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Chapter 2 Study

An archived study of the first book in Lewis' theological science fiction Space Trilogy.

Chapter 2 Study

Postby Kanakaberaka » February 5th, 2006, 11:23 pm

Synopsis: While Weston takes care of Harry, Devine welcomes Ransom into the parlor of The Rise. Ransom can tell that Devine has not changed his mercenary ways since college. Yet he needs a place to stay for the night so he plays along when Devine pumps him for personal information. Ransom tells him that he's totaly cut off from the rest of the world to maintain his privacy. Devine slips Ransom a micky finn. Ransom has a prophetic dream while knocked out. As he begins to regain conciousness he overhears the plans of Weston and Devine. Ransom makes a desperate attempt to escape only to be knocked unconcious again.
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This is small but important chapter. Devine takes his time decanting the liquor for Ransom as he pumps him for personal information. This gives the reader much biographical data about who Ransom is. So there is a dual purpose to this section to the story. We learn that Ransom values his solitude and loves hiking. Devine suggests that Ransom must have enjoyed the army. However, Ransom corrects his impression by explaining that a military march was the direct opposite from what Ransom enjoyed. This also lets us know that Ransom had some military service.

But Ransom is not the only one giving out information. Devine refers to Weston as a "strong colleague". While Devine funds their project, it is Weston who calls the shots. Devine is in fact a mere toady. Devine does not care, as long as the professor's experiments are profitable.

Devine is stealthful enough to slip the knock-out drug into Ransom's water rather than the freshly opened liquor. Lewis gives us Ransom's perspective while being drugged, total confusion! And then Ransom has what seems like a prophetic dream sequece. Weston, Devine and Ransom are in a walled garden. Stars are overhead in spite of the fact that they stand in sunshine. Weston and Devine climb over the wall and Ransom attempts to follow, only to be hindered by broken glass on top of the wall (could the glass shards have been on the floor in reality?). As Ransom looks down he observes some "queer people" enter through a hidden door in the garden's wall. They return Weston and Devine, both unconcious, to the garden and leave. The strange people are not descibed in any detail and there in no hint that they are extra-terrestrials. I interpret the sunny walled garden as representing our Earth. But I really do not understand the meaning of the whole dream.

Here's an important note to Stanley about the fate of simple Harry; Weston would prefer to take Harry with them, but Devine dissagrees : "The boy was ideal," said Weston sulkily. "Incapable of serving humanity and only too likely to propagate idiocy. He was the sort of boy who in a civilized community would be automatically handed over to a state laboratory for experimental purposes."

"I dare say. But in England he is the sort of boy in whom Scotland Yard might conceivably feel an interest. - retorts Devine.

So you see, Stanley, killing Harry would have caused more trouble than forcing him along. Harry was probably sent home to his mother with a story about Ransom deciding to stay with his "colleagues". It would make a perfect alibi because Harry did not have the intellegence to understand what Weston and Devine were really up to.
And yet, Weston expresses reluctance to chose Ransom for their purpose. Weston sees more value in Ransom's misguided intellegence than in Harry's mentaly deficient life. Devine cares only for his own life, and so he wants to spare Harry to avoid detection by the police.

I liked the fact that Ransom attempts a desperate escape and almost makes it out the front door before being slugged. It add tension to the storyline and portrays Ransom as more than just a passive victim.

so it goes...
Last edited by Kanakaberaka on February 6th, 2006, 5:43 pm, edited 1 time in total.
so it goes...
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Kanakaberaka
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Original Chapter 2 Comments

Postby Kanakaberaka » February 6th, 2006, 5:36 pm

so it goes...
User avatar
Kanakaberaka
Wardrobian
 
Posts: 1030
Joined: Jul 1999
Location: Just outside of Rego Park, NYC


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