Reading the present English edition of “Despair” I came across a combination of words that reminded me of certain passages in ADA (I’ve underlined the words).
ADA: “His nights in the hammock (where that other poor youth had cursed his blood cough and sunk back into dreams of prowling black spumas and a crash of symbols in an orchal orchestra — as suggested to him by career physicians) were now haunted not so much by the agony of his desire for Ada, as by that meaningless space overhead, underhead, everywhere, the demon counterpart of divine time, tingling about him and through him, as it was to retingle — with a little more meaning fortunately — in the last nights of a life, which I do not regret, my love” (73.26/30, I,12);
“ The unpleasant colossus kept strutting up and down the stage for a while, then the strut changed to the restless walk of a caged madman, then he whirled, and to a clash of cymbals in the orchestra and a cry of terror (perhaps faked) in the gallery, Mascodagama turned over in the air and stood on his head.” (p.183, I,30)
and Darkbloom’s note: “p.61. horsecart: an old anagram. It leads here to a skit on Freudian dream charades (‘symbols in an orchal orchestra’), p.62.”*
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Btw: Spuma seems to be related to “foam”, as it might have been found in uncle Ivan’s blood cough. However, a resulting wordplay may falsely associate two words (foam and spit).
In Latin there is “spuma” (foam) related to “pumex,pumicis” (pumice). These foamy sputters were once thought to be related to “spuere” (spit) and to “exspumare” (fester), but this is a mistaken comparison ( if my source is correct), for “spuere” derives from the Greek “Spyeu” (related, in fact, to hemoptisis, one of the symptoms of tuberculosis and of Van’s uncle Ivan’s illness).
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The irresistible “Freudian” sound-play with an “orchal orchestra” probably refers to the Greek orkhis (genitive orkheos) "orchid," literally "testicle," from PIE *orghi-, the standard root for "testicle http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=orchid and, like Darkbloom, I don’t see where this sexual “crashing cymbal” fits in. Nevertheless, if one abandons the critical suggestion of some Freudian “clashing symbols,” perhaps there’s another inroad into the “horsecart/orchestral” noise, as found in the paragraph from “Despair”.
The striking similarity and apparent importance of the words “orchestra, cymbals, crash” cannot be easily dismissed.
(It’s also interesting to consider that Mascodagama’s act, strangely related to the hammock scene, is presented as causing fright in small children who could be watching a strong male’s somersault which later, in an inverted stance, will reveal him wearing women’s clothes (cf. p.183). Or something else…**)
In the novel these words allude to the noises of an operatic tenor’s angry scolding, a “vocal outburst” interspersed with orchestral rumbles that end with a crash of cymbals. These may describe and reproduce the tone of verbal intimidation imprinted on a terrified child’s recollection after it has heard a family fight, witnessed some other kind of intercourse or while the infant is being reprimanded.
Here are the lines from DESPAIR:
“Placing one foot on the footboard of the car and like an enraged tenor slashing my hand with the glove I had taken off, I glared steadily at Felix. Grinning uncertainly, he came out of the ditch.
“You scoundrel,” I uttered through my teeth with extraordinary operatic force, “you scoundrel and double-crosser,” I repeated, now giving my voice full scope and slashing myself with the glove still more furiously (all was rumble and thunder in the orchestra between my vocal outbursts). “How did you dare blab, you cur? How did you dare, how did you dare ask others for advice, boast that you had had your way and that at such a date and at such a place—Oh, you deserve to be shot!”—(growing din, clangor, and then again my voice)—“Much have you gained, idiot! The game’s up, you’ve blundered badly, not a groat will you see, baboon!” (crash of cymbals in the orchestra).” Cf. VN, “Despair” ch.9.
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* Cf. notes from Brian Boyd ADA Online:
72.19-20: had awoken once because a stink-bomb had burst among the instruments in the horsecart: Darkbloom: “horsecart: an old anagram. It leads here to a skit on Freudian dream charades (‘symbols in an orchal orchestra’).” Cf. 73.26-30 and nn. Both passages anticipate Van’s later work as a psychologist, especially his attack on Freudian and other symbolism in dreams, 363.03-364.07. MOTIF: dream.
183.34: to a clash of symbols in the orchestra: Cf. 73.28-29: “a crash of symbols in an orchal orchestra.
**” “Van on the stage was performing organically what his figures of speech were to perform later in life — acrobatic wonders that had never been expected from them and which frightened children.” It is not clear to me, though, what final image is suggested by Van’s maniambulatory act: I’ve seen images of performances of a tuxedoed actor dancing with a female puppet who then turns upside down and reveals a single male acrobat, but Van Veen tangoed with Rita, a real dancer. I’ve seen puppets that, when turned upside down, become their opposites (the red-riding hood and the wolf; an angel and a demon, a male and a female, etc. ) All I know is that VV enters on stage looking like a giant, then he dances with Rita and there’s a crashing noise: he stands on his feet and …what is then discovered by the astonished audience ?