I noticed very recently that I needed to write a blog post this week, and to my dismay I had nothing to write about. I thought about different concepts such as discussing why popular video game "Among Us" is referenced so often, but nothing really interested me. Then, I thought about short stories. These take little time to read and still can be as immersing as a full-length book. My parents love short stories, so there were plenty around the house. One book that drew my eye was a book of short stories by Roald Dahl, which was called, "The Best of Roald Dahl". One of these stories, called "The Sound Machine", was very entertaining, and I would like to share it with you.
This story is about an eccentric man named Klausner, who is working on a machine to detect sound out of the range of human ears. The sounds that humans can't hear are the sounds he wants to listen to, and he wants to know who or what is making them. This sound machine is described as "a black box about three feet long, the shape of a child's coffin". This description makes the machine have an eerie aura, and creates foreshadowing that it might not be the best idea to use this machine.
However, Klausner is determined to use it, and takes it out to his garden to test it. As he is testing the machine he hears an inhuman shriek, and he looks around for the source of the sound. His neighbor is cutting roses in the next yard, and every time a rose is cut, a shriek sounds from the machine. He realizes that the roses are feeling something like pain when they are cut. He starts sympathizing with the plants around him, and tries to show the machine to his doctor to make sure that he isn't mad. He swings an axe at the trunk of a tree, but as he does, he feels the ground shift below him, "as though the roots of the tree were moving underneath the soil" and a huge branch falls to crush the machine. He then demands that the doctor treats the tree's axe wound with iodine, until it heals.
By the end of the story, someone who doesn't know what Klausner knows would probably think him to be completely insane. I wondered whether he actually was insane and the machine didn't really work. Thinking over the possibilities was boggling, and creeped me out. I would recommend reading this story
because I enjoyed it and you might too. I didn't quite do it justice in this summary, so if you want the full effect you should check it out. I found an online version at this link: https://fleurmach.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/rdahl_screamingtrees.pdf
It is a pretty short read and well worth it. That's all I have for you today, so I hope you enjoyed.
I'd practically forgotten that short stories were a thing--I don't usually read them, much less seek them out. The reminder is appreciated. This sounds like quite the interesting prospect for a story--I should read it sometime.
ReplyDeleteGreat post Gabe! I don't usually read short stories but from this they seem very exciting. When you're reading a short story you get all the excitement of a normal book but without having to commit to the time it takes to read a full book. This Roald Dahl story seems like a great example of this. You found it interesting and engaging enough to write a post about. The story itself definitely sound like Roald Dahl, he likes writing superficially fictional things with deeper meanings. I feel like there must be some obvious deeper meaning to the story but I cant quite get to it, I'll have to read the story.
ReplyDeletePS. This is the ultimate "Guide to Blog Posts" post, short stories are the META.
Interesting post! Roald Dahl wrote pretty much all of my favorite books when I was younger :)
ReplyDeleteThe short story sounds really cool and thought provoking so I will definitely check it out as soon as I'm done writing this comment. I think it's great you included a link to the thing you're writing about because the accessibility makes it a lot more appealing and likely I'll follow up.
I had completely forgotten about Roald Dahl until I saw this post, and now I might go back and see if I still have some of his books. Overall, I enjoyed this post, mainly because of how casual it seemed, instead of just in your face professionalism.
ReplyDeleteThe story sounds really interesting. Your summary gave me a good idea of what the short story is about. I feel like I usually only read short stories when I am required to in school, but this one sounds intriguing and I might consider reading some. Nice post!
ReplyDeleteThis seems like a fascinating story to me, both because of the root concept and implications, and the utter tonal departure from Roald Dahl's stereotype of whimsy and fun. It also feels like it's got a light spice of Lovecraftian horror of the unkown in regards to the discovery of the new world that the sound machine allows, and the near madness that this induces.
ReplyDeleteI've never really read short stories, but this particular one sounds pretty interesting since it seems to be quite a departure from the fun tone Roald Dahl's usual stories. I think that he was experimenting with horror genres and being more thought provoking in his stories. Short stories are a way to try out newer ideas without having to fully commit to writing a full novel, so I might try reading more short stories to get out of my comfort zone.
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