{"id":377,"date":"2011-06-10T07:00:28","date_gmt":"2011-06-10T14:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/?p=377"},"modified":"2011-06-02T17:53:04","modified_gmt":"2011-06-03T00:53:04","slug":"mark-reads-the-golden-compass-chapter-12","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/2011\/06\/mark-reads-the-golden-compass-chapter-12\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Reads ‘The Golden Compass’: Chapter 12"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the twelfth chapter of The Golden Compass<\/em>, Mark realizes he was never prepared for the horrifying reveal that Pullman drops right on top of his head. Intrigued? Then it’s time to watch Mark squirm while he reads The Golden Compass<\/em>.<\/p>\n

I cannot believe how completely unprepared I was.<\/p>\n

CHAPTER TWELVE: THE LOST BOY<\/strong><\/p>\n

We’ll get there, my fellow Readers.<\/p>\n

The story here in The Golden Compass<\/em> is now settling into a frantic pace, and yet Pullman still manages to give this all the amount of time it needs to be developed. I love how quickly this plot is moving (I can feel that flare of anxiety in my stomach right now, just thinking of where this book is going to go), and yet we still get these massive chunks of world-building and descriptive prose. I’m just absolutely enamored with the way that this story is told and it makes me feel so immersed in Pullman’s imagined world. Not since Harry Potter<\/em> have I so desperately wished that a fantasy world was 100% real and that I could live in it. Hold on to this thought, Readers, because it will absolutely play into what I’ve got to say at the end.<\/p>\n

Lyra and her new batch of friends continue on their journey north, and John Faa asks her to consult the alethiometer for further information about Bolvangar. And I love that these other characters are moving towards a point where they recognize the bizarre power that this instrument holds and that they also respect Lyra because of it. I think that part of her characterization has been one of an outsider, and there’s a loving way that John Faa, Farder Coram, and hopefully Lee and Iorek, begin to treat Lyra. At the same time, as I said before, they are also afraid<\/em> of this power as well, but so far, it never feels like something that is malicious.<\/p>\n

Without any sort of hesitation, Lyra pulls out the alethiometer and asks it a pointed question about Bolvangar. In just a minute or so, she confirms what Kaisa said: the place is guarded, not well, and by inexperienced men. However:<\/p>\n

