Varieties of The Fantastic in Fiction

“The Room in the Attic” by Steven Millhauser has the theme of turning a blind eye to something. The main character and narrator David meets a girl who lives in a pitch-black room in her attic. As David grows closer with this girl, Isabel, he wonders constantly about her appearance. He even starts dreaming about what she might look like. He starts spending every hour he can afford with her in her room. When he isn’t with her, he is collecting items and descriptions to bring to her. His sleeping schedule even changes to reflect hers. David’s behavior seems obsessive, but he doesn’t seem to think so. The choice to tell this story in first person makes it feel as if his behavior is nothing out of the ordinary, because David acts like it is.

When David finally has the chance to see Isabel in the light after months of visiting her, he prevents it last-minute. He wants to stay in the bubble he’s created, where everything is familiar and safe. Instead of learning what could be a beautiful or an ugly truth, David backs out entirely. It could be metaphorical for someone wanting to “stay in the dark” about something they enjoy, because the possible downsides could ruin its status of perfection.

Another metaphor I thought could be present through my first readthrough of this story was that of addiction. Isabel’s brother Wolf has an infatuation with books. He talks about them differently than others do, like they are much better than everyone else thinks. David becomes infatuated with Isabel and her dark room. She decides she wants to very suddenly come into the light, instead of bit by bit. This feels similar to someone stopping their bad habit all at once instead of quitting it slowly. David’s refusal to look at Isabel once she’s revealed herself could be him realizing he isn’t ready to give up his addiction, after all, and refusing to quit it.

“Dangerous Laughter” by the same author also seemed to have the theme of addiction. The narrator and his fellow teenagers in his town start the summer by looking for something new and interesting to get involved in to pass the time. They all turn to laughing as a hobby, and eventually create clubs revolving around it. It becomes competitive, with everyone yearning to laugh the hardest and longest. They tickle one another to get the most intense laughs. Clara Schuler comes along, and she outdoes all of them. Laughing transforms her into someone new, someone people pay attention to. As the laughing trend turns to crying, Clara sticks with her original talent. This could be compared to others moving on from their obsessions or possible addictions while Clara cannot quit. Eventually, much like a dangerous addiction will do, Clara’s knack for laughing kills her.