Letters as Communication or Something Else?

Personally, I think that Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is my favorite novel that we have read in this class. There are a lot of deeper issues to be dealt with than what is on the surface, and I think that that is one of the great things about it. One thing that comes to mind ties into the section of the class that the novel falls under of the “unspeakable narrative” that we have discussed before. In this novel in particular, the characters are all tormented by some sort of personal loss or tragedy that none of them are able to speak about. Instead, the form of letter writing comes in and plays a large role for them.

The letters written by Thomas Schell, Oskar’s grandfather, interest me in particular because of the fact that he has stopped speaking as a result of his loss. It is not a physical disability, but a way of dealing with the tragedy. He never meets his son, and spends years writing letters to him instead, though they are not just letters. He uses these letters as an outlet to explain himself and the reasons behind what he did, why he left his wife and so on. Not only that, but he also uses the letters to retell his own story, and to reflect back on the things that happened to him and caused this tragedy in his life.

Another person who uses letters as a main form of communication as well as a coping mechanism is Oskar’s grandmother, whose name we do not know. She has been writing since the two of them were still living together, letters about her life, getting everything out and reliving it all on the paper. She also writes letters to Oskar, telling him her story and, just like her husband did, explaining herself. For her it is also a chance to relive and rework through these tragedies that she cannot actually speak about out loud.

The fascinating idea here to me is that these letters are not being used for the “purpose” that letters are intended or expected to be used for. Rather than actually containing something to say to the person that they are addressed to, they are serving instead as a coping mechanism for those writing it, as a way to try and understand and work through the tragedies that have happened to them in their lifetimes.