to Tarot Cards. The #15 card is The
Devil, also known as The Fatum and The Dark Side. It symbolizes the decay and
death of the spirit in a person. It can also mean, that the ideals the person
in question is pursiong are false and it's better to leave them now, before
they drag them in. Accordingly - Joseph's loss of hope, his Despair=death of
the spirit. His obsession with Walter's history brought him into the
nightmarish world.
Now let's take a look at the picture on the card. In the center we see the
"Devil". A man and a woman are standing in front of him. Remind you of
something? Namely, the meeting with Schreiber and the receiveing of the
Ultimate Truth. There you have it - Joseph Schreiber, whose Hope has died (see
the meaning of the #15 Tarot card), he is urging Henry and Eileen to KILL
Walter (killing is a mortal sin, as you know) and to follow occult
scriptures...
The man and the woman are Henry and Eileen... In the context of SH4, Schreiber
is the Giver of Wisdom. Now, how did Adam and Eve "receive wisdom"? Through
the serpent's (read - the DEVIL's) temptation.
e) Victims List info
Victim 15/21
Name: Joseph Schreiber (a.k.a. J)
Occupation: Journalist
Gender/features: Middle-aged white male.
Height/weight: 185 cm, 87 kg
Hobbies: reading, fishing (it's said that fishing brings peace to the soul.
Are you thinking what I'm thinking? ;) )
Other: An active and professional journalist
Motive: Despair
Method: Unknown (no body found)
Location: Unknown
Item left behind: Red Diary
f)
Quote: The faint hope I had is slowly changing to despair...
Metaphor: Despair
Symbol: Red Diary
Name: "Schreiber" means "writer" in German. Not surprising, that a journalist
was given such a name. Also, Joseph Schreiber is a fairly well-known
professor, specializing in pediatry. Ironic, that a man with such a name would
die in a world of childhood fears.
_______________________________________________________________________________
PART 6: SILENT HILL: The Movie analysis
_______________________________________________________________________________
So, fans of Silent Hill can be congratulated with official release of
newborn add-on in the series - Silent Hill: The Movie, directed by
well-known Christophe Hans. According to director s confession, the idea
about creation of film has arisen already for a long time - about 5 years
ago, when Hans played the first part of the game, but this late release of
a film-masterpiece generally connected to significant amount of time, went
on contacting with developers of the game, to receive the consent to shoot
the film on a sensational game-series and to discuss all questions,
concerning a planned movie. Eventually all problems were solved and film
started shooting, and range of this shooting does not amaze with all
ascetic modesty: the budget of this movie was about 50 millions dollars.
Work about the movie s script last approximately one and a half month, and
was conducted in common by Christophe Hans, Nicolas Bucrif and Roger
Avary. Nevertheless, developers decided not to create completely new
script for the film, and to take as a basis a plot of the first part of
game, having added in it some elements from the second (it is Christophe
Hans's favorite part) and the third - but would be erroneous to think,
that moviemakers wanted to push three parts of game in one movie, since it
wasn t included at all into their plans. As Hans declared in interview,
during creation of film appeared, that there are so much interesting
moments in the second and the third parts, that directors simply could not
resist against temptation, and something have borrowed from them. Besides,
directors also scooped inspiration in creativity of such well-known film
directors, as David Lynch, David Kronenberg and Michael Mann.
Nevertheless, despite of some borrowed elements of a plot, Silent Hill:
The Movie is not a sequel, not prequel and not even a remake of the game -
primary source: developers did not begin to limit themselves, precisely
following a history and a plot of game, and have preferred to go by a
principle " than to build a new floor of a skyscraper, better simply
beside to build beside a small house ". So, would you like it or not, but
the plot of film in any way doesn t contact with the plot of the game -
so, it is not necessary to look from the movie for precise following of
the chronology of events established in game, meticulous reproduction of a
map of city according to game, exact replays, which had place in the first
part of game of stages and characters, etc. It is necessary to remember,
that sense of film is not to retell a history of game in the cinema form,
and transfer director s game sensations through this movie - thus for the
greater expression in film, numerous changes in a plot have been made. For
example, main character from the first part of game had been replaced with
the girl named Rose... Christophe Hans explains it like: «In Harry's game
behavior it not looks like he is a man! [Read, *behaved like a woman* -
comment from SP] When we only started our work on this project, we
planned, that the main character there will be Harry. But subsequently it
became obvious, that Harry behaved like not a man. He constantly fell in
faints, talked to himself, shouted, and in generally was very vulnerable
character. We did not want to betray essence of game, changing feelings
and motivation of character, and so, we had simply decided to replace him
with a girl to keep all his qualities. But it s not necessary to think,
that we replaced Harry with Rose with political correctness reasons ".
