dragonyphoenix

“The blonde girl turned away and walked back into the dim hallways of the terrible old house. Rudy stood in the open doorway, and suddenly, as if the blonde girl had been a barrier to it, and her departure had released it, he was assaulted, like a smack in the face, by a wall of pungent scent. It was marijuana.

He reflexively inhaled, and his head reeled. He took a step back, into the last inches of sunlight coming over the lanai apartment building, and then it was gone, and he was still buzzing, and moved forward, dragging the duffel bag behind him.

He did not remember closing the front door, but when he looked, some time later, it was closed behind him.”

from Shattered Like a Glass Goblin by Harlan Ellison

Setting the scene: Rudy is at a place called The Hill, looking for his girlfriend Kris who Dear Johned him eight months ago. By the start of these paragraphs, he has asked for her three times at the front door.

Analysis:

Over the course of the story, terrible transformations occur to the inhabitants of The Hill. In folklore, faeries live under hills. Therefore The Hill is the Otherworld. Note that he asks three times for Kris; which I'm interpreting as asking three times to be let in. Three being a significant number in folklore he has to ask three times before he can enter the Otherworld.

Notice that I've quoted the three, that number again, paragraphs that have to do with Rudy actually entering the house. In the first paragraph, he is allowed entrance when the blonde girl walks away from the door. In the second, he actually enters the house. In the third, the door has closed behind him, much like a trap.

Looking at the three paragraphs, the first has three sentences, the second has two sentences, and the third has one sentence.

Looking at the content of the paragraphs, they each duplicate elements, either in agreement or disagreement with other phrases or sentences within the paragraph.

Paragraph 1:

The blonde girl 1) turned away and 2) walked back
into 1) the dim hallways of 2) the terrible old house (excellent descriptions!)
1) as if the blonde girl had been a barrier to it, 2) and her departure had released it
1) he was assaulted, 2) like a smack in the face
1) by a wall of pungent scent. 2) It was marijuana.

The only thing in this paragraph that isn't duplicated is “Rudy stood in the open doorway”. This makes it important. Rudy is at the threshold, the gateway to the Otherworld. The act of entering the house is a big deal and, given that the house assaults him, one that won't turn out well.

Paragraph 2:

1) and his head reeled … 2) and he was still buzzing
1) He took a step back … 2) and he moved forward, dragging the duffel bag behind him
1) into the last inches of sunlight coming over the lanai apartment building, 2) and then it was gone

Not duplicated is “He reflexively inhaled” which ties back to the assaulted by marijuana smoke image from the first paragraph.

Paragraph 3:

1) He did not remember closing the front door … 2) it was closed behind him

The remainder of the sentence reinforces the duplication pattern without duplicating actual content but supporting the sentence by indicating that he did look, sometime later.

I don't have much to say about the paragraph format, other than noticing it and finding it interesting, but it does indicate that Ellison has put quite a bit of work into his paragraph formats.

Makes my head reel.