So, last time on the House of Leaves, Navidson had just gotten back from his exploration of the corridor(s) and his daughter has been revealed to play in the hallways. Eerie stuff. Part 6 now, a chapter that seems rather short considering the importance of what happened in the last chapter. Oh well, maybe it's a lull in the narrative.
The chapter is headed by two quotes discussing the mental differences between animals and man, focusing on the lack of self-awareness in animals. So far, nothing that I haven't encountered in college psychology lessons. It seems that we're up for a focus on the family pets. Whilst chasing each other (as cats and dogs are perhaps wont to do) they both run down the corridor that Navidson was having some much bother with last chapter. Except that they don't get lost in a maze of corridors; instead they end up outside. It doesn't seem like the subject will be revisited, but maybe the corridors are fuelled by self-awareness or something like that, meaning the corridors don't exist for them like they exist for the Navidson family. My questions surrounding this mystery, however, are pushed aside by the one sentence introduction to Holloway, right before the main chapter ends; if I remember correctly, Holloway was the guy who appeared in the second short film they released. For someone who is presumably going to be important, it seems a rather blunt way to introduce him for the first time.
The chapter ends proper with an endnote from Johnny. He notes the lack of analysis about the pets, but declines to give his own interpretation. His main concern at this point seems to be his tragic love life and yearning for Thumper (the stripper, in case I haven't mentioned her name before). He decides to give her a copy of that stream of consciousness that he wrote previously, which of course doesn't go down well; I mean, it's very sweet of him but it's got to be awkward if she doesn't like him back. Well, she seems to like him at least a little afterwards, giving him her card, so I guess it's not too bad. Except she isn't answering his calls. Damn. Leading us to another stream of consciousness thing, wishing he were a cat, to lose self-awareness, and it just goes from there.... It all inevitably leads to this creature that he's already "seen" twice, that he knows is still out there, waiting. It's an odd thing to say, but there's something unnerving about this creature that seems to be down to this self-awareness theme; it seems to lack self-awareness, or at the very least higher thinking, but the relentless nature of the hunt seems more human-like and calculating. It's an odd combination, which is really creeping me out to think of. But anyway, this seems like a good place to stop, so I'll see you next time.
Signing off,
Nisa.
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