There are also other changes had place - for example, Dahlia person and
character has been completely changed, Alessa s age at the moment of
burning is also changed, Lisa and scorched Alessa from Alchemilla were
transferred into Brookhaven, the site of the Silent Hill is changed in
comparison with game, etc. And there is one more interesting innovation:
in film was supposed to open a theme of "motherhood" and the " other world
", which was submitted in game, has been solved to make more womanly and
even matriarchal (" Silent Hill is really a matriarchal world ", " I
wanted everything about the world of Silent Hill to be femine " - Hans
said about matriarchal world of Silent Hill and marks a role of the female
beginning in the concept) for what specially was invited designer Carol
Spier, who had worked earlier with David Kronenberg. As vivid example of
similar demonstration of the other world " from female prospect ", for
example, the new design of an creature with a pyramidal head (by the way,
head is not red anymore) which even has dressed a certain similarity of a
skirt to look is more womanly ^ _ ^ And also about the " other world ",
according to statements of the director, in the movie exists four variants
of city: a usual city, foggy Silent Hill, dreadful city (we saw the same
system in the first part of game - but there also was "Anywhere") and
city 30 years ago, appearing in Alessa's memoirs. You shouldn't think that
realize this invention was so simply - in fact for its realization it was
necessary to change scenery several times frequently. And stages of «
alteration of the world «besides also schedules have demanded a
considerable share modern computer graphics... But monsters (besides
cockroaches) haven't been made by computer, they were played by actors
alive! It was made to increase a degree of picture's realism, and to make
behaviour of characters more plausible (in fact difficultly to play the
fright and horror from the monster when actually there is not any
monsters, and then monster is "drawn" by wizards-programmers). But,
despite of all changes brought in a plot, at least one thing has remained
constant - and it is music! So, there are Akira Yamaoka s original
compositions from the game - primary source are used - that heart of any
SH-fan was filled with reverential trembling at the first chords of
favourite melodies. Later, we shall consider a plot of film in detail, we
shall disassemble chronology of events, familiarize with the basic
characters and monsters, we will find out more about actors, and also we
shall pay attention to some other interests, appeared in film (sendings to
the game - primary source, "film-mistakes", etc.). Oh, if it is
interesting to you, why the analysis of Silent Hill: The Movie has been
born in a separate guide's Part, there are two reasons: first, to
facilitate search, and, the second, because plot of film (against plots of
games) generally has no strict connection with events of a series of
videogames.
1. CHRONOLOGY OF THE EVENTS
Silent Hill - mysterious city in the Western Virginia, Toluca district...
It was prospering enough small town, but now it completely deserted - you
would not even find this place on the map. And, according to newspaper
articles, Silent Hill including into the list of "cities - phantoms" of
America, and in this city where the coal mine was located, for many years
underground fires do not stop... What became the reason of full emptiness
of once prospering resort small town and an original cause of the strange
events which held place in the Silent Hill? There is one and only way to
answer these questions and to slightly open a veil of secret - closely to
investigate a history of this place and to find out, what horrors could be
hidden behind a veil of time.
1) Till 1974 - the dark past
From time immemorial in the Silent Hill there was a religious organization
which top was made generally with city elite. The religion of sectarians
êîðåíèëàñü on that belief, that our guilty ground expects the Apocalypse -
and the unique way to prevent this terrible event consists in that
periodically " to clear fire " the girls bearing(carrying) in is angry -
that is witches. But to whom has been legal to hang up labels and to
judge, who is a witch, and who - ïðàâåäíèöà? This role was incured by
heads of the religious organization - if their finger were specified on
objectionable citizen, and there fanatics started to believe, that the
unfortunate victim is a witch - and burnt her on fire... For so severe
confidential ritual members of sect had special place - a hall where it
was possible to get through a secret room 111 at the Grand Hotel and where
they could create unpunishedly the most dreadful things (on ceremony of
"clarification" members of a cult were supposed except for sinners). And
so the uncountable set of times proceeded - and people believed that they
restore innocence and cleanliness, expel evil, and prevent arrival of
Darkness... Many years these dreamers invented to themselves belief which
would justify their actions. But there are the true monsters are people.
The actions they sowed seeds of evil... But sometime the crop will ripen
and the Reaper announcing terrible revenge for all sinners will come.
2)1965 year (about 40 years ago) - Alessa's birth
Woman, who was Dahlia Gillespie, had a child - the girl was born and
mother has named her "Alessa". In spite of the fact that Alessa had no
father (that generated the big problems for Dahlia - in fact sectarians
will consider her a sinner because of the child who was illegitimate, but
mother was happy to a birth of the daughter - in soul, she loved her child.
3) The beginning of 1974 - school days
At this time nine-year Alessa studies in elementary school Midwich - but
instead of the joyful childhood she should suffer every day mockeries from
the schoolmates who called her "witch" and cut out on a school desk of the
girl "WITCH". But why children so aggressive with her, what did she have
made bad? Anything... The public opinion is simple: parents have told to
children, that Alessa - the child of defect and at she had no father, and
children began to scoff at her as if absence of the father makes the girl
"another", not the person - and any fiend. Influence of sect in city was
so strong, that even at school, children since small years brought up in
religious spirit, imparting them an idea that " All foes of righteous
persons will be condemned " (" All foes of the righteous will be condemned
" - such tablet hung at an entrance school) - and the girl who has been
given birth illegitimate, was in understanding of fanatics a sin alive, a
witch.
Frequently Alessa lead up that the girl in tears escaped in a female
toilet and was hidden there in cabin - but also there Alessa did not find
rescue because of presence of the strange cleaner by name Colin (in some
moments from " other world ", and also from Alessa s memoirs we
understand, that the cleaner has made something awful with the little
girl). Even Dahlia, despite of love to Alessa, could not help, could not
go counter to the common opinion - everything, that she could do, it to
console the daughter... In opinion of the child mother is protector, the
God, - but even the God sometimes happens is powerless.
4) November, 1974 (30 years ago) - ritual of clarification
Somehow the high-ranking priestess of religious organization
(Christabella) managed to convince Dahlia that her daughter needs to be
cleared from her nasty - so it will be better both for mother, and for the
daughter (probably, Dahlia for that moment yet did not know in what the
essence of this "clarification" consists). And only having arrived with
the daughter in Grand Hotel where ritual of "clarification" should be
carried out, Dahlia has understood, that she had been deceived - and they
are going to burn out her daughter. Now she had understood that she had
done... Could you imagine, what mother feels, losing her own daughter?
Dahlia ran for the help - but it was already late...
At this time sectarians have tried to burn out small Alessa - but ritual
hasn't gone right because the boiler with hot coals has overturned during
ceremony , and the entire building of hotel has lit up (there began a fire
in Silent Hill). When Dahlia has returned with police, they have found
adhered by sectarians to a metal skeleton hardly alive girl with burns on
her body - officer Thomas Guchi took part in rescue of the child (this
person was not afraid at all to open the heated metal handcuffs with his
own hands to rescue the child, that s why he had received huge burns on
palms) - and thanking his efforts it was possible to rescue Alessa from a
burning building and deliver to hospital alive.
