Senses in a Different World

From our discussion in class today I think it's pretty safe to say that just about everyone is confused about part IV. However, by dissecting it piece by piece I think it really helps us to find meaning in each page, which is important because there are only five. One thing we touched upon in class today, which I found very interesting, was the evocation of the senses we see in part IV. The narrator gives us numerous descriptive images that appeal to our eyes. She/he gives a sense of touch by describing the weight of "the body" and the feel of Friday's hair and temperature of his skin. She appeals to our sense of smell by proposing the faint smell of lilac, and the smell of dust. However, there is no reference of speech until the very last page, which is barely speech at all. I think this lack of emphasis puts even more emphasis on the 'hole' that exists which we know to be silence. On the last page, it reads "'Friday,' I say, I try to say,..." which is evidence that she has trouble speaking, just like Friday does throughout the novel. The last paragraph also beings with "His (Friday's) mouth opens. From inside him comes a slow stream, without breath, without interruption." Again, we see a character try to speak, but there is an inability. The stream represents silence, which is the only thing that ever leaves Friday's mouth. It is the one thing preserved throughout the novel.
I think this emphasis on silence and realization of its importance helps us (as readers) realize that this novel, or at least the majority of it, is not the same world we live in. On the last page in part IV the narrator comments "But this is not a place of words." This place, we could argue is 'the world' in which the characters live. Friday's world. It is very different and distinct from ours. Knowing this answers many 'how' questions, like how is ___ able to do ___, or how is ____ possible. This constructed world allows impossible things to occur, which is finally apparent to me after reading the five pages of part IV.