I believe that anyone can gain some sense of tranquility by reading his simple and methodic entries, which detail his love for the “House” (his name for the labyrinth) and his slow discovery of how he came to be. Throughout Piranesi, Clarke collects the thoughts of Piranesi as he lives his life in an infinite labyrinth of halls, statues, and vestibules. I tried to get hold of them, to bring them into sharper focus, but like a dream they faded and were gone.Piranesi, the protagonist of the novel Piranesi by Susanna Clarke, takes you with him on his thrilling pursuit for the truth of his own origins. And all of the images-no more than fragments or ghosts of images really-seemed to coalesce around the strange word, “Batter-Sea”. At the same time, there was a sudden blare of noise and a metallic taste on my tongue. I saw a black scribble against a grey Sky and a flicker of bright red words drifted towards me-white words on a black background. But as I stood, casting my net into the Waters of the Lower Staircase, an image rose up before me. ![]() I was not thinking about my conversation with the Other I was thinking of my supper and of the beauty of the Statues in the Evening Light. In the early evening I went to the Eighth Vestibule to fish. He nodded, but his anxiety levels remained high and he left a short while after. But the water will be no more than ankle deep and it will not reach us.” The Second Southern Hall-two Halls east of here-will be flooded for an hour. “In five minutes, the Tide will reach the Sixth Vestibule and mount the Staircase. Since then the Other has been afraid of the Tides. (I never really know.) This happened in the Sixth Month of the Year I named the Constellations. As soon as he was able to walk, he took himself off without a word. I fetched him a blanket and hot soup made of seaweed and mussels. Eventually the Tides cast him up on the Pavement of the Third Western Hall (a distance of seven Halls from where he began). Several times he was completely immersed, and he expected to drown. The Waters plucked him up and carried him away, sweeping him through Doors and battering him against Walls and Statues. Vast quantities of Water poured into the surrounding Halls, including the one where the Other was. A strong Tide from the Northern Halls rose in the Tenth Vestibule, followed moments later by an equally strong Tide from the Eastern Halls in the Twelfth Vestibule. Once the Other was in the Eighth Northern Hall. You have put this in as a control question.” Now if I were to say that I remembered Batter-Sea and then described the way there, you would know I was lying. Very cunningly you have chosen a word that sounds like a place. So you have asked me a question with a nonsense word in it-Batter-Sea. For example, if I were to describe the Path to the Ninety-Sixth Northern Hall, you would not know if my directions were accurate because you have never been there. But you have no way of judging the truth of my claim. ![]() I just said that I can describe the way to any Hall that I have previously visited. “You need to find out if I am telling the truth. “What am I doing?” asked the Other, smiling. ![]() “I see what you are doing!” I started to laugh. Then: “Oh!” I exclaimed, light suddenly dawning. There is nothing in the World corresponding to that combination of sounds.” “Batter-Sea is not a word,” I said at last. I could see that he was observing me closely and I was sure that this question was crucial to whatever research he was conducting, but as to how I was supposed to answer it, I had not the least idea. I waited for the Other to explain, but he said nothing. “What about Batter-Sea?” asked the Other. I could describe the notable Statues you would see on the Walls, and, with a reasonable degree of accuracy, I could tell you their positions-which Wall they stood against, whether North, South, East or West-and how far along the Wall they stood. I could name every Hall you would need to travel through. Providing that I had visited it before, I could immediately tell you how to get there. “Well,” I said, “suppose you were to name a Hall many days journey from here. “Give me some examples of the things you remember.” He is often like this: he forgets to say Hello or Goodbye or to ask me how I am. “As a question it lacks specificity,” I said. I sat on the Pavement, cross-legged, and waited for his questions. ![]() “It’s natural to be curious.” He placed his shining device on the Empty Plinth and turned around. “What are you trying to find out? Do you have a hypothesis about me?”
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