1. Dante's Inferno
First published in 1314, this epic poem is the first
"song" in Dante Alighieri's three-part Divine Comedy; subsequent
canticles describe Purgatory and Paradise. In The
Inferno, Virgil guides Dante through the underworld,
comprising nine concentric circles that represent varying degrees
of condemnation, from the unbaptized in Limbo to traitorous Satan
at the center.
Dante begins his tour of hell on Good Friday, 1300, the suggested
day and year of Marianne's birth. The day of Christ's crucifixion,
Good Friday makes additional appearances in The
Gargoyle: It is Sister Christina's birthday and the day of
the narrator's car accident.
Like Dante, The Gargoyle's narrator begins his
journey in the woods, at the age of thirty-five. Contemplation of
suicide occurs in early passages of The Inferno as
well as The Gargoyle.
For Discussion: In The Inferno,
condemned souls receive punishments that correspond to their sins.
The Gargoyle's narrator loses his ability to
consummate sex, but he retains his ability to feel intense desire.
What other forms of hell does he suffer? What do Dante's images
signify to Marianne? What sort of tailor-made suffering might Dante
have invented for you? What do a society's beliefs regarding the
afterlife say about that society's values in general?
2. The Medieval Church
The founding of the Dominican monastery Engelthal occurred
as described in The Gargoyle. In its strictest
definition, "monastery" can refer to a religious retreat for both
women and men, though Engelthal nuns did not preach as friars did.
The nuns' predecessors, the beguines, were also sometimes seen as a
threat to ecclesiastical authority. The women who worked in the
renowned Engelthal scriptorium in the fourteenth century are said
to have produced more extant texts than any other religious house
of their era.
At the time of Father Sunder's death in 1328, he and Brother
Heinrich had lived together for thirty-eight years. Father Sunder
was said to have had very special status, and was called a "pope in
heaven" with the Power of the Keys, effectively granting him the
authority to forgive any sin at any time.
Heinrich Seuse's extreme, self-inflicted physical suffering
captures a medieval Christian approach to the opposition between
body and spirit, and to the desire for God and man to achieve a
metaphysical union. Meister Eckhart, who explored similar
questions, was declared a heretic under trial by Pope John
XXII.
The Three Masters are derived from Heinrich Seuse's attempts to
control his tongue. He called on three spiritual masters, Father
Dominic, St. Arsenius, and St. Bernard, and would not speak without
receiving their permission in a vision.
Marianne's assertion in Chapter Five that "God is a circle whose
center is everywhere and whose circumference is nowhere" was
commonly invoked by medieval theologians.
Continually persecuted by religious and political entities, the
Jews of medieval Germany lived in two worlds: one of segregated
self-governance and Talmudic codes, and one of utter dependence on
the whims of papal authority.
For Discussion: How does medieval Catholicism
compare to the other forms of faith - religious or otherwise -
captured in the novel? In what ways does contemporary society still
struggle with the tandem between body and soul? Was it easier for
you to relate to Marianne's mysticism or to the narrator's
atheism?
3. Gargoyles
The legend describing the creation of the first gargoyle,
recounted in Chapter Three, is just one of many versions. Andrew
Davidson invented the battle scene between Romanus and La
Gargouille; it does not appear in published legends.
The concept of using a sculpture depicting an animal's mouth to
divert water from buildings dates well before medieval Europe.
Ancient Egyptian and Greek architecture is rife with apparatuses
that would qualify as "gargoyles."
As Marianne says in Chapter Twenty, medieval gargoyles were indeed
sometimes painted bright colors. Oranges, reds, and greens were
popular, and some gargoyles were gilded. They were made from a
variety of materials, including limestone, marble, lead, or metal,
and they usually weighed several hundred pounds.
Scholars debate the intended message behind medieval gargoyles.
Perhaps they were meant to ward off evil spirits, or to depict evil
forces. Early Gothic examples easily convey a moral lesson, while
later ones can frequently be interpreted as comical.
For Discussion: In Chapter Five, Marianne
describes herself as "a vessel that water is poured into and
splashes out of, a flowing circle between God and the gargoyles and
me." In Chapter Sixteen, the narrator realizes that Marianne "loved
[the gargoyles] out of the stone." What mandate is she fulfilling
in both of these descriptions? What makes Marianne's mandate
relevant to the modern world? What traits does the narrator share
with medieval gargoyles?
4. Legendary Lovers
The author incorporated the four Greek classical elements
of the physical world when writing Marianne's legends: Sei lived as
a glassblower (Air) and died by being buried alive (Earth).
Victoria lived as a farmwoman (Earth) and died by drowning (Water).
Sigurðr lived as a Viking (Water) and died in a burning longhouse
(Fire). Francesco lived as an ironworker (Fire) and died by
breathing in the Plague (Air).
Brandeis and his fellow mercenaries served during a tumultuous time
for the Holy Roman Empire. Between 1314 and 1347, Louis the
Bavarian served as Duke of Bavaria, the German king, and the Holy
Roman Emperor, meeting with constant resistance from the papacy
(including excommunication).
