Essay Questions

Why does Jon overvalue Sander's company? Expound in the context of psychology.

Sander confirms, "Jon wanted no company but mine. He had two younger brothers, the twins Lars and Odd, but he and I were the same age. I do not know who he was with for the rest of the year, when I was in Oslo. He never talked about that, and I never told him what I did in the city." Psychologically, Sander the symbolic self-completion in Jon's life thereby making him feel complete. Jon admires Sander for he espouses traits that are not evident in his brothers. Therefore, despite the blood relationship, Jon's brothers cannot displace Sander from Jon's life.

What role do dogs play in Haug and Sander’s lives? Cite Lacanian viewpoints.

First, Lars Haug asserts, “He’s run off again…Poker. My dog, that is. It happens. He always comes back. But it’s hard to sleep when he’s gone like that.” Then Sander observes, “He seems a bit embarrassed. Probably would be if it were my dog. I don’t know I would do if Lyra had run off, whether I would go out by myself to search for her.” Manifestly, the dogs are Objet Petit a’s for family. Both men are solitary and derive their companionships from dogs. Haug cannot rest tranquilly while the dog is absent. Similarly, Sander reckons that if Poker were his dog, he would search for him frantically like Haug. For both men, the dogs are their sole families; thus, losing them would elicit stress and restlessness.

What deductions are manifest in Sander's preferred residence?

Sander expounds, “All my life I have longed to be alone in a place like this. Even when everything was going well, as it often did. I can say that much. That it often did. I have been lucky, But even then, for instance in the middle of an embrace and someone whispering words in my ear I wanted to hear, I could suddenly get a longing to be in a place where there was only silence.” Sander is an archetypal introvert who prefers silence to company. His unconscious desire is to avoid emotional intimacy with other human beings. Residing far away in a silent place permits him to mollify his unconscious yearning for silence and solitude. Obviously, a town setting would not be ideal for his goal.