ASSIGNMENT 3:5 — THE SOUNDS OF ALLUSIONS

1. Find three examples of names that need to be spoken aloud in order to catch the allusion. Discuss the examples as well as the reading technique that requires you to read aloud in order to make connections. Why does King want us to read aloud?

Dr. Joseph Hovaugh — The doctor is introduced to us on page sixteen, his full name laid bare and unassumingly against the eggshell white of the page. At first, I skimmed past it, treating the man’s two names as separate, the jet of air we ‘express’ when pronouncing the strident ‘ph’ in our mindspace cutting cleanly between “Joseph” and “Hovaugh.” However, something seemed suspicious with the entrance of Mary and the reference to Dr. John on the next page. Biblical references and names filled these pages, but still, I did not realize the allusion of the doctor’s name. Only when I read the exchange between Dr. John Eliot and Dr. Joseph Hovaugh did the allusion become clear to me. In dialogue they say:

“Yellowstone,” said Dr. Hovaugh.
“Joe . . . Joe, we’ve talked about this.”
“It’s in the book,” said Dr. Hovaugh… (King 46)

Finding myself subconsciously mouthing their conversation and the subsequent dialogue tags, I discovered that the doctor’s name sounded similar to “Jehovah,” the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The repetition of “Joe” juxtaposed against the doctor’s surname clarified the sound. Through my hushed utterances that soon scaled to firm declarations I found the connection. The character’s first name may also come from the name of the biblical Mary’s husband, but seems to be a red herring written within the bounds of the religious motif (although Dr. Joseph Hovaugh does interact with Mary first in the novel). And indeed, the doctor speaks to Mary about the garden, referring to the Edenic paradise of Genesis, and with an air of authority muses upon “[getting] a pair of peacocks” (King 17). The pairing of animals was never mentioned in the biblical creation story, but was a prominent feature of the great flood narrative. This borrowing from various places of the bible alongside the duality of references in the doctor’s first name indicates a thoughtful teasing and reimagining of the Christian mythos for the purposes of creating a new narrative.

Louie, Ray, and Al — Latisha takes orders from three men from Manitoba in the final section of the novel. Similar to the previous allusion I’ve found, when these characters are introduced, the names are divided. The introductions, peppered with both narrative and dialogical description, separate the names, but when Latisha brings them together and strings them cleanly by saying “Louie, Ray, Al” (King 334), the pun is summoned to life. Their names are a reference to Louis Riel, Métis leader and a controversial figure in Canadian history. The famous—or infamous—rebel of the Red River Colony (and here, King continues the allusion geographically, as this colony is situated in what is now called Manitoba and the men are from the same province) seems to come alive within Louie’s response to the prohibition on fishing on Parliament Lake. In a mocking tone, he prods fun at the court order, saying “boy, you guys really take your fishing serious out here” (336). Louis Riel’s distaste of the Canadian government seems to revive itself within the sarcastic jeer of this customer.

Polly Hantos — I’ve discussed Pocahontas in my previous blog entries and naturally, when I came across this name I made the connection to the daughter of Chief Powhatan with ease. Reciting the name affirmed the allusion, but it was the context that truly brought this allusion to life. Her name is catalogued with others such as “Sally Jo Weyha” (Sacagawea) to illustrate a “tight community of Mexicans, Italians, Greeks, along with a few Indians, some Asians and whites, all waiting in the shadows of the major studios, working as extras, fighting for bit parts in Westerns, playing Indians again and again and again” (King 182). Pocahontas in particular is infamous for being a romanticized figure, conjured into a Disney fantasy in the social consciousness of the white settler. In other words, she’s written as an ideal stereotype of the Indigenous people, and ultimately becomes a shallow depiction of the Indigenous culture. This is reflected in Polly Hontas’ inability to break into bigger parts, forever playing Indians—we do not even know if Polly Hontas is Indigenous or not and the misnamed role of ‘Indians’ highlights a tension between white settler perspectives and Indigenous identity—in Westerns which are infamous for their stereotypical depictions of the Indigenous. Furthermore, the passage ends with the repetition of “again,” perhaps referring to the vicious and relentless cycle of stereotyping that passes down from generation to generation, like a curse controlled by the “major studios” or the dominant force of the industry—of society.

King wants us to read aloud to collapse that troublesome distinction of written culture versus oral culture, to destroy the boundaries of written and spoken word. The novel makes great use of dialogue, colored with the voices of a myriad of characters that converse across the many pages of King’s tome. With so much dialogue, I can notice an interesting phenomenon while I read.  I am constantly perceiving these stories has written but simultaneously, I am constantly engaging with the language as something spoken. King’s courting of the language’s sound requires then, for us to participate with the orality of his text. To ignore such an element would mean a failure to access complete comprehension of King’s narrative. The referential discourse of Green Grass Running Water would lose its ties to the extratextual realm without that bridge of orality, and their meanings would lack completion, fullness, and ultimately effectiveness. Some may argue this potentiality for failure is a weakness on King’s part, but I disagree wholly. It shows a weakness on our part: our laziness and inability to bring those two realms of narration together.

Works Cited:

King, Thomas. Green Grass Running Water. Toronto: Harper Collins, 2007. Print.

“Louis Riel.” Louis Riel. Historica Canada, n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2016.

“Oral Traditions.” Oral Traditions. First Nations Studies Program, 2009. Web. 20 Mar. 2016. <http://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/home/culture/oral-traditions.html>.

“The Riel Rebellion: Background.” The Riel Rebellion: Background. Goldi Productions Ltd, 2007. Web. 21 Mar. 2016. <http://firstpeoplesofcanada.com/fp_metis/fp_metis_background.html>.