Marianne's fairy tales are Davidson's inventions. Though the
novel's depictions of Engelthal incorporate many figures from true
history, none of the incarnations of Marianne and the narrator are
based on such characters.
Marianne's copy of The Inferno was found among the
possessions of the archer Niccolò, later revealed to be the father
of metalworker Francesco.
Sei is stung by the Asian giant hornet, the world's largest wasp
(and among the deadliest).
Sigurðr's "fine boat grave" refers to a highly honorary burial
style used in the Vendel era and by the Anglo-Saxons, the
Merovingians, the Vikings, and occasionally the Ancient Egyptians.
This form of burial was thought to enable passage to Valhalla. In
Norse mythology, the paradise of Valhalla is the great hall where
war heroes greet the afterlife. The less fortunate are relegated to
a cold, dismal kingdom of death ruled by the goddess Hel.
Tom's ill-fated voyage is alluded to in the story of Sigurðr and
Einarr, when Bragi stumbles off his sleeping bench during the fire
while the floor seems "to lurch like a boat deck during a
storm."
In Chapter Seven, Marianne tells the narrator that he must do
nothing for her in order to prove his love. This foreshadows her
final scene on the beach in the novel's closing passages.
For Discussion: Throughout each liaison, how do
the novel's lovers honor their fate? In each case, who or what is
the greatest threat to their happiness? Do you agree with Meister
Eckhart's descriptions of love and death in the novel's epigraph?
Which of Marianne's tales was the most memorable for you?
5. Linguistic Curiosities
Translated into English, Sei's name means "pure" or
"clean."
Bragi's name is derived from the Norse god of poetry.
In Chapter Nine, the narrator wonders whether he can trust Sayuri's
translation of her conversation with Marianne. In fact, he can.
Sayuri gave him a faithful rendering of their words.
The names of the nun-nurses of Engelthal echo those of the nurses
who tend to the narrator in the present time: Mathildis, Elisabeth,
and Constantia versus Maddy, Beth, and Connie.
While the word gargoyle is related to a French word
meaning gargle, the word grotesque (a non-aquatic
gargoyle) is derived from the Old Italian grottesca,
meaning "cave painting," from which the English word
grotto evolved.
Marianne's linguistic abilities are an allusion to the New
Testament's Book of Acts 2:3, in which the apostles speak in
tongues when preaching the gospel.
Gertrud's German translation of the Bible is one of Andrew
Davidson's inventions.
When Sayuri asks the narrator if he is genki, she is
asking him if he is feeling energetic. "Genki desu ka?" is
a common Japanese greeting, essentially asking "Are you feeling
well?"
For Discussion: How does the multilingual aspect
of The Gargoyle shape the novel, giving voice to
the universal aspects of the human experience? How do Marianne's
vignettes offer a testament to the power of words and language?
6. The Gargoyle begins with arguably one of the
most stunning opening scenes in contemporary literature. How was
the author able to make horrifying details alluring? What was your
initial reaction to these images?
7. How were you affected by the narrator's voice and his ability
to address you in an intimate, direct monologue? How did his
storytelling style compare to Marianne's? In what ways did these
tales balance reality and surrealism?
8. Arrows form a recurring symbol throughout the novel. What are
their various uses as tools of war and of love? What makes them
ideal for Marianne's stories?
9. What medical aspects of the narrator's treatment surprised
you the most? Did his gruesome journey change the way you feel
about your own body?
10. How did Marianne's experience of God evolve and mature
throughout her life? How do you personally reconcile the concept of
a loving God and the reality of human suffering?
11. Marianne uses her body as a canvas. What messages does it
convey? How does the narrator "read" bodies before his accident,
both in front of the camera and while picking up less-dazzling
strangers?
12. Discuss the role of ghosts and memory in The
Gargoyle. In what ways does the past repeat itself? How
are the characters shaped by past circumstances? When are their
painful cycles to be broken?
13. What does Marianne's copy of The Inferno
indicate about the value of books beyond their content? In what way
can a book also be an art object, or an artifact of history?
14. Eventually, Nan reveals her own burn scars. What motivates
the novel's healers - including Nan, Marianne, Sayuri, and Gregor?
Whom does the narrator heal?
15. Discuss the role of money throughout The
Gargoyle. What kept Jack honest? What did it mean
for Marianne, a woman, to have far more money than the men in her
life, both in the 14th century and in the contemporary
storyline?
16. How did you interpret the narrator's own Dante-esque tour,
described in Chapter Twenty-nine? Was he hallucinating, in the
throes of withdrawal while he kicked the bitchsnake of morphine, or
did he journey to an underworld? Or both? Was Marianne a mere
mortal?
17. The novel closes with Marianne's departure and the marriage
of Gregor and Sayuri. The narrator grapples with guilt, trying to
understand whether he could or should have saved Marianne. What
enabled Gregor and Sayuri to recognize and nurture their love for
one another? What determines whether a relationship will become
exhausted or perpetually revitalized? Is fate or willpower the
greater factor?
18. An old adage, evidenced particularly in Shakespeare's works,
states that a comedy ends with a marriage, while a tragedy ends
with a death. Given that The Gargoyle ends with
both a marriage and a death, what does it say about the work?