That fatal day the fire actually became the end for Silent Hill - many
people have died at a fire in the city, many - have completely disappeared
(even their bodies never were founded).
5) November, 1974 - 1995 - hospital
For a long time scorched Alessa was carried in hospital Brookhaven
(chamber B151) - she felt only a pain, fear, loneliness... When you're
hurt and scared, your fear and pain turn to hatred and hatred starts to
change the world. Alessa's hatred grew and grew - she overwhelmed with it.
Her hatred became such strong, that Alessa has vented the rage on the
innocent girl - she was pretty nurse working in hospital (which it has
been spoiled with Alessa's force of hatred and became the prisoner of
"other world "). And then it had appeared - "Alessa's dark side", the
demon itself. Everything that it was looking for - was to transform the
world into the worse dreadful dream, to revenge, force those who have
caused Alessa's pain, eternally to suffer - and then entire hospital and
Silent Hill were absorbed by the dreadful world.
And everything good that remained in Alessa had continued to live in the
little girl that Alessa had hidden outside the Hell created by her - in a
children's shelter of district Toluca.
6) 9 years ago - occurrence of the foundling
Nine years ago at the doors of a shelter of district Toluca by the nun,
which name was name Margaret was founded the newborn child - though it was
possible to think, that the child is the usual foundling, its true essence
was other.
To the same year in a shelter have arrived childless spouse - Christopher
and Rose DaSilva and have adopted this child, having named the girl
"Sharon".
7) 2 years ago - a feat police
Two years prior to events of film boy was stolen by an unknown person at
the gas station and had left him in the Silent Hill, having thrown him in
mine whence the child could not get out. Then the officer of police - the
girl by name Cybil Bennett, which had charged with search of the stolen
boy, had gone down in mine, had founded the guy and spent whole three days
in the mine, supporting the child, until a rescue team had arrived. After
so altruistic act, Cybil has deserved reputation of one of the best cops,
which could be charged with any task safely.
8) Today - events of SILENT HILL: The Movie
Nine-year Sharon DaSilva again and again sees strange dreams in which she
sees the mysterious girl. Besides sometimes Sharon lunatic attributes are
shown, and while she is dreaming she leaves her house and go in an unknown
direction, and in addition through dream the girl sometimes suddenly
starts to shout the name of city "Silent Hill" - but, having woken up, she
does not remember anything about it. It is not surprising, that parents
are extremely concerned - in fact something is obviously wrong with their
daughter. Father (Christopher) suggests to place their daughter in
psychiatric hospital on inspection, but her mother (Rose) considers, that
similar methods would not give any results, and it will be better to try
to bring the girl to Silent Hill to clear the reason of strange disease of
the daughter.
So, in one fine day Rose fiduciary from the husband takes away their
daughter and together with her they are going to visit the foggy deserted
city - it is not the best idea. And during this trip there s something
wrong happens with Sharon - in spite of the fact that before this trip
girl s pictures were bright and shiny, but as they were approaching the
Silent Hill, style of her drawing considerably varies: girl s pictures
became gloomy and full of fear - here we can see that dark people holding
the little girl, they are two giants who were spitting the fire, they had
grabbed the child (and as if they were trying to tear her apart) and there
is strange church placed in the background of a flame... It is
interesting, that having woken up, Sharon could not remember, how did she
drew all these horrors.
On a way they had met the officer of police Cybil Bennett. Policeman s
feeling prompts her, that here is something strange also she decided to
detain mother with her daughter, who were on the way to the deserted city
- phantom for some reasons. But Rose had escaped from pursuit.
And, when mother with daughter were almost arrived in Silent Hill, car
radio, up to tears frightening little Sharon, suddenly starts to hiss
crazily. Rose distracts from driving an automobile to switch off the radio
- and suddenly notices a silhouette of a small girl on the road - during
last moment she turns out a rudder to the left to avoid collision, and
gets in the accident...
When Rose regained consciousness, she finds out, that everything around is
shrouded in an impenetrable fog and there is strange "snow", in actual
fact appearing ashes. Nobody responds on calls for help - it looks like
there is no one around here. And the most important thing - Sharon had
lost! While Rose was looking after her daughter, she came into the Silent
Hill - and noticed a silhouette of the daughter. But why Sharon doesn't
respond to mother's call? Concerned Rose follows a silhouette in a fog
which had guided her in a strange lane. And even more inexplicable events
began here: in the distance the sound of siren was heard and suddenly the
city became shrouded with darkness. Rose decided to continue her searches
of the daughter - with dim light of a small lighter as a conductor she is
dipped into darkness of «other world ". Lattices... Blood... And here Rose
sees the tormented body - with awful wounds it still continues to live,
suffering from never-ending torments! And then mother understands that she
lost in the terrible nightmare - but already late. Suddenly there are
awful creatures started appearing, and Rose in a panic tries to run away
from them, but she can not rescue...
When Rose regained consciousness, there was no one around - perhaps, it
was just a bad dream? But it's not, there is still this strange snow -
ashes on the street, everything around is shrouded in a fog, and there are
mysterious bottomless precipices on the road. After coming nearer to one
of such landslides, Rose meets the strange woman who has almost lost human
shape - Dahlia Gillespie. She had lost her daughter too... But when the
main heroine shows Sharon's photo in the medallion to this woman , Dahlia
starts to shout, that Sharon is her own daughter - perhaps, Gillespie has
simply finally gone mad from burning losses of her only child, or in her
strange behaviour other sense is covered?
