Silent Hill: Homecoