Memento symbolism.
Posted: 06 Jan 2010
Can’t believe this thread wasn’t already made. I obviously haven’t put that much thought into this, but here it is from the top of my head:
A winter beacon: It depicts a woman in pink, standing in front of the lighthouse. I figure this was a foreshadowing, Dahlia waiting for Cheryl in front of the lighthouse clinic. The psalm written in the bottom has me confused though.
Hidden fire: Unsure.
Frozen waters: Probably symbolizes being frozen in childhood, or in Cheryl’s case, childhood memories. Or it relates to the two brothers who died in the wood from hypothermia. Both on different occasions.
Movable feast: Unsure.
A broken ward: Probably represents that Cheryl doesn’t feels safe anymore. Her father was the one that made her feel secure before, but now he’s gone. Alternatively, it could symbolize Cheryl being “in the dark†about Harry’s passing.
Pinned beauty: It is found in the car of a boy who took advantage of Cheryl. The pinned butterfly could represent Cheryl being forcefully penetrated. It could also represent Harry however, the butterfly is as beautiful as ever, but, it’s isn’t alive anymore.
Suffocated forever: It probably represents Harry. He isn’t allowed to die in Cheryl’s mind. He is stuck in a limbo. Again, the ant like the butterfly is actually dead, however it is unable to disappear and rot away due to the passage of time, much like harry can’t, because of Cheryl.
My plastic perfect girl: Teenie, pigtails. I imagine it has something to do with the Pigtails substory. Perhaps Cheryl wanted to be like that, a perfect little schoolgirl, so that her daddy would love her like the pigtails’s father loved her.
Heavenly protection: Saint Christopher is a Parton Saint of transportation. Harry died in a car crash.
A Frigid Jewel: Probably related to the frigid storyline. It is possible it was a ring given to Cheryl by her boyfriend, who later leaves her for being "frigid".
An Eternal rose: Same as the ant and the butterfly. Dead, but forever beautiful and present. Preserved in Cheryl's memory, better then he was in life.
Infinite jest: Scull usually symbolizes death, probably Harry’s. What I find interesting is the name engraved on the inner side of the ring; “Opheliaâ€. In “Hamlet†Ophelia was a character who was very attached to her father, because she had lost her mother in early age. Her father used that, and disallowed her to see hamlet again, the man she loved. Hamlet treats her coldly after, but Ophelia still clings to the memory of the times when he was kind. In the end, her father is murdered and she looses her mind from grief, much like our Silent Hill heroine.
Synthetic Femur: This one is kind of funny. We find this dog toy in a copier. Probably representing what happened to Cheryl’s dog. Her father ran her over, and then both another, identical one, to cover it up.
Memories Undeveloped: Probably represents Cheryl hiding the painful memories of her father from herself. Or not dwelling on his flaws.
My Flying Lizard: I see no symbolism, but there is a reference “Lost World Terry†is the name of the pterodactyl. A reference to the “Lost World†and the Air Screamers from SH1.
The Modern Prometheus: I am unsure.
We, Ouroboros: Probably Cheryl’s insatiable hunger for her father’s affection.
Poetry as Precise as Geometry: “Everything one invents is true†refers to Cheryl’s ideal Harry. Even though he wasn’t truly like that in real life, he was and is for her.
A Happy Bond: Probably a bond between father and daughter. I think that the fish we find it in is a koi, the koi fish, in Japan is a symbol of love.
Memories Untaken: Probably represents the things Cheryl doesn’t know about her father.
A Beacon, A Key: The lighthouse. It is the key of the whole story, isn’t it?
Your Diamond Heart: "Journeys end in lovers meeting" A reference to the ending. “Lovers†being Harry and Cheryl.
The Dragon: Unsure. Perhaps the significance is that it’s in a box, similar to the one where Cheryl stores all of her memories. Dragon represents danger, a menace to the princess. So basically, the one, true menace that puts Cheryl in danger are her memories of which she refuses to let go.
Eve: A picture of Dahlia, the first woman in Cheryl’s life. The inscription, “True happiness†signifies that Cheryl should look for the parental love she craves in Dahlia, rather than in her dead father, to achieve happiness. *note: getting three harts in the jack-pot machine gives you the Eve pendant, signifying that true happiness is in loving Dahlia.
Adam: A picture of Harry, the first man in Cheryl’s life. The inscription, “Never forget†signifies that Cheryl shouldn’t forget Harry, all of him, his flaws included, also, it foreshadows that Harry is dead. It is located in the bust’s head, because Cheryl’s mind is the only place in which Harry still lives.