After hiding from mad Dahlia, Rose met familiar person - Cybil Bennett,
which arrests unlucky mummy for excess of speed and on suspicion in
abduction of the child. Probably, the girl yet has no the slightest
concept about where she has got and what happens in this mysterious city -
but occurrence of the awful monster (the Lying Figure) immediately forces
her to believe that there is something really strange in this town, and
now it's not the best time to capture criminals. Having taken advantage of
the moment while Bennett was struggling with a creature, Rose was able to
run away again - and mother went to Midwich elementary school where
presumably Sharon could be. But her daughter isn't here, and Rose noticed
the girl in the school form running away, suspiciously reminding her
daughter - following the stranger, Rose eventually finds the tip that her
beloved daughter can be in hotel "GRAND HOTEL". But again everything
around becomes covered by darkness of the "other world " and dreadful
creations start to creep out of all cracks of a school building - and at
this time the girl in the school form which Rose met earlier, continues to
draw in an album awful dark pictures (same how Sharon drew in the
automobile - is there any connection?). Cybil Bennett came to help her in
time; Rose was possible to go through this nightmare again and safely hide
from cockroaches pursuing them, a phantom of the cleaner and a creature in
a skirt with a pyramid on a head, dragging a huge hatchet with him,
cutting through metal, as through a paper sheet.
After finding a hotel, Rose and Cybil found the girl named Anna - she is
one of the citizens that continued to live under aegis of the Supreme
priestess Christabella and for the certain reasons weren't able to get out
from Silent Hill, which was shrouded in fog. The only thing that supports
these people is a belief. Each time when the world is covered with the
outer darkness, the survived sectarians are covered in last haven -
churches where the darkness cannot reach because of depth of their belief,
their convictions; and when the world around becomes more safe, these
people get out outside in searches of food. And when the world has
returned to a "foggy" variant, Anna has come to burnt hotel, finding
livelihood for aged mother.
Heroines find Anna in the heat of arguing with woman already familiar to
us - Dahlia Gillespie. On abuse between women we understand, that Dahlia
in exile among religious fanatics - the woman considers, that «the belief
destroys people sometimes " but her belief are not the only reason of
hostility of members of a cult to her. Nevertheless, cop was able to
separate struggling young women and after that Dahlia leaves a building of
hotel, Rose, Cybil and Anna, who has adjoined them start to investigate
the deserted structure together. Following tips, girls found a secret room
111 behind a picture with the image of a burnt witch, where a long time
ago members of a cult spent the awful ceremonies - and where, in
particular, was burnt Alessa Gillespie. Here Rose again sees a phantom of
a little Alessa (which it is as like as two peas similar on Sharon) - the
heroine sees, that the little girl in a dark blue dress covers with the
flame and here vision disappears.
Also siren howl sounds again, announcing about arrival of darkness - and
people ran to church in searches of shelter. But not everyone made in time
- and Anna who has not time to reach an entrance of the church, finds her
death from hands of a pyramidal creature which ruthlessly breaks off a
body of the unfortunate victim on a part.
From the Supreme priestess - Christabella - Rose finds out, that she can
find Sharon only in the event that she will go to the den of "demon" - the
deserted building of hospital Brookhaven in cellar (room B151) there is a
girl being the reason of existence of darkness. Cybil decides to help
mother with searches of the daughter, and sectarians even venture to lead
heroes up to destination. But, having arrived on a place, Christabella
casually notices the image in a Rose's medallion and understands, that
Sharon is copy of Alessa, and means, she needs "to be cleared" too. Trying
to stop Rose, priestess sets on her sectarians, but Cybil protects her
friend, thus giving her time to reach Alessa's den, but also dooming
itself on victim's fate of religious fanatics. But this was not vain - in
a result Rose was able to pass dreadful nurses and to reach up to Alessa
which will open to her Absolute True about all events which had place in
the city and the truth about Sharon's essence.
Finds out that Alessa cannot penetrate into church because of blind
conviction, boundless belief of fanatics - and so she wants, that Rose has
shaken their belief, having told all the truth, and by that having opened
a way to church for Alessa. Having listened to a history of "Alessa's dark
side «, Rose decides to help the girl with realization of her main desire
- revenge, and allows her to enter her body.
And at this time sectarians found Sharon, which was hiding in the city and
preparing her for the ritual of "clarification". Cybil, captured by
members of the religious organization, tries to overpersuade mad fanatics
in every way, but eventually she was burnt for helping the "demon" - Rose
arrives to church too late to rescue the girl and cannot help her anything
more...
At last, Rose, had entered church, proclaims this Most absolute True to
sectarians. Christabella, seeing, that her belief falls, does not found
the best argument, than to pierce her enemy on religious dispute with a
ritual blade in the heart. But it was already late... Blind conviction of
sectarians was shocked and Alessa's dark world penetrated the church. From
blade's wounds in a breast Rose starts to run dark blood - darkness that
was concealed in Alessa's heart, and the dreadful world, which Rose has
brought in the body (where Alessa entered earlier), was pulled out
outside, absorbing church. We can see that really massacre begins - and
Alessa ruthlessly kills all townspeople, except her mother. The reason why
she has spared Dahlia, consists that "mother, in opinion of the child, is
similar to the God» - and in spite of on anything, Alessa loved her mother.
On this happy note Rose with Sharon leaves the city and were sent home...
But there is something strange: even outside the Silent Hill they can see
ashes everywhere, falling from heavens. And even, having arrived home,
Rose finds out, that all covered with a dense fog... And Christopher
doesn't see any fog - but he was at home too... Neither he can see his
daughter and wife who have arrived home after all events? It turns out,
that Rose and Sharon have become just lifeless shadows, the phantoms
existing only in "the foggy world" and hidden for usual people...?
In this history there will be no happy ending, in fact the Silent Hill
never lets off those who once had visited his webs...
2. MOVIE CHARACTERS
Silent Hill: The Movie brings to us quiet big list of characters. Some of
them were already seen in the game, and some people are absolutely new.
1) Sharon DaSilva
Daughter of Rose and Christopher DaSilva actually is Alessa's copy. This
cheerful girl is antithetic her second half. But, in spite of anything,
her past comes back to her, involving in dreadful events of the movie.
Eventually she remains in "the foggy world" with her mother - Rose.