“It’s a telling me something else. In the next valley there’s a village by a lake where the folk are trouble by a ghost.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
YET ANOTHER TWIST THAT MAKES ME LEAP WITH JOY. A ghost? WE GET TO SEE A GHOST, DON’T WE. Initially, John Faa is entirely dismissive, asking her for more information about the specifics regarding the Tartars guarding the station. When Lyra reveals that the men guarding the place have wolves for d\u00c3\u00a6mons, I, of course, did not understand this at all. Faa explains that these are the toughest<\/em> of the Tartars.<\/p>\n
But dude…you have an ARMORED BEAR. <\/em>that wins most things<\/em>.<\/p>\n
Lyra knows this and speaks to Iorek on her own, asking him just how far this “village” with the ghost is, and whether she could stand the journey. I really adore how much Lyra is willing to take things into control whenever she is being left behind or lacking the support she needs. And she is eleven years old<\/em>, which is an age where I would cry if I didn’t ace a test<\/em>. Oh my god she is so badass<\/em>.<\/p>\n
When Iorek shares that he is to obey Lord Faa, Lyra resolves to get the man’s position, imploring his sense of reason. I’m glad she references the chameleon incident, when she felt something more than what she knew at the time, and she ended up being right. To her, this is the exact<\/em> same feeling, and she knows in her heart that ignoring this is going to be a terrible mistake.<\/p>\n
Adding to this scene is Lee Scoresby’s support, which, again, makes me want to know more about the man and where he came from. I wonder if Pullman is going to give us any sort of flashback or exposition to the time that Scoresby spent with Iorek, because here, in this moment, he speaks remarkably highly for Iorek. And look, it’s not that I don’t<\/em> trust Iorek. He’s a bear of his word. (I CANNOT BELIEVE I JUST TYPED THAT i fucking love this book so much<\/em>) The creature has such a loyal sense of respect and obedience, so I don’t doubt that he’d do as he told. But what exactly made Scoresby trust Iorek so much? Did he save him from danger? Protect him from death? Just a thought.<\/p>\n
Lyra is reasonable about her request, too, stating that she will not be gone longer than necessary and that she’ll keep their journey a secret, too. I think that Lord Faa appreciates the way that she has learned to speak with respect, too, and it’s something I’ve observed of the gyptian culture we’ve seen so far. I recall those Ropings we got to witness, and everyone spoke so openly and plainly, and I feel this is the first time Lyra truly understands why they speak this way. Everything she says her is respectful of Lord Faa’s concerns, but also doesn’t shy away from what she wants to communicate. It’s a beautiful parallel and bit of character growth to me.<\/p>\n
And with no ceremony whatsoever, Lord Faa approves the side mission and Lyra climbs on the back of the armorless bear to head to this mysterious village that’s apparently plagued by a ghost. Does this ghost know what’s going on with the Oblation Board? Is it a ghost of one of the kidnapped children? OH GOD WHAT IS GOING ON<\/em><\/p>\n
As I said in the intro, as the tension and anticipation built inside of me, Pullman doesn’t shy away from using that wonderful sense of detail to share more of this world with me. At first, he turns inward, explaining what a new experience this is for Lyra, who has never had to travel with a creature quite like Iorek:<\/p>\n
Lyra wanted to talk to the bear, and if he had been human, she would already be on familiar terms with him; but he was so strange and wild and cold that she was shy, almost for the first time in her life. So as he loped along, his great legs swinging tirelessly, she sat with the movement and said nothing. Perhaps he preferred that anyway, she thought: she must seem a little prattling cub, only just past babyhood, in the eyes of an armored bear.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Wow, this is not something I’d even thought about. We’ve already seen how, in Lyra’s eyes, the concept of loneliness is amplified just by Iorek’s very existence. It is a sad thing to think about, but that’s because Pullman does a great job of showing us just how vital a d\u00c3\u00a6mon is to the people in this universe, and here, as Lyra rides on his back towards this mysterious destination, that loneliness is brought up again, but in an entirely context. I had not thought about how this was a new feeling for Lyra. We’ve seen how direct and open she is in general, and now she’s absolutely silent.<\/p>\n
An hour of travel later, Iorek stops and tells Lyra to look up to the sky, and everything is made even creepier<\/em>: hundreds upon hundreds of witches are flying to the north at that moment. Given what Kaisa had told us about the witches, this does not seem to be a comforting sign. Neither is what Iorek says:<\/p>\n
“Flying to war, maybe. I have never seen so many at one time.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
When something is unsettling to an armored bear, it is endlessly creepy to me<\/strong>. Good god what is going on<\/em>.<\/p>\n
“You en’t afraid, are you?”<\/p>\n
“Not yet. When I am, I shall master the fear.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
In such a plain way of speaking it, Iorek just dropped some incredible philosophy at my feet. He does not claim to never feel fear; rather, when it comes, he will face it and master it<\/em>. Seriously, where is my d\u00c3\u00a6mon and where is my fucking armored bear.<\/p>\n
But really, where chapter twelve shines (and shines absolutely) is in the scene where Iorek and Lyra arrive at this village. As much as I could be while reading a book, I was on the edge of my seat. What Pullman does here is create an unbearable atmosphere of uncertainty, of taking the unknowable events we are about to experience and surrounding us with dread and fear. What seemed to be a journey Lyra would take later in the story is suddenly happening here<\/em> and now<\/em> and it’s all stripped of anything but a painful urgency.:<\/p>\n
