(no subject)

[themidnightgirl]

The shore line was peaceful and flat, and the calm sea bumped it playfully along the sandy beach. In the distance a beautiful island covered with palm trees and flowers beckoned invitingly from the sparkling water.

"Nothing can possibly go wrong now," cried the Humbug happily, and as soon as he'd said it he leaped from the car, as if stuck by a pin, and sailed all the way to the little island.

"And we'll have plenty of time,'' answered Tock, who hadn't noticed that the bug was missing--and he, too, suddenly leaped into the air and disappeared.

"It certainly couldn't be a nicer day," agreed Milo, who was too busy looking at the road to see that the others had gone. And in a split second he was gone also.

He landed next to Tock and the terrified Humbug on the tiny island, which now looked completely different. Instead of palms and flowers, there were only rocks and the twisted stumps of long-dead trees. It certainly didn't seem like the same place they had seen from the road.

"Pardon me," said Milo to the first man who happened by; "can you tell me where I am?"

"To be sure," said Canby; "you're on the Island of Conclusions. Make yourself at home. You're apt to be here for some time."

"But how did we get here?" asked Milo, who was still a bit puzzled by being there at all.

"You jumped, of course," explained Canby. "That's the way most everyone gets here. It's really quite simple: every time you decide something without having a good reason, you jump to Conclusions whether you like it or not. It's such an easy trip to make that I've been here hundreds of times."

"But this is such an unpleasant-looking place," Milo remarked.

"Yes, that's true," admitted Canby; "it does look much better from a distance."

As he spoke, at least eight or nine more people sailed onto the island from every direction possible.

"Well, I'm going to jump right back," announced the Humbug, who took two or three practice bends, leaped as far as he could, and landed in a heap two feet away.

"That won't do at all," scolded Canby, helping him to his feet. "You can never jump away from Conclusions. Getting back is not so easy. That's why we're so terribly crowded here."

Comments

[jonnyargles.livejournal.com]

you can't SAY it's an allegory, that defeats the whole point. It's more of a parable, really; like the difference between a metaphor and a simile.

[borusa.livejournal.com]

Well, it's not my text. It's from "The Phantom Tollbooth" by Norton Juster.

And if I don't say it's allegory, then nobody will have a clue why I posted it.

[jonnyargles.livejournal.com]

Oh, you'd be surprised what people can rationalise when they're looking for satire and allegory, and any comment from people whose opinions are being sought.

Especially Cammies.

Besides, an allegory is a tale that exists alongside a message.

Like the child who didn't eat his greens and then was eaten by a monster who also didn't like greens. If he had eaten his greens then the monster wouldn't have liked the taste of him and would have spat him out.

[borusa.livejournal.com]

And you think this isn't an allegory because?

[jonnyargles.livejournal.com]

I suppose in allegories I like to see more defined characters who are lessons AND real people.

I mean, would you call Aesop's Fables allegories?

Of course, this is personal taste, so I'm not claiming any authority on this.

[crocodilewings.livejournal.com]

And if I don't say it's allegory, then nobody will have a clue why I posted it.

Between eating their crayons and falling down, I think they may have possibly managed to find time to figure it out.

[borusa.livejournal.com]

No, most people would think "Oh, an incomprehensible LJ post. Who's next on my friends list."

[crocodilewings.livejournal.com]

So it was more of an attention-grabber rather than being just a large idiot-board indicating "this narrative, distinctly detached from reality as it is, contains hidden significance"...

I can live with that. Doesn't make it any less opaque.

[kinkykay.livejournal.com]

Yay, Tock the watchdog that goes tick! I really need to find my copy of the Phantom Tollbooth now, I haven't read it in years..

[themadone.livejournal.com]

Can't really blame people for jumping to conclusions given the information we've been given so far. It is all very doom'n'gloom from a players' perspective.