The version about what happened with Sharon in the end: as we can see,
after the stage of final slaughter Sharon meets a sight with " dark Alessa
", character of the girl changing strongly - she becomes very quiet,
gloomy, silent and partly frightening - for example, the scene, when Rose
and Sharon came home, we can see that Sharon had menacing sight - and the
girl is completely not similar to itself. Perhaps, it is only
psychological consequences of the stress, the girl felt? Also we can
think, that the moment when sights of two girls had met , " dark Alessa"
became a part of Sharon - and so, having brought Sharon home, Rose took
out the " other world " from limits of Silent Hill (Thanks to Rage1986 for
supervision about changes in Sharon's character and this version).
Name: derivative of name "Cheryl" - a name of the character from the first
part with similar destiny.
Comments to shape: it is interesting, that on the blue Sharon's T-shirt
the butterfly is drawn. It is very symbolical, paying attention that the
theme of butterflies has been discovered in the game.
Actress: Jodelle Ferland - this girl also is known on a mystical serial
"Kingdom Hospital ", taken off from the motive of the novel of Stephen
King. In the movie she plays three characters: "Sharon", "Alessa" in the
childhood (flashbacks) and "dark Alessa". "This girl is special! She knows
how to play nasty and she knows how to play pure innocense"- the director
Christophe Hans admires to Jodelle's abilities to transform. By the way,
there is site of Jodelle which is situated here:
http://www.jodelle-ferland.2ya.com/. Here you can find out in detail about
a filmography of an actress, and also start asking the girl filled up with
work, this foolish fans questions such as "How do you concern to the
character from the movie", whether "Had you played Silent Hill before
shooting" or "Jodelle, have you already read Silent Pyramid s movie
analysis?" ^ __ ^
2) Rose DaSilva
Sharon's foster mother who has decided to bring a daughter in the Silent
Hill. In spite of the fact that this woman is vulnerable enough and she
does not represent image rather distributed in the western cinema "the
superman in a skirt", she will do everything to protect her daughter. In
the end Rose remains with Sharon in "the foggy world".
Comments to shape: Pay attention, that color of a Rose's suit gradually
varies from more light on reder during the film. As is known, to realize
this idea, designers had to create many variants of suits for an actress.
Prototype: at the creation of Rose's image moviemakers scooped inspiration
in Harry Mason's images from the first part of game and Heather from the
third.
Actress: the Rose role was played by the Australian actress Radha Mitchell
known by the film - Pitch Black. It is necessary to note, that she also
acted in the film - Man on Fire where she has played the woman who has
lost the daughter (her daughter was stolen and demanded for the repayment)
- as it is known, Radha communicated for a long time with women, children
of those were stolen, to understand all features of their behaviour in
critical situations. As we understand, this experience was rather useful
in Silent Hill (thanks to Sasha for the information on a Radha's role in
film "Man on Fire").
According to director's statements, Radha Mitchell ideally approached for
a role of sensitive and careful mother (though, actually actress has no
children). As Radha admits, a principal cause on which she began to act in
this film became... cutie Christophe Hans (" I think the major attraction
to me was Christophe "). It is remarkable also, that when the girl read
the script for a first time, it has seemed to her so scary, that after the
first 10-pages she was so frightened, that she had stopped reading and
gone to sleep ^ __ ^
3) Christopher DaSilva
Sharon's foster father who disagreed the idea of Rosa's trip to Silent
Hill. After his wife and the daughter vanished in Silent Hill, Christopher
bypassed the entire city with inspector Guchi - but he cannot find them
because they are placed in different worlds (Rose with Sharon - are in
"foggy" city, and her husband - in "normal"). And so, for example, in a
"school" stage Christopher and Rose were in the same room, but they cannot
see each other. During events of the film, Christopher tries to
understand, what could happen, but eventually his attempts became
ineffectual.
The actor: Sean Bean - acted in "Lord of the Rings". I think,
representation does not require.
4) Cybil Bennett
Altruistic adjusted woman - policeman from the Brahams city, ready to
endow her for the sake of others. She gets in a foggy Silent Hill when she
was following Rose and Sharon, she gets in an accident on her motorcycle.
Further she will help the main heroine with everything she could, but
eventually will die from hands of sectarians - even her reliable pistol
would not help. As the director comments, "in this foggy city cops shoot
not better than usual people".
Actress: Laurie Holden - you can learn more about her filmography on her
website http://www.laurieholdenwebsite.com/. Christophe Hans writes in his
diary the reason why this actress has been chosen for Cybil's role: "When
the first time I have seen Laurie, externally she was completely not
similar to Cybil, but I knew, that she ideally will approach for this role
because of naturalness of her movements, her internal power and beauty".
It is remarkable, that as Laurie admits that she to understand her
character better she even played SH1 - and has finished already up to the
first meeting with Cybil in cafe (!!). Here that the actress speaks about
the character in one of her interviews: "Cybil has grown in Brahams - a
small town nearby to the Silent Hill. Partly, she was alone since her
mother has died when Cybil was 13 years-old, and actually she has no
father. In Brahams was strong influence of religion, therefore it seems to
me, that Cybil's mother was really the believing woman and how tormented
she has died... It's really made scars in Cybil's soul. And because of
memoirs that happened to her mother, the girl began to stand aside of all
kinds of religions. Because of it, as it seems to me, Cybil it became
lonely, she did not have plenty of friends. But it is normal for Cybil as
she had found the calling in a life - "to serve and protect". And
especially she tries to protect children. There were different things in
her life... As it seems to me, Cybil concerns in a special way to help the
children because in her soul she would like to feel herself a mother".