The alethiometer had indicated something uncanny and unnatural, which was alarming; but who was she? Lord Asriel’s daughter. And who was under her command? A mighty bear. How could she possibly show any fear?<\/p>\n
I know this is meant to be comforting, but even reading this a second time, that pit in my stomach just grew. Because Lyra is<\/em> afraid and the alethiometer is almost telling<\/em> her that she should fear what she is about to find. As the two move slowly into the village, the local animals on edge and vocalizing their fear and terror, the place feels like a ghost town, as Pullman shares with us the way that this town is clearly affected by this mysterious “ghost.” A man comes out of a house, speaking some language Lyra does not understand, and Iorek acts as the interpreter. When he believes them to be devils, Lyra orders Iorek to give him a message:<\/p>\n
“Tell him we’re not devils, but we’ve got friends who are. And we’re looking for…Just a child. A strange child. Tell him that.”<\/p>\n
As soon as the bear had said that, the man pointed to the right, indicating some place further off, and spoke quickly.<\/p>\n
Iorek Byrnison said, “He asks if we have come to take the child away. They are afraid of it. They have tried to drive it away, but it keeps coming back.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
what the holy hell is going on<\/em>. I was, understandably, completely confused at this point. Ghosts seemed to be a reality of this universe, so why was this particular one causing the village such stress? Why is there so much terror in this one place?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n
Pullman’s description of Lyra’s fear as they move toward the fish house is so tangible that my heart has begun racing again, and I imagine that for years to come, when I return to this book to read it again, I’ll still feel this rush of doom strike my chest. Lyra, aware that she has stepped into a situation she cannot control, knows that she must face and master her fear, like Iorek said, and that she has<\/em> to open the door to the fish house to find the ghost inside. As she yanks it open, having to kick snow out of the way, she is suddenly aware that Pantalaimon is acting in a way she’d only seen once:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n
She had never seen him like this except once, when she and Roger in the crypt at Jordan had moved the d\u00c3\u00a6mon-coins into the wrong skulls. He was even more frightened than she was. <\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
THIS IS AN AWFUL SIGN. MY STOMACH IS GOING TO EXPLODE<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
Lyra calls out forcefully (as forcefully as a terrified eleven-year-old can) for whatever is in the house, begging it to come out. Nothing. Pantalaimon, full of fear, begs Lyra to leave, and I was at my wit’s end at this point. what was in that room<\/strong><\/p>\n
At this moment, a old man comes scurrying down to meet them, and Iorek translates and seriously, I now know what happens and I can still<\/em> barely handle this:<\/span><\/p>\n
“He says that it’s not the only child of that kind. He’s seen others in the forest. Sometimes they die quickly, sometimes they don’t die. This one is tough, he thinks. But it would be better for him if he died.”<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
I am seriously so close to just like….vomiting in terror. This is honestly one of the scariest things I have ever read, and Pullman’s designed the scene so that just when you think it can’t get worse, there’s a new detail for you to fret over. As the old man hands over his lantern (and then backs away from the house, yet another<\/em> detail that just sends a chill down my spine), Lyra finally gets the courage to step into the fish house and in an instant, she knows exactly what she is up against, what has been happening in the north, what the Gobblers have been doing, and why they all believed children were being sawed in half:<\/span><\/p>\n
The little boy was huddled against the wood drying rack where hung row upon row of gutted fish, all as stiff as boards. He was clutching a piece of fish to him as Lyra was clutching Pantalaimon, with her left hand, hard, against her heart; but that was all he had, a piece of dried fish; because he had no d\u00c3\u00a6mon at all. The Gobblers had cut it away. That was intercision<\/em>, and this was a severed child.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
um<\/p>\n
uh<\/p>\n
everyone<\/p>\n
um<\/p>\n
………….<\/p>\n
$\"\"$ <\/a>[Image description: A photo of Mark, in his colorful GlobWorld office, wearing a rather nice checkered\/striped shirt with red, black, white and tan, and…oh…right…A LOOK OF COMPLETE AND UTTER CONFUSION AND TERROR ON HIS FACE. Also, i need to trim my beard BUT THAT IS NOT IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW<\/em>]<\/p>\n
WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED!!!!! OH MY GOD OH MY GOD WHAT THE FUCK WHY ARE THEY CUTTING AWAY PEOPLE’S D\u00c3\u2020MON’S HOW CAN YOU EVEN DO THAT<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n
i am never going to heal from this moment ever again<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In the twelfth chapter of The Golden Compass, Mark realizes he was never prepared for the horrifying reveal that Pullman drops right on top of his head. Intrigued? Then it’s time to watch Mark squirm while he reads The Golden … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[48,57],"tags":[23,60,62,61],"class_list":["post-377","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-his-dark-materials","category-the-golden-compass","tag-mark-reads","tag-mark-reads-the-golden-compass","tag-philip-pullman","tag-religion"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/377","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=377"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/377\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=377"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=377"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=377"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}