'...This will look nice on your wall'
So, what you think is the meaning of the picture given to Laura by the Old Lady, and the meaning of that bizarre and scary dream it evoked?
shareSo, what you think is the meaning of the picture given to Laura by the Old Lady, and the meaning of that bizarre and scary dream it evoked?
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Well, were they (Tremonds) there to help Laura somehow to prevent Bob from possessing or killing her (by giving her a clue which was sort of an entry-way into the dream), or they had other reasons? In other words, were they "good" or "bad"?
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"prestidigitation"
I believe the word you are looking for is "precognition" i.e., the ability to see the future or sense future information. Prestidigitation means "slight of hand" and is usually used in relation to magic tricks.
Tremonds helpful or evil?
Some have suggested that the Tremonds, like the Giant, are helpful spirits, guiding the people of Twin Peaks in the struggle against evil. I believe this is highly doubtful. If you notice, the Tremonds are connected to a number of mysterious deaths or disappearances in the Twin Peaks chronology. Whenever they appear: bad stuff happens. Let's take a look at the evidence from the movie and the show:
FWWM: I think we can agree that the ring implies some negative connection to the Black Lodge. Everyone who comes into contact with it either dies or disappears, including Teresa Banks, Chester Desmond and Laura Palmer. Significantly, the Tremonds are always in the vicinity when the ring appears. In the case of both Teresa Banks and Chester Desmond, the connection is obvious: the Tremonds/Chalfonts were living in the trailer park near Teresa, and later lured Agent Desmond to the mound of earth where he found the green ring. Both Desmond and the Chalfonts' trailer vanish without a trace.
The Tremonds later reappear on the parking lot of the Double R Diner, where they hand Laura the picture of the doorway. The picture leads to a dream in which the Tremonds again appear, transporting Laura to the Black Lodge where LMFAP offers her the green ring. Significantly, she is warned by Agent Cooper "not to take the ring", again implying some form of danger connected to the jewel. Without further elaborating on the importance of the ring (see my entry on the MFAP), let me just repeat that the Tremonds should be held directly responsible for leading Laura to the ring.
Finally, the Tremonds are present at the Lodge meeting between the MFAP and Bob, as seen during the ramblings of Philip Jeffries. Four people cannot be accounted for (the Jumping Man, the Electrician, and the two woodsmen), but assuming that all who are present are Lodge spirits, there is one remarkable absence: the Giant. Since the Giant is the only Lodge spirit who seems to do "good" throughout the series, his absence during the Lodge meeting implies that only "evil" Lodge spirits are present.
Twin Peaks: On the show the Tremonds appear only once but it is arguably one of the most memorable, and downright creepy scenes in the entire series. Donna temporarily takes over Laura's Meals-On-Wheels round after a hint from the Log Lady, and winds up with Mrs. Tremond and her grandson Pierre. The Tremonds "helpfully" point Donna towards their neighbour Harold Smith, who turns out owning the secret diary of Laura Palmer. Before Donna leaves, Pierre says "J'ai une ame solitaire". A few episodes later, Harold is found dead from an apparent suicide, with a note stuck to his body reading the same sentence, "J'ai une ame solitaire". His rooms are found overturned, and the diary shredded to pieces.
Bearing in mind the Tremonds' actions in FWWM, their willingness to "help" Donna seems highly suspicious. Why for that matter, is Mrs. Tremond seemingly bed-ridden, when she had no trouble walking around (and fast too) in FWWM? It all seems like a very calculated attempt to bring about Harold's downfall, with Donna as their instrument. Or perhaps Harold was only of secondary importance. If we posit that the Tremonds are indeed pawns of the MFAP, this was perhaps another attempt to thwart BOB. Harold knew the truth about BOB after all, and even kept Laura's secret diary, clues which would help Agent Cooper to discover the true identity of Laura's killer. BOB himself does not seem involved in this case, as Leland expresses his surprise at Donna's revelation about Harold Smith.
Maybe the Tremonds did intend to kill Harold. But in order to get to him, he had to be provoked by someone he trusted like Donna. After Donna and Maddy escape from his house, he is somehow exposed to the influence of the Lodge spirits. Significantly, an owl is spotted on a branch nearby shortly after the scene. Several days later he is found dead. The note on his body follows the same pattern as the note found in the train car reading "Fire Walk with Me". Could it be then, that "J'ai une ame solitaire", is the signature of the Tremonds? Now, we could object that Harold did in fact commit suicide and destroyed the diary himself, BUT why then did he mail a crucial passage to Donna right before he died? Apparently, he knew something bad would happen.