5) Dahlia Gillespie
She is mother of Alessa Gillespie who loved her daughter very much, but
could not resist to opinion of the majority of fanatics because of what
there was a tragedy. Since then Gillespie lived in the foggy world, being
in the exile and the object of cult's hatred - for the long amount of time
this woman had lost mind (at least so it can seem) and had lost human
shape. Nevertheless, she is - the only in the entire city that can be free
being in the dreadful world, without fear to be killed - Darkness will not
cause her any harm... And even on the contrary - it is possible to think,
that Dahlia is under protection of the dreadful world. So, when Anna
starts to throw stones in Dahlia, it is necessary for Dahlia only to point
her finger on the girl - and there is the executioner - Pyramid Head who
immediately had executed Anna. We can think, that Alessa loved her mother
in spite of anything and the "other world" with its monsters is not aimed
at Dahlia to cause her any harm - and even on the contrary, protects
Alessa's mother from the cult. In the end Dahlia becomes the only citizen
who wasn't perished from Alessa's hands - the love between the child and
mother saved her of terrible destiny (feel a difference with the game
where Alessa had killed her mother in the end). Its unknown, is she able
to get out of "the foggy world" - but it is possible to assume, that she
wasn't...
Prototype: This character also was in the game, but in the movie Dahlia's
image has been changed to antithetic - perhaps, the only thing that
remained from game is Dahlia's habit to speak obscure phrases.
Actress: Deborah Kara Unger - she also had played in the mystical film
"White Noise", some aspects of its plot is obviously crossed with SH2
ideas. The actress describes the character in film as: "Dahlia's been
extraordinary because I think, to Christophe's credit, and certainly the
entire crew and special effects and design, he's really, really captured
the essence of her and then extended her into the psychological nightmare
that would capture the imaginations of the gaming fans. So it was a much
deeper exploration than I anticipated. I'm a big lurker on all the [web]
sites and I love the varying competing analysis on all the different
characters.... With Dahlia, it's been an extraordinary psychological
journey for me, as an actor, to embrace this walker between worlds. And,
as a mad and slightly cryptic prophet, akin to obviously the essence of
the game, this has been just a delight to play "
6) Alessa Gillespie
The girl was burnt by fanatics, her pain and hatred has generated the
dreadful world. Everything that she wanted - a satisfaction, revenge,
death of those who had caused her a pain, has forced to suffer - and the
dreadful world has enabled her to carry out this desire.
Actress: Lorry Ayers - has played Alessa 40-years-old which we can see
laying on beds in the middle of the movie and in a final stage of
"slaughter". Jodelle Ferland - has played Alessa 9-years-old in stages of
memoirs.
7) Alessa's dark side
This small spiteful girl is waiting for the revenge, and known as
"Alessa's dark side". For the first time she has appeared during that
moment when Alessa's hatred began to be splashed out too much, causing
suffering all successively.
About dark Alessa's occurrence: "dark Alessa" - the next example familiar
to us from games of SH-series of the concept, that in the "other world"
the person can exist in several forms. Director Christophe Hans speaks
about occurrence of several forms of Alessa in the movie, marking
symbolism and philosophical sense of the given concept: " Perhaps, the
common link of all SH histories is the idea about existence of a place
where not only a reality, but also the human person can be divided in half
. This place where the set of measurements is crossed and where you can
exist at several levels. These different realities are reflected as
division in the character. Characters can be divided and exist in several
forms, as Mary and Maria in SH2 or Alessa in SH1 ".
Actress: Jodelle Ferland.
8) The nurse in a red attire (Lisa)
This nurse looked after the scorched girl in hospital, but Alessa's hatred
was so strong, that she has vented it on the poor nurse, having blinded
her and having placed her soul in the dreadful "other world" forever. We
had meet her in the same room where we find scorched Alessa - apparently,
the nurse constantly cries and for the certain reasons doesn't want, that
someone saw her disfigured face.
The version about the reasons to disfigure her face: there is an
interesting version among fans of a series exists why Alessa has
disfigured the face of the nurse: after burning Alessa understood, that
now she couldn't be helped even with plastic surgery. Her human life is
over. Why? For what? With even greater hatred her heart was filled. At
this time the nurse with beautiful young face has decided to look at her
wounds, on her charred skin. And spoiled Alessa wanted, that this face has
regretted about it, that it has been spoiled, that it will never able to
see anymore And this had happened (thanks to ChPernat for this version).
Prototype: a prototype of the nurse is the girl named Lisa Garland from
the first part of the game which also appeared as prisoner of the dreadful
Alessa's world (but, there nobody blinded her).
9) Colin
The strange cleaner working 30 years ago at Midwich school. We can see him
as the person from Alessa's memoirs, we can see his corpse in "the foggy
world" and we can see him as the monster in "the dreadful world". For some
reasons Alessa hated him most of anybody - to understand it, is enough to
look only on a corpse of this person in the "other world" or his appearing
as that awful monster in "the dreadful world". Even Christophe Hans in his
diary asks the question, what did this cleaner do to deserve such destiny:
"Of course the big question was "what did this guy DO to deserve to become
a monster?" ". Some people consider that he has beaten Alessa, - the
others - that he had raped her. Nevertheless, we cannot find the answer to
this question in the movie.
10) Thomas Gucci
The police inspector participating in Alessa's rescue in the day of Silent
Hill fire - his father lived in this city and was the barbershop owner,
but he died during a fire. As we can see, Gucci has rescued the girl
(therefore has burned on palms), but he was not able to rescue his own
father 30 years ago - and so, he knows the bitterness of loss of the close
person...
This quiet and judicious person recommends Christopher to not to get into
troubles. Also he respects Cybil Bennett very much and considers that she
is better, than somebody can cope with search of disappeared people in the
Silent Hill.
Surname: the surname of the character is sending to the first part of game
where the policeman named Gucci, engaged in investigation of an affair
about drug dealing, he died, the reasons reminding heart attack for some
time before events of the first part of game appeared. Nevertheless, there
no other connection with Gucci, except his surname - character from the
game.
