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Post by Dante on Mar 15, 2012 12:28:51 GMT -5
~~~ The pattern is holding! Why, who, and where, every eight days. Thus: Next Friday, maybe we'll have when, what, or how... We have another graph paper illustration - and what looks like another character name, a ludicrous one, but certainly not one I'd put past the sort of book I expect this to be. It's harder to see how this question might be relevant, though. The ink and the octopus are clearly linked, but is the octopus figurative or something genuinely involved in the story? Are we talking about real octopus ink or, more likely, the sort of ink you might use to write essays or print newspapers? But one thing's for sure: It hasn't been used up, it's been taken. This also reminds us of the ink-stained jacket in the U.A., the octopus-like Carmelita submarine, and Ink, the Incredibly Deadly Viper. Are these connections relevant? Is that a wrong question?
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Post by B. on Mar 15, 2012 13:50:25 GMT -5
We have a pattern now! It does indeed appear to be every eight days, and I agree that we will probably have a When, what and a how. However six weeks does seem a little short- either they are planning something else, or the promotion cycle will start again.
It is again on Graph paper, similar to the first one. Does this mean they were drawn by the same person? And was the Ellington Feint one drawn by someone else then....... Qwerty....the name has grown on me. A Quagmire perhaps? "Books for notes or secrets": I can only assume this refers to a commonplace book or a diary of some sort. Or maybe a VFD training manual (if such things exist)? I suppose we can now also assume that the book will be written in First person.
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Post by Christmas Chief on Mar 15, 2012 14:04:35 GMT -5
The QWERTY keyboard is the standard layout for most typing machines, which supports the "ink" theory mentioned above. "Extra pages tucked in the back of a book" - I think maybe this might be referring to the end-page in hardcover novels. There's also a large space between the text and the illustration ... are gaps (such as the one in the girl's hair) becoming a theme here? I wonder if these drawings come from the same piece of graph paper?
Edit: Hmm, was I reading that wrong, then? Instead of "extra pages tucked in the back of a book, on which one can transcribe notes or secrets," does it actually mean "extra pages tucked in the back of a [commonplace] book designed for notes and secrets"?
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Post by Groge on Mar 15, 2012 14:10:39 GMT -5
Octopus, tentacles in a shape of a ? Implying Great Unknown? I know it won't be the Great Unknown but could be a subtle reference at what people might think it could be. if you know what I mean?
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Post by Christmas Chief on Mar 15, 2012 14:20:05 GMT -5
I think that the fact the octopus is an aquatic animal, and that the tentacles do in fact conveniently curve into the shape of a question mark, are possible indicators of a Great Unknown appearance. How would Lemony use this to approach the Question Mark from another angle? Also, the octopus looks alarmed: why?
Edit: Could this text, and indeed the text of its predecessor, be written on the secret pages referenced? If it's an excerpt from the novel, there's clearly no text accompanying it; perhaps these are the key phrases other volunteers have transcribed from the author's notes.
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Post by jman on Mar 15, 2012 15:20:22 GMT -5
I had the impression that Qwerty was the name of the octopus. His expression certainly looks blank in the drawing...
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Post by Dante on Mar 15, 2012 15:31:17 GMT -5
That's actually quite a nice idea, jman. Maybe somebody keeps a pet octopus in this novel. And called it Qwerty... for some reason. Typewriter connection, perhaps, via ink.
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Post by soufflé on Mar 15, 2012 16:14:43 GMT -5
I agree. I think Qwerty could be the name of the octopus, as a reference to a typewriter, which would also fit with the "ink" idea. The possibility of this having to do with the Carmelita is interesting, although that submarine comes into the story much later. Maybe an earlier submarine was built similarly?
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Post by B. on Mar 15, 2012 16:33:53 GMT -5
Or maybe Qwerty is an intimate object? That would explain the "blank" expression. Qwerty could be a typewriter, young Lemony's first typewriter.....and it has run out of ink.
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Post by Dante on Mar 15, 2012 16:52:05 GMT -5
I think what appeals to me about the octopus interpretation is that it links question, quotation, and illustration. Maybe the octopus, Qwerty's, ink was being collected... and then it was taken away by someone for an unknown purpose? Hard to see why that would be a big deal, though. But it looks like what the clues are leading us to.
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Post by bryan on Mar 15, 2012 17:25:57 GMT -5
It's interesting that two of the so far three promotions have been about some sort of aquatic animal.
Also, I don't know why it would be so, but maybe the octopus is a secret? It IS written on a piece of paper that might have been tucked in the back of a book, and the top background paper looks like a book page.
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Post by Hermes on Mar 15, 2012 17:29:35 GMT -5
Well,.my 'weekly message' theory has clearly been disproved.
I, too, though it natural to suppose that Qwerty was the octopus, though I'm not honestly sure he does look blank - he strikes me as , I don't know - puzzled? Exasperated?
Just a note about the question mark - what Mr Snicket said was that the new series would explore the other side of the question mark shown in the last illustration to The End - and that isn't the Great Unknown (the underwater being); it's just a pattern in the water. I think it symbolises the same thing - the great unknown, the uncertainty of life - but we shouldn't get our hopes up too much about the monster/submarine.
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Post by Groge on Mar 15, 2012 19:02:56 GMT -5
Or maybe Qwerty is an intimate object? That would explain the "blank" expression. Qwerty could be a typewriter, young Lemony's first typewriter.....and it has run out of ink. I really like this theory. Links together nicely bar the whole secret page, drawing thing. But I like the ink/ typewriter thing!
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Post by JTB on Mar 16, 2012 11:59:45 GMT -5
I agree with Brunch. It would seem almost natural for a character in this universe to name his (assuming it's Lemony) typewriter - a tool that is so essential to him - Qwerty, the universal tag of a typing machine.
The octopus and ink are obviously related, as said before, but I don't see much of a relation between "Qwerty" and the illustration, unless the octopus is actually named Qwerty, also mentioned before.
While I don't think heavily relying on symbolism yields a lot of evidence, I can't help but notice that the "seahorse" statue resembled an S or the Lachrymose Leech from the Beatrice Letters and now the tentacles of this octopus (codename Qwerty) somewhat resemble question marks.
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Post by csc on Mar 16, 2012 13:13:24 GMT -5
I have a weird idea but here it is- perhaps Qwerty is indeed the name of the squid/octopus and his owner got his ink from it? But either the squid/octopus disappeared or something happened to it and it stopped producing ink. Just random theories.
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