The Dogs of Babel

The Dogs of Babel



Author: Carolyn Parkhurst
★★★


Had I known but yesterday
What I know today
I'd have taken out your two gray eyes
And put in eyes of clay,
And had I known but yesterday
That you'd be no more my own
I'd have taken out your heart of flesh
And put in one of stone.

QUESTIONS AND TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION

1. Paul is a college professor and, by all accounts, a rational man, but the truly seems to believe he can teach his dog, Lorelei, to talk. What has led him to this turnaround in his life? Is he simply crazy with grief, or is there a way in which his off-balance actions make sense?

The death of his wife, Lexy, and the suspect changes which were made in the very day drive him yearn to figure out the truth of Lexy’s death. Besides, it seems that some academics and underground researches have achieved part of the goal of teaching dogs to speak.


2. Paul and Lexy seem to be a perfect illustration of the phrase “opposites attract.” What has drawn them to each other? What is it about Paul that Lexy finds endearing? And why is Paul so intrigued by Lexy, even after signs of her darker side have started emerge?

Their very first meeting in a yard sale, their very second meeting in the same day that Paul visited Lexy again with square eggs that she has the tools but never made, and their very first unordinary date to Disney World with eating a week of appetizer (since they did not want their first date ended too early by having an entrée) have drawn them to each other. In other words, maybe those irregular actions, especially the crazy first date plan, which has taken place when they just knew each other.

What is so special of Paul that attracts Lexy is not mentioned a lot. It may be that Paul made the whole crazy plan of their first date for her, and he accepted her, he did not turn away or left her alone when she lost control of emotions during their first date.

Her darker side is inseparable from the opposite side. The love, happiness, talent, and fertility of her connect to her sensitivities, the way she acts something she thinks is right without fears and frustrations, and, the tendency of being driven by her emotions. He knows it and he loves her. And those characters of her intrigue him. Sometimes he is tortured by her bad emotions though, but I think most of time he is captivated by her inspirations and idea, besides, her pretty face.

3. What kind of clues does Paul find to suggest that there’s more to Lexy’s death than first appears? Do you think Lexy deliberately left him a puzzle to put together? Or is he so desperate for answers that he’s finding meaning where there isn’t any?

He found that she had rearranged a bookshelf of theirs, and a whole twenty-once steak was gone, which was supposed to be eaten by Lorelei. And the suspected points are why a person died in accident would deliberately resort a bookshelf, and treat their dog with an unexpected wealth of meat.

I think she deliberately left him a puzzle to put together, and he is truly desperate for answers, he is eager to connect any change to her death.


4. Why do you think Lexy becomes fascinated with death masks? What effect does it have on her to work on such a somber project? Do you think it’s a morbid pursuit, as Paul believes, or is it a positive way of memorializing the dead and comforting the living, as Lexy sense?
I think she becomes fascinated with death masks since her first case, the suicide girl, Jennifer. Lexy reads Jennifer’s diary, which is never read by her own parents. And Lexy found some connections between them. They both are not understood by their closest. She creates her first death mask for Jennifer, not for her folks. And those following cases do not captivate Lexy as Jennifer does. However, she is still curious about their lives when they were living, and she gains some positive feedbacks from comforting the relations of the dead.

To some people, it is a positive way of memorializing the dead. But to some people, it isn’t. The latter ones merely want to memorialize the dead with the memory and the impression they think the dead is.


5. Lexy creates a death mask for a young girl named Jennifer, who committed suicide. Why do Jennifer’s parents reject the first mask Lexy makes? What kind of significance does the mask take on for Lexy? What do you think might have been in Jennifer’s diary?

She paints the Jennifer’s really life. She paints the girl’s really features underneath a smiling face, a pleasure-look mask. And Jennifer’s parents can not stand that. They can not face their daughter appears in front of them with an appearance they do not know, or is not similar to the impression they believe their daughter is.

The mask makes Lexy indulge into Jennifer’s life very often. And she must think she’s like Jennifer, who lives underneath a lovely mask.

I think the reclamation of suicide is an option might have been in Jennifer’s diary. And the decision of leaving the best lovely impression to her closest or love might have also been in it. Moreover, the feeling of being not understood by her closest might have taken a large part.



6. Paul’s obsession with the Cerberus Society leads him and Lorelei into a dangerous situation. Why is he so fascinated with this strange group? Is he responsible for Lorelei’s abduction?