Actor: Kim Coates
11) Christabella
The Supreme priestess of the religious organization piously trusting in
the correctness and acted in the ritual of "clarification" of Alessa
Gillespie - she trusted, that the girl was a witch, a malicious demon and
required clarification by a flame... The ideology of this woman consists
in destroying (to burn) everything, than she cannot operate and not able
to understand. She with ease selects lives of other people and places
under a threat lives of her colleagues, but she terribly afraid for own
precious life (for example, the moment when Cybil edifies the pistol on
Christabella, testifies). Eventually Alessa tears apart hated Christabella
literally. Rather a vivid example of the "unequivocal - negative"
character.
Name: in spite of the fact that the name of the given character is
borrowed from the girl from comics on Silent Hill (Silent Hill Dying
Inside, Silent Hill Dead\Alive), actually there's no connection between
these characters. It is not necessary to be an expert in a SH-series to
understand, that the idea with a name is simply advertising course, called
to excite fans.
Prototype: if you will watch closely Christabella's behaviour and mimicry,
you will notice, that the image of the character is based on Claudia from
the third part of game. Nevertheless, if in the game it was impossible to
name Claudia a negative character then we have received that negative
character as priestess of the religious organization in full sense of this
word.
Actress: Alice Krige - She is known by film "Star Trek: First Contact".
The actress admits in her interview, that she even played SH before
shootings - but, not for long.
12) Anna
The girl who had broke interdictions of the sect and went to the demon s
territory to find some food for her mother. Cybil and Rose met Anna at the
Grand Hotel - for the certain reasons she fiercely hates Dahlia.
Eventually, when darkness comes, the girl instead of running in a refuge,
is late at the entrance to shower Dahlia with stones - and, in result had
no time to rescue and perishes from hands of "Beast" (more familiar to us
as Pyramid Head).
Actress: Tanya Allen
13) Eleanor
Inconsolable Anna's mother who grieves over loss of the daughter - but
Christabella calms the woman.
14) Adam
Christabella's helper - follows to all instructions of the priestess.
15) Margaret
The nun working in a shelter situated in Toluca's district who has founded
the little girl, left at the doors of the building, whom Christopher and
Rose DaSilva will adopt later.
3. CREATURES
As the director of film writes in his Internet-diary, there are some basic
versions about the true essence of monsters in the movie: the first
consists that they are usual people - the townspeople, Alessa has vented
the aggression on them, people in "Hell". Other position is based that
monsters can be hallucinations, generation of human mentality. But, any of
these explanations is not the *only* one. Many variants of interpretations
are possible.
Anyhow, the true evil in the movie - not monsters, but people... Those
people which scoffed at the little girl 30 years ago. And monsters should
be perceived by the spectator as something like wild animals in the
jungle and the main heroine must escape them during the movie (" The
monsters are like animals in a jungle, more likely, and you have to walk
among them and escape them ") - explained Gans
In spite of the fact that in the majority of the western horror films the
effect of fear is under construction that we do not see monsters till the
last moment when they suddenly will jump out of any corner, frightening us
only one suddenness of the occurrence, in the Silent Hill: The Movie it
goes in the other way: these creatures are not trying to hide. They can
see us and they can attack openly. And, the most important, we cannot
counterattack the equally - and so the only exit is attempt to rescue by
running away. The matter is that, as against of many horror - movies (for
example, notorious movie - Resident Evil), the director Christophe Gans
did not wanted to emphasize on an action and remained to the true
traditions of the game - and so we shall not see mass shooting. Moreover,
during the movie the weapon - only Cybil had pistol, and the main heroine
was without any weapons to protect her. The matter is that when we put the
person with the weapon opposite to the monster, the monster starts to be
perceived simply as "the enemy who is necessary for destroying" - and with
death of the monster, also the source of fear automatically disappears. As
we can see, Christophe Gans tried to not to use similar standards, having
made monsters not simply "easily killed enemies", but something big -
something, that is impossible to kill and that always is near to us. As a
vivid example - the stage in a cellar of Brookhaven hospital when the
heroine makes the way through group of nurses - creatures are so close,
that it is possible to touch them, but from the weapon at the main heroine
- only a flashlight with which any attempt to kill enemies will terminate
pitiable.
Being the fans of the game, founders of the movie respects Team Silent for
their work, decided to use the monsters from the game in the movie (made
only some changes in their design). Only exception became created for two
days by moviemakers the creature "Cleaner" which Christophe Gans counts
precisely the humble contribution to the Silent Hill mythology ("He is my
humble contribution to the Silent Hill Mythology").
It is remarkable, that monsters were played by actors (dancers) alive,
according to Gans s words, has allowed to inhale a life in awful creatures
and to make their movements much more interesting.
1) Grey child
Creature with big head, they are reminds us children whom Rose had met in
the beginning of the movie. Their design was based on "children" from the
first part of game, but changes were made - for example if you look
narrowly at the body of "grey children" you will notice, that in some
places their darkened skin slowly decays, as if someone tried to burn out
small creatures (presumably, this detail is connected to Alessa's
destiny). According to Gans's records in the diary, the design of monsters
is "the strange, naive feeling of cruelty inherent only to children ", but
also "the reflection of fear and alarm of parents".
2) Lying Figure (armless thing)
This creature appeared from the second part of the game that attacked
Cybil in the city. The basic difference consists that if in SH2 these
monsters simply "sneezed" now they release a jet of the black boiling
liquid corroding everything, on what it has got - such jet the monster
nearly has not burnt out Cybil. Presumably, specificity of burning attack
of the creature is connected by that the cult has made with small Alessa.
It is remarkable also, that LF - the only aggressive monster, appearing
and not depend on the arrival of Darkness.
3) Creeper
Huge cockroaches with funny "faces", they attacked Rose and Cybil at
dreadful school. It is the only kind of creatures completely made by means
of computer schedules.