So yeah, post your interpretations and ideas. I’d love to read them.
A winter beacon: It depicts a woman in pink, standing in front of the lighthouse. I figure this was a foreshadowing, Dahlia waiting for Cheryl in front of the lighthouse clinic. The psalm written in the bottom has me confused though.
Hidden fire: Unsure.
Frozen waters: Probably symbolizes being frozen in childhood, or in Cheryl’s case, childhood memories. Or it relates to the two brothers who died in the wood from hypothermia. Both on different occasions.
Movable feast: Unsure.
A broken ward: Probably represents that Cheryl doesn’t feels safe anymore. Her father was the one that made her feel secure before, but now he’s gone. Alternatively, it could symbolize Cheryl being “in the dark†about Harry’s passing.
Pinned beauty: It is found in the car of a boy who took advantage of Cheryl. The pinned butterfly could represent Cheryl being forcefully penetrated. It could also represent Harry however, the butterfly is as beautiful as ever, but, it’s isn’t alive anymore.
Suffocated forever: It probably represents Harry. He isn’t allowed to die in Cheryl’s mind. He is stuck in a limbo. Again, the ant like the butterfly is actually dead, however it is unable to disappear and rot away due to the passage of time, much like harry can’t, because of Cheryl.
My plastic perfect girl: Teenie, pigtails. I imagine it has something to do with the Pigtails substory. Perhaps Cheryl wanted to be like that, a perfect little schoolgirl, so that her daddy would love her like the pigtails’s father loved her.
Heavenly protection: Saint Christopher is a Parton Saint of transportation. Harry died in a car crash.
A Frigid Jewel: Probably related to the frigid storyline. It is possible it was a ring given to Cheryl by her boyfriend, who later leaves her for being "frigid".
An Eternal rose: Same as the ant and the butterfly. Dead, but forever beautiful and present. Preserved in Cheryl's memory, better then he was in life.
Infinite jest: Scull usually symbolizes death, probably Harry’s. What I find interesting is the name engraved on the inner side of the ring; “Opheliaâ€. In “Hamlet†Ophelia was a character who was very attached to her father, because she had lost her mother in early age. Her father used that, and disallowed her to see hamlet again, the man she loved. Hamlet treats her coldly after, but Ophelia still clings to the memory of the times when he was kind. In the end, her father is murdered and she looses her mind from grief, much like our Silent Hill heroine.
Synthetic Femur: This one is kind of funny. We find this dog toy in a copier. Probably representing what happened to Cheryl’s dog. Her father ran her over, and then both another, identical one, to cover it up.
Memories Undeveloped: Probably represents Cheryl hiding the painful memories of her father from herself. Or not dwelling on his flaws.
My Flying Lizard: I see no symbolism, but there is a reference “Lost World Terry†is the name of the pterodactyl. A reference to the “Lost World†and the Air Screamers from SH1.
The Modern Prometheus: I am unsure.
We, Ouroboros: Probably Cheryl’s insatiable hunger for her father’s affection.
Poetry as Precise as Geometry: “Everything one invents is true†refers to Cheryl’s ideal Harry. Even though he wasn’t truly like that in real life, he was and is for her.
A Happy Bond: Probably a bond between father and daughter. I think that the fish we find it in is a koi, the koi fish, in Japan is a symbol of love.
Memories Untaken: Probably represents the things Cheryl doesn’t know about her father.
A Beacon, A Key: The lighthouse. It is the key of the whole story, isn’t it?
Your Diamond Heart: "Journeys end in lovers meeting" A reference to the ending. “Lovers†being Harry and Cheryl.
The Dragon: Unsure. Perhaps the significance is that it’s in a box, similar to the one where Cheryl stores all of her memories. Dragon represents danger, a menace to the princess. So basically, the one, true menace that puts Cheryl in danger are her memories of which she refuses to let go.
Eve: A picture of Dahlia, the first woman in Cheryl’s life. The inscription, “True happiness†signifies that Cheryl should look for the parental love she craves in Dahlia, rather than in her dead father, to achieve happiness. *note: getting three harts in the jack-pot machine gives you the Eve pendant, signifying that true happiness is in loving Dahlia.
Adam: A picture of Harry, the first man in Cheryl’s life. The inscription, “Never forget†signifies that Cheryl shouldn’t forget Harry, all of him, his flaws included, also, it foreshadows that Harry is dead. It is located in the bust’s head, because Cheryl’s mind is the only place in which Harry still lives.
So yeah, post your interpretations and ideas. I’d love to read them.