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remmers
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Up
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Sep 14 03:57 UTC 1992 |
The men stood in a crowded elevator. Outside, the sound of pigeons
flapping wings. The beacon traversed the night sky, exposing the
undersides of furtive clouds. The city held its breath.
G 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 ... the elevator rose swiftly to its rendezvous
with the summit. The sunburned man fumbled in his pocket for a
cigarette, found one. He opened his matchbook, but the glares of
the others dissuaded him from striking the match.
Heavy, humid, and still, the air. Soon it would rain. Owls sat
motionless on the middle limbs of trees, awaiting the downpour.
Upward the elevator climbed. 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 ...
The little wrinkled man with the moustache stood in the corner,
sobbing quietly, unobserved amidst the chatter.
Half a dozen tiny two-seater airplanes circled the radio tower
mounted atop the skyscraper, glowing like fireflies when the
roving beacon would cross their path. Still the elevator
climbed, never stopping: 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30...
The man with the guilty conscience joked nervously with the
older man to his right.
The philosopher-king observed and laughed. "Those petty men,
ascend however far they may in their motorized cage of chrome,
steel, and glass, will never approach the heights I have
achieved by power of thought alone." Chuckling still, he
strolled along the path though the sunlit rose garden,
toward home.
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| 22 responses total. |
remmers
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response 1 of 22:
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Sep 16 21:08 UTC 1992 |
Well?
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jdg
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response 2 of 22:
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Sep 17 01:47 UTC 1992 |
I found myself wondering why they didn't take an express elevator.
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md
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response 3 of 22:
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Sep 17 13:53 UTC 1992 |
This Snord is so impatient. There are items on mnet that I've
been waiting *years* for anyone to respond to.
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remmers
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response 4 of 22:
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Sep 20 14:51 UTC 1992 |
POP QUIZ
1. What do the three men singled out for special mention have in common?
2. Of what is the skyscraper a symbol? The elevator? The radio tower?
3. List the instances of flight imagery in the story, and discuss the
ways in which they support the central metaphor.
4. What is the weather like in the story? Why?
5. What is the significance of the beacon?
6. Who or what is the philosopher-king?
7. Discuss the role of motion in the story.
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jdg
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response 5 of 22:
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Sep 21 02:08 UTC 1992 |
You should tack on to the end of #3, ".. Be prepared to justify your answer."
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remmers
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response 6 of 22:
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Sep 28 03:37 UTC 1992 |
Nobody wants to try the pop quiz, eh? Somebody better do so pretty quick
or I'm going to start imposing lateness penalties.
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carl
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response 7 of 22:
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Feb 18 22:31 UTC 1993 |
O, a pop quiz. Well, here goes...
8. a diet crystal pepsi.
Actually I drank it though. Does that count for part credit?
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remmers
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response 8 of 22:
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Mar 10 04:43 UTC 1993 |
Okay, everybody flunks! You'll all have to repeat the course!!
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carl
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response 9 of 22:
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Mar 10 23:08 UTC 1993 |
'course that's easy for you to say...
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remmers
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response 10 of 22:
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Jan 10 06:51 UTC 1994 |
Everybody flunks. Sorry.
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rcurl
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response 11 of 22:
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Jan 10 14:25 UTC 1994 |
Sure took your time. I will observe, that the philosopher-king appears
to be observing from a different time zone.
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remmers
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response 12 of 22:
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Jan 10 15:31 UTC 1994 |
Good observation. Now, what is the significance of that?
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rcurl
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response 13 of 22:
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Jan 10 15:54 UTC 1994 |
Beats me. No one got into Blenheim Castle, either.
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carl
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response 14 of 22:
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Jan 10 19:31 UTC 1994 |
I've got it! The significance is in the fact that the bugs glow when
the beam of light is on them. Since anything else in the beam would
reflect the light, that means the bugs must have an intensity beyond
the understanding of the guy with the unlit cigarette. Obviously
the philosopher-king is a red herring and no murder actually took
place. All that stuff about flight and elevators were an unsuccessful
attempt at alliteration, which works in it's own special kind of way.
I just can't figure out what the humidity is for.
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remmers
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response 15 of 22:
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Jan 11 10:44 UTC 1994 |
Nope. Nice try, but there are no bugs in the story -- only airplanes that
are illuminated intermittently by a beacon. The use of the phrase
"glowing like fireflies" to describe this is probably a flaw in the story,
and I would like to apologize to the entire conferencing community for it.
"Shining like gnats" might be better there.
You're right that no murder took place, but the philosopher-king is most
definitely *not* a red herring.
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rcurl
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response 16 of 22:
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Jan 11 16:24 UTC 1994 |
Do modern buildings/elevators have a 13th floor? It used to be taboo.
In what building/elevator was the first 13th floor (numbered)?
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remmers
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response 17 of 22:
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Jan 12 04:34 UTC 1994 |
I suppose most tall buildings do not have a 13th floor. You may
assume that there was none in this building either, although that's
really irrelevant.
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rcurl
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response 18 of 22:
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Jan 12 06:59 UTC 1994 |
What do you mean, "assume that there was (no 13th floor)"? You told
us there was one. What is this shifty business with the facts?
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remmers
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response 19 of 22:
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Jan 12 11:38 UTC 1994 |
Ah yes, my mistake. You may assume there was a 13th floor.
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vidar
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response 20 of 22:
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Jan 18 01:23 UTC 1994 |
Gut.
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i
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response 21 of 22:
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Apr 4 16:13 UTC 1998 |
There is no 13th floor. Here's the safe way to verify its absence:
- start on the first floor with a *HUGE* bowl of creamed kiwi
- push the "up" button to summon the elevator
- when the elevator comes, get in with the bowl
- push the "12" button
- when the doors open on the 12th floor, push out the bowl of creamed kiwi
- push the "13" button
- step out through the doors when they open
<SPLUSH!>
- if you suddenly realize that you can't swim in creamed kiwi, *EAT FAST*
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jaklumen
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response 22 of 22:
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May 27 08:07 UTC 2002 |
You are all about food, aren't you, i? Well, I thank you again,
though you delay the inevitable.
I am the monster that shall eat Ann Arbor.
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