All the Light We Cannot See
Around the World in Eighty Days
by Anthony, Doerr,The chapter follows Marie-Laure, a blind girl who navigates her world through sound, texture, and imagination. She memorizes the layout of the museum where her father works, counting steps and mapping spaces in her mind. Each department has distinct smells—botany like pressed flowers, paleontology like dust—and she startles others as she moves unseen. Marie-Laure perceives colors vividly in her mind, assigning hues to people, sounds, and objects, like silver bees or bronze church bells. Her father, a locksmith, radiates a kaleidoscope of colors and emotions, from olive green when professional to bright red when flustered.
Marie-Laure’s curiosity leads her to explore the museum, often getting lost and requiring rescue by staff. She asks questions about science, like the difference between algae and lichen, and famous men guide her, mentioning their own daughters. Her father lovingly scolds her for pocketing keys, whispering, “What am I going to do with you?” On her ninth birthday, he gifts her a puzzle box with cheese and a Braille copy of *Around the World in Eighty Days*, which she treasures despite its expense. The book becomes her escape, its tactile pages transporting her far from the museum.
As Marie-Laure reads, she immerses herself in Jules Verne’s tale of Phileas Fogg and Passepartout, their adventures unfolding in her mind. She rereads the book repeatedly, finding comfort in its familiar rhythms. At night, she explores her father’s miniature model of their neighborhood, imagining Verne’s characters inhabiting the tiny streets. The model comes alive with minuscule bakers, burglars, and cars, while a tiny version of her father works at his bench, mirroring reality. The detail and vibrancy of her inner world contrast with her physical blindness.
The chapter highlights Marie-Laure’s resilience and creativity, portraying her blindness not as a limitation but as a different way of experiencing the world. Her father’s love and the gift of literature empower her, fostering a sense of adventure and independence. The Braille book and the miniature model symbolize her ability to transcend her surroundings through imagination. Marie-Laure’s story is one of wonder, curiosity, and the boundless possibilities of the mind, even in darkness.
FAQs
1. How does Marie-Laure perceive and navigate the world differently from sighted individuals?
Answer:
Marie-Laure, being blind, relies on her other senses to navigate and understand her surroundings. She counts steps to measure distances (e.g., sixteen paces to the water fountain) and uses sounds, textures, and smells to create mental maps. For example, she distinguishes different museum departments by their unique scents—botany smells like pressed flowers, while entomology smells like mothballs. She also perceives colors through her imagination, associating them with sounds and emotions, such as piano chords projecting “rich blacks and complicated blues.” Her world is rich and vivid, just not in the visual way sighted people experience.2. How does Marie-Laure’s father demonstrate his love and care for her in this chapter?
Answer:
Marie-Laure’s father shows his affection through thoughtful gestures and gifts. For her ninth birthday, he gives her two presents: a puzzle box with hidden cheese (which delights her) and a Braille copy of Around the World in Eighty Days, despite its expense. He also worries about her wandering the museum, often retrieving her when she gets lost, and humorously asks, “What am I going to do with you?” His presence is comforting—she associates him with vibrant colors and a reassuring smell of oil and metal, symbolizing his protective and nurturing role in her life.3. How does Marie-Laure’s experience of reading Around the World in Eighty Days reflect her imagination and resilience?
Answer:
Marie-Laure immerses herself in the Braille version of Around the World in Eighty Days, demonstrating her love for stories and her ability to transcend her physical limitations. The book transports her, making the museum “fall away” as she focuses on the adventures of Phileas Fogg and Passepartout. Her dedication to rereading the novel highlights her resilience and curiosity. Additionally, she integrates the story into her father’s miniature model of their neighborhood, imagining Verne’s characters inhabiting the tiny streets. This blending of literature and reality showcases her creativity and adaptability.4. What role does sensory perception play in Marie-Laure’s understanding of the world?
Answer:
For Marie-Laure, senses like hearing, touch, and smell are primary tools for interpreting her environment. She associates colors with sounds (e.g., church bells create “arcs of bronze”) and textures with emotions (her father’s presence evokes a kaleidoscope of colors and the sound of his keys). The museum’s distinct smells help her navigate its departments, while floorboard squeaks and footsteps guide her movements. Her sensory experiences are so vivid that she dreams in color, proving that her perception, though non-visual, is deeply nuanced and richly detailed.5. How does the chapter illustrate the theme of curiosity and exploration, both literally and metaphorically?
Answer:
The chapter emphasizes exploration in multiple ways. Literally, Marie-Laure explores the museum’s halls, asking questions about science and nature (e.g., the difference between algae and lichen). Metaphorically, her Braille book allows her to “travel” globally through Phileas Fogg’s journey, while her father’s miniature model lets her mentally roam their neighborhood. Her curiosity drives her to learn and imagine beyond her physical confines, whether through books, conversations with scientists, or her own inventive play. This theme underscores how exploration isn’t limited by physical sight but is fueled by imagination and determination.
Quotes
1. “Everything is composed of webs and lattices and upheavals of sound and texture.”
This quote captures Marie-Laure’s unique sensory experience of the world as a blind girl, revealing how she perceives her surroundings through intricate auditory and tactile patterns rather than visual cues. It’s a profound insight into alternative ways of experiencing reality.
2. “In her imagination, in her dreams, everything has color… The museum buildings are beige, chestnut, hazel. Its scientists are lilac and lemon yellow and fox brown.”
This passage beautifully illustrates how Marie-Laure’s mind assigns vivid colors to people and places despite her blindness, showing the richness of her inner world. It challenges conventional assumptions about perception and imagination.
3. “He is an olive green when he talks to a department head, an escalating series of oranges when he speaks to Mademoiselle Fleury from the greenhouses, a bright red when he tries to cook.”
This quote demonstrates how Marie-Laure synesthetically associates colors with her father’s emotions and activities, revealing both her deep connection to him and her unique way of understanding human behavior through sensory metaphors.
4. “She slides her fingertips across the embossed title page. ‘Around. The. World. In. Eighty. Days.’ ‘Papa, it’s too expensive.’ ‘That’s for me to worry about.’”
This tender exchange highlights the loving relationship between Marie-Laure and her father, as well as the significance of literature in expanding her world. The braille book becomes a portal to adventure and learning.
5. “Behind a fourth-floor window… across the room is a miniature girl, skinny, quick-witted, an open book in her lap; inside her chest pulses something huge, something full of longing, something unafraid.”
This powerful conclusion reveals Marie-Laure’s growing self-awareness and inner strength. The juxtaposition of her small physical presence with her vast internal world beautifully captures the chapter’s theme of perception versus reality.