The comment of fans: to understand better the attitude of fans to
occurrence of this monster in the movie, we'll look, that st-MK comments
about - she is fan on cockroaches: "cockroaches... Kawaii... I'd like to
eat them!" (Thanks to st-MK for the comment) As we can see from this
comment, introduction of cockroaches in the movie was quite expedient,
since each occurrence of that monster causes the true storm of emotions
among fans ^ __ ^
4) Pyramid Head (in the movie he is mentioned only as "the Beast")
Met at the school and near the church the creature in the strange clothes
reminding an apron or a skirt (some fans are inclined to assume, that the
clothes are made of a human skin), carrying a grey pyramid on a head, and
dragging a huge hatchet, with ease cutting through the steel. It also
severely finishes with Anna when she decides to shower Dahlia Gillespie
with stones.
About changes: In comparison with game, an image of the Pyramid changed.
First, founders of the movie, trying to bring to the "other world" a
certain share of feminity and matriarchality, have decided, as they admit,
to show the Pyramid "from female prospect" - therefore the creature now
goes with a naked torso and in a skirt. Second, if in the game the body of
the monster, in opinion of the director, looked deformed enough in the
movie they have decided to make him big and strong character similar to
the God of War from the movie "Star Gate" or to the Egyptian god of death
- Anubis (" In the game he has a very deformed body almost a hunchback.
Instead we decided to make him a tall, powerful character a little like
the Warrior God in "Stargate" that Patrick Tatopoulos created. Why?
Because for me there is a little of Anibus, the Egyptian God of Death in
the Red Pyramid " - Gans) writes. Thirdly, they have removed firm gloves
of the pathologist from the hands of Pyramid. Fourthly, the form of a head
of the creature had changed - according to comments of founders, it has
been made after several attempts to use an "original" variant of a head,
and they have faced some problems with reproduction of the computer
character in the movie and have understood they it wasn't to save the
primary form of his head. And, at last, they had changed color of the
Pyramid's head from red to grey. WHAT FOR moviemakers made such a criminal
blasphemy (it is difficult to name differently) - only one the Great Dog
could know that ^ _ ^
About the actor: as is known, the Pyramid and the cleaner was played by
the same actor (Thanks to st-MK for the information)
About occurrence PH and LF in the movie: some fans of game consider, that
occurrence of such monsters as "the Lying Figure" and Pyramid Head in the
movie, contradicts a plot of the game and generally they are out of place.
Well... What I can tell...? Yes, they are contradicting. But, if you would
examine a plot of the Silent Hill: The Movie so critically it looks like
that this movie - is one big contradiction with a plot of game (look only
on to Alessa's premise in Brookhaven instead of Alchemilla). It would be a
mistake to represent a plot of the movie, as something closely connected
to the game. Therefore, be simply pleased, that for the sake of a
picture's rating, founders have pushed in film one of your favourite
monster. ^ __ ^
5) Dark Nurse
Nurses appearing in Brookhaven's cellar in the dirty clothes, spoiled
faces are bandaged. These creatures often in a coma, and they only react
to the light and direct contact. They are armed with scalpels and rusty
steel pipes. This design is based on an image of nurses from the second
part of the game. Behaviour of this creature (to stand quietly, yet she
will notice victim and then to attack) reminds "Dummies" from the second
part of game.
6) Janitor
Strange cleaner Colin working at school whom Alessa hated, has fallen a
victim of her revenge in the "other world" (we can see a corpse of the
cleaner in a toilet at "foggy" school) and has turned to an awful monster.
We meet him at alternative school as a monster - in spite of the fact that
the body of the blinded creature, is bent half-and-half, the cleaner still
tries to creep - because of terrible sounds issued by him we can
understand, that Colin feels an infernal pain. What did this guy do to
deserve a destiny like this!?
About some features of design: According to Christophe Gans's comments in
his Internet-diary, the concept of shape of this monster is connected to
something, that the cleaner has made to Alessa, and has deserved a destiny
like this ("what did this guy DO to deserve to become a monster? - This
question was pivotal in helping us determine the look" - Gans marks
connection of a sin of the cleaner with appearance of this monster). As
fans of the game mark, the cleaner is tied in such pose to not have an
opportunity to make a pleasure himself, and his twitching language speaks
about his excessive lust, that also can concern to Colin's person and type
of actions accomplished to a little Alessa (Thanks to the-fly for the
version).
About creation: the cleaner - the only monster in the game which has been
thought up directly by founders of film, and all happened spontaneously:
at the shooting of the movie Gans decided to enter into a stage something
shocking: and for 2 days this new monster was created and has appeared in
the movie. Nevertheless, entering in game the new creature, for Christophe
Gans was important the attitude to this innovation of founders of the
game, and he even has asked Akira Yamaoka's opinion - and fortunately, the
permanent sound producer of a SH-series so liked this monster, that he
even has asked a permission to use this monster for a future game! (Gans
writes proudly in his diary about that: "In fact he [Akira Yamaoka] asked
if he could use it for a future game"). The innovation was valid; at my
personal sight this monster is one of the best in film.
7) Alessa
Adhered to a skeleton soaring above the ground reminding hospital bed,
Alessa appears in the last stage of the movie to punish all sectarians,
having chopped them on pieces by something similar to the long strings of
a barbed wire. Probably, the design of this creature was based on design
of the final boss of the second part games ("Mary").
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COPYRIGHTS.
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CREDITS.
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CONCLUSION.
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And so, the time has come to draw this guide to a close. As these words are
being written, the PA is far from finished - it will long hours of work for
the theoreticians and translators before they can bring you the actual final
version of this guide. For now - wait, think, analyze.
As the sun beyond my window sets, I once again ponder the unanswered questions
and try to fit it all together. Not today, not tomorrow, but some day these
mysteries will fall. But a theoretician must never rest - as of yet we are
expecting two new additions to the SH franchise - the movie and the fifth
game. All of them will contain mysteries of their own. Again we will spend
sleepless nights assaulting their bastions. This battle never stops, but that
is the way we like it.
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EOD (End of Document)