Because there are a lot of discussions about that Wendell Hollis, who belongs to Cerberus Society, has enabled Dog J speaking. The neighbors, journalists, and juries declared they have heard Dog J, a.k.a. Hero, asking for help. That convinced Paul to believe that Wendell Hollis succeeded to make dogs speak. And sure, he is responsible for Lorelei’s abduction. His curiosity has Lorelei suffer such cruel surgery performed by Cerberus Society.


7. What do you make of the incident with Blue Mary in New Orleans? Why does want so much to believe that she’s seen a ghost? Why do you think her disappointment at discovering she didn’t see Blue Mary takes the form it does?

The incident reveals a big distinct between Paul and Lexy. Paul is really a rational man and Lexy is a sensitive woman. Paul tries to use every situation he can image to persuade Lexy that she did not see a ghost at all; Lexy tries to use every detail she experienced to convince Paul that she saw Blue Mary.

Maybe Lexy just can not accept that a dead person is no longer a human in the world, and that may be the reason she desires to believe that she’s seen a ghost and disappointment at discovering the truth. And she may think one day she or Paul will die. It would comfort her a little if she knows no matter the time elapse, she can accompany him or she can have his company forever.



8. Lexy faithfully records her dreams in a dream journal. After her death, Paul hunts through this book, searching desperately for answers. What role do dreams play in the novel? Do you think they offer a window into a person’s psyche? How do Paul dreams about Lexy reflect how his own grieving process progress?

The dreams in the novel reveal the secrets of the person. They reflect the person’s concerns, thoughts, and worries that are not known by others.

I think his dreams about Lexy reflect that he gradually forgives her characters and problems and angry with her secrets, or angry with the fact that too much about Lexy that he does not know.


9. In what ways does the Tam Lin poem mirror Paul and Lexy’s relationship? Which character do you think is most like Tam Lin? Who is most like Janet? Why does Lexy call Paul her “finest knight”? Do you think he could have saved her?

The Tam Lin poem reflects that one of them looks for the other one. I think Lexy is most like Tam Lin. She’s Paul’s finest knight, she brings so much funs to him, and she gives him a wonderful life he never had. In addition, she is most like the fairy queen, too. And Paul is most like Janet. He enjoys the company of Lexy. Besides, he tries to steel her back from the captivating of death masks, from her bad moods, from the period that she’s lack of inspirations. I think she calls him her “finest knight” because he suddenly falls to her life. And he shows his compassion at the first time that she lost control of emotions during their date. Somehow, she loves him. She’s the fairy queen who loves her “finest knight”, she finally gives up him. She returns him the life that she thinks he deserves.

I think he could have saved her if he spent more time to understand her, to talk with her more, and to take her to a psychologist.


10. Do you believe Lexy when she says that “suicide is just a moment”? Do you think she would have killed herself if she hadn’t become pregnant?

For a suicide, it’s just a moment, but for his or her friends and family, it’s a pain forever.

I think she would kill herself even she hadn’t become pregnant. She loved Paul too much, but her lover didn’t understand her at all. She loved Paul so much, that she’s willing to kill herself to free him from her overreactions.


11. Why role doest the phone psychic, Lady Arabelle, play in Paul’s quest for answers? Does she shed any light on the events that led to Lexy’s death?

She’s the one who uses a mystery and irrational approach combined with a conscious and reasonable direction to comfort the caller, such as Paul and Lexy. She points out that Lexy’s most concerns: pregnancy, the relation between her and Paul, and the meaning and the courage of keeping her life going on. Lady Arabelle might shed Lexy’s will to die a little bit for a moment, but she still could not regain her courage and will to live the next day.


12. Do you like Lexy? Do you have compassion for the pain she feels, or are you annoyed by the ways she lashes out? What about Paul – is he a good husband or an oblivious one? Is there any point at which this troubled marriage could have taken a different direction?

I like Lexy, and I have compassion for her. I don’t think she means to lash out anybody. She merely thinks that to kill herself is the best solution for everybody, including the upcoming baby.

Paul may be an oblivious husband, but the truth is that they don’t communicate well. She hasn’t told him the pain she feels, the courage she loses, or the will to live she needs. Most people are not aware a terrible thing is undergoing, until it becomes a fact, and Paul is not an exception.

I think their marriage could have taken a better direction if they have communicated well and contacted with professions or psychologists.