Conclusion: the Tremonds seem to act as agents of the MFAP (Mike), passing the green ring to his intended victims, or otherwise moving as his "pawns" in the world outside the Lodge.
Former victims of Mike and Bob?
Provided the Tremonds are indeed servants of the MFAP, we might wonder whether they were ordinary people once, whose souls were trapped or enslaved by the Lodge spirits much like Agent Cooper's. During the Lodge meeting described by Philip Jeffries, the Tremonds are two of several "normal" people who watch on in the background, among the Electrician and the two Woodsmen, one of which I tentatively identify as the late husband of the Log Lady.
Could all these people be the former victims of Mike and BOB? The scene implies some form of hierarchy among the Lodge spirits, with the MFAP and Bob at the top. The Jumping Man's identity remains obscure (Mike?), but those in the background appear to be nothing more than "servants" to the MFAP (and BOB?). Of course, if this is true, where is Cooper? Or is this a Black Lodge exclusive meeting?
Pierre Tremond and Leland Palmer
On three different occasions in FWWM, Pierre Tremond appears wearing a white mask (and holding a wooden sceptre in his hand). Contrary to the Jumping Man, Pierre's mask has no eyes or mouth, only a nose. The mask may be interpreted as a metaphor for being possessed, where the mask represents the host and the wearer the actual spirit in control. At one point Pierre himself refers to BOB as "the man behind the mask". Pierre's own mask has no eyes or mouth however, indicating unaware possession, such as is the case with Leland Palmer. Eyes and mouth, like the Jumping Man's mask, indicate aware possession such as Philip Gerard/Mike. This connection is especially strong if we accept that the Jumping Man represents what Mike used to look like, before he was cut in half into the MFAP.
In the movie, the masked Pierre appears on three occassions:
* During the Lodge meeting described by Philip Jeffries
* On the parking lot of the Double R Diner with Mrs Tremond
* On the parking lot of the Blue Diamond motel
Chronologically speaking, the third appearance actually precedes the second. At the Blue Diamond motel, the masked Pierre appears just after Leland has discovered his own daughter is prostituting herself. He quickly leaves the motel in a distraught state, but as he is walking along the parking lot, Pierre emerges from the bushes frantically jumping up and down in a chicken like motion. The significance is twofold 1) as mentioned, the faceless mask indicates unaware possession, which is the case with Leland Palmer and BOB, and 2) the mask is worn by Pierre, who is only a child (at least in appearance), which may refer to the fact that Leland was possessed in his early youth. It has even been suggested that Pierre symbolizes Leland himself, at a young age. Significantly then, his true face is never seen by any of the Palmers, who would otherwise be able to identify him. He appears masked both at the Blue Diamond motel, and the Double R Diner (Laura does meet an unmasked Pierre in her dream however).
During the Lodge meeting, Pierre lifts the white mask and reveals the head of monkey, perhaps referring to the inhabiting spirit being driven by animalistic desires, such as BOB. This bears similarity to Freud's concept of the "id", the "unconscious", basal desires:
"It is the dark, inaccessible part of our personality. We call it a chaos, a cauldron full of seething excitations ... It is filled with energy reaching it from the instincts, but it has no organization, produces no collective will, but only a striving to bring about the satisfaction of the instinctual needs. It is amoral and egocentric, ruled by the pleasure–pain principle; it is without a sense of time, completely illogical, primarily sexual, infantile in its emotional development, and will not take no for an answer."
Again, the fact that Pierre is still a boy, may refer to this infantile, desire-driven stage in emotional development.
Pierre Tremond = the Magician?
It has been suggested that Pierre Tremond is the "magician" from the Fire Walk with Me poem, as hinted at by his actions on the show. After Pierre makes the creamed corn disappear in episode 2.02 (Coma), Mrs. Tremond states: "My grandson, is studying magic".
But using the same quote, the theory can just as easily be undermined. Clearly he's not a magician at all, but merely "studying" magic. He may possess some supernatural skills but he's not as powerful as the MFAP, who seems like a far more likely candidate for the role of the "Magician" (if indeed, the poem's line hints at a real person to begin with). As user "One suave folk" puts it: "Pierre's no magician! Like all kids, he just likes playing with his food!!"
Otherwise Pierre is not involved in much supernatural actions, apart from Laura's dream, where he transports her to the Black Lodge. Even then, that would mean his powers are largely confined to the dream world.
The Tremonds and Garmonbozia
An interesting mystery regarding the Tremonds is why they so adamantly refuse to eat creamed corn. Notice the frightened expression of Mrs. Tremond when Donna presents the creamed corn to her. Obviously the food reminds them of the Garmonbozia which is consumed by Mike and Bob.
Two questions arise: a) do they refuse the Garmonbozia because they don't consume it, or because it is forbidden to them? b) do they both refuse to eat Garmonbozia, or is it just Mrs. Tremond? An obscure detail in the Lodge meeting of FWWM may answer both questions. Study the wide shot of this scene for a minute, and you will notice several bowls of Garmonbozia on the formica table of Mike and BOB. This is immediately apparent. Look more closely, however, and you will also notice a small bowl (of Garmonbozia?) resting at the feet of Pierre Tremond. As previously mentioned, the Lodge meeting outlines the hierarchy among the Lodge inhabitants. The small bowl at Pierre's feet adds the interesting detail that the "menial spirits" do in fact consume Garmonbozia, but in much smaller quantities. The bulk of the food is reserved to Mike.
The lower order spirits are not the only ones to whom Garmonbozia is more or less forbidden. Even BOB cannot consume more than he is allowed. Taken together then, the expression on Mrs. Tremond's face as she is presented with the creamed corn, seems to be one of fear, not disgust.
But does she consume Garmonbozia? Remember, the small bowl is resting at Pierre's feet, not anyone else's. The amount may be too small to share among five people anyway (The Electrician, the Tremonds, and the two Woodsmen). Perhaps only Pierre consumes Garmonbozia. It is he also, who vanishes the creamed corn during Donna's visit, indicating that he does not share his grandmother's fears.
A somewhat contrarian view is offered by user MisterGrey:
"I think that the Tremonds were a unique case of beings meant by virtue of their existence to be pure evil not wanting to be evil. I believe that this is the significance behind Mrs. Tremond's refusal to consume Garmonbozia: Guilt, over the fact that she must survive by consuming the suffering of other, living beings. It has been a theory of mine for a while that the physical state of the Lodge beings represents their vitality: MFAP, starved of his Garmonbozia, has regressed to a miniature state; Mrs. Tremond, intentionally depriving herself, is deteriorating; Pierre, perhaps a "lesser" spirit, has not been consuming much to begin with, and so hasn't grown; and Bob, with his rampant consumption, is the most physically adept and agile of the Black Lodge spirits, rampaging through TP in his bestial state.
If the White Lodge spirits survive on love, as the Black Lodge spirits survive on fear, I would presume then that, despite being usurped by the Black Lodge, they are in far better shape-- there is a much greater abundance of love than fear in the town of Twin Peaks. Thus, the towering, colossal presence of the Giant, grown massive and dominating through his consumption of love and happiness."
Similarities to Little Red Riding Hood
Credit to user Fred for pointing out this reference. The scene in episode 2.02 of the series, where Donna delivers the meal to the Tremonds, is strikingly similar to the tale of Little Red Riding Hood. Little Red Riding Hood travels through "dark woods", in order to bring food to her "grandmother", who turns out to be a wolf in disguise. This would fit rather nicely with my own suggestion that the Tremonds aren't helpful at all.
The black dog runs at night
Another unexplained mystery associated with the Tremonds is the "black dog". A black dog briefly appears in a flash during the traffic stop scene in FWWM. But more important, the song "The Black Dog Runs at Night" functions as a sort of theme song to the Tremonds. It is heard during their appearance at the Double R Diner parking lot, and again when Pierre emerges from the bushes at the Blue Diamond motel. This last scene in particular has long intrigued me. I talked about the significance of the mask earlier, but what does Pierre's behaviour allude to? He does not appear to be dancing or jumping at random. It seems almost bird-like behaviour. Another interesting fact is the absence of Mrs Tremond, who otherwise always accompanies Pierre. Why isn't she here?
The show features more recurrent imagery related to dogs. There is for instance, the Dead Dog Farm owned by Jacques Renault. It is a deserted bungalow out of town which has become a focus for nefarious activities. Agent Cooper learns from a realtor that it derives its name from an old saying, which states that a dead dog attracts the attention of both the worst and the best types of people.
In her intro to episode 2.12, the Log Lady relates a story of a dog she used to own:
"Is a dog man's best friend? I had a dog. The dog was large. It ate my garden, all the plants, and much earth. The dog ate so much earth it died. Its body went back to the earth. I have a memory of this dog. The memory is all that I have left of my dog. He was black--and white."
-from The Black Lodge Encyclopedia
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Sometimes the choice to be made is not between good and evil, but just between lesser or greater evil. Take the case of Mike giving Laura the ring: it led to her being brutally killed, but dying - even while it meant entering that twisted waiting room - was a better fate than being possessed by Bob. Maybe the Tremmonds/Chalfonts are similarly trying to help.
We can even apply here a little theory of moral relativism. If people in different cultures or in different times have sometimes evolved different, and incompatible, sets of moral values (attitude towards slavery, cannibalism, sexuality, one's children etc.) how greater must be the gap between our morality and that of some incorporeal immortal spirits, if they even have such a thing. Maybe they don't, and only respect power.
Mrs. Tremond --or as Laura would have thought of her, the old lady, as she did not yet know the Tremond name-- handed her something in a frame. The image in the frame became a part of Laura's dreams, and thence of her orientation toward the things that were happening in her life, though she did try briefly to deny its implications.
There is a field of social psychology called "frame analysis." In a wikipedia article, the field is explained as follows:
Frames organize the experiences and guide action for the individual and/or for everyone. Frame analysis, then, is the study of organization of social experiences. One example that Goffman used to help people better understand the concept is associating the frame with the concept of a picture frame. He used the picture frame concept to illustrate how people use the frame (which represents structure) to hold together their picture (which represents the context) of what they are experiencing in their life.
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I'm sure things like the frame are meant as examples, to encourage us to keep certain things in mind --certainly where the characters shown are concerned, but also elsewhere.
The big frames in our lives, we can have trouble seeing most of the time. Not only does it take some skill or maybe knowledge, but it's a little brutal on ourselves at times.
But additionally to pictures, the proscenium of a stage is a frame. The edge of a movie or tv screen is a frame. Book margins or the bleeding edge of a printed page are frames. Practice frames.
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"The bonsai: the ultimate miniature." —Will Hayward, Twin Peaks.
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There's a shot in MTTH where Dern walks down the staircase in the Doheny Mansion, through the room and into another room.
Many frames and much framing going on in that shot. Just about every step Dern takes across the room reframes her.
Yeah, that's a thing one often sees. It's one reason these movies can be so re-watchable. In MD, Rita getting up from the ground and staggering to the other side of the road (with a glance up to the starless sky) is another exemplary action-packed sequence.
I suspect this is a standard part of the director's kit --any director, that is. One thing I like about David Lynch's movies is that they're so clear in a certain way that they make a lot of other fine art more accessible, maybe with a little work.
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"The bonsai: the ultimate miniature." —Will Hayward, Twin Peaks.
Talking of Frances Bay, there´s an interesting parallel to another one of the characters she´d played - namely, in a 1978 Chevy Chase/Goldie Hawn vehicle Foul Play, she also appeared as an impostor living in a house inhabited by people who claimed to be who they were not (which is kinda-sorta what she and her "grandson" did in TP).
"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan
I know only a few of her other roles, but I enjoy following character actors' careers. She definitely belongs on my list, especially considering the (possibly amusing or mischievous) connection to her brother's perspectives on things.
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"I guess nobody knew Harry like he did -- I did." -Holly Martins, The Third Man (1949)
To summarize my own opinions:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4F4qzPbcFiA
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God bless America and the "Ignore this User" link.
The Tremonds, like the Giant, are helpful spirits. There was an argument on this thread that the Tremonds gave Laura the picture in order to lure her towards the owl ring. This is a point I disagree with. In the same way the Giant gave clues to Cooper, the Tremonds were attempting to change circumstances by warning Laura. Another reason given on thois thread why the Tremonds are meant to be evil spirits is due to leading Donna to Harold, who later killed himself. However you must consider that Donna brought the Tremonds creamed corn (Garmonbozia), which they rejected. If the Tremonds were evil spirits then they would have accepted the creamed corn.
I'd rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not.