Having read this piece before, I came in with some knowledge of the story. With this in mind, I tried to look to the details of the story to see if I could pick up anything that I might have missed the first time I read it. On my second reading, I noticed a few things about Farquhar’s “escape” that I did not notice on my first read. This lead me to believe that his escape actually subtly chronicles his death.
I suspect that when one is being hanged, the first few moments are adrenaline filled and very stressful. This explains that during the beginning of Peyton’s story he has an absolutely superhuman perception of the world. He is able to see the dew on the leaves and hear the sounds of individual ripples in the water hitting his face, Things that arguable no one can do. As his escape progresses, the details become less vivid. This represents his body getting used to the hanging. His adrenaline recedes. When he looks back at the bridge, he sees everything as a blur. Contrast to earlier. Towards the end of his escape, he is very close to death. He begins to notice the soreness in his neck and swelling in his eyes. He also is unable to feel the road beneath his feet. This shows the loss of senses that he would feel as his brain lost oxygen. In his last moment of consciousness he approaches his wife in a delirium, and then, death.
It is really cool to see the view of someone who had already read the piece. I know that I, for sure, did not notice those things during my reading and I think your view of the progression really makes sense.
ReplyDeleteI had a similar feeling as I processed the story, but was unable to put it into words the way you did. The thing I noticed most was the fall from lucidity that Peter Farquhar suffered at the end of the story as his senses failed him, and how it seemed that he was slowly slipping away.
Very well written and I really appreciate the point of view of someone reading this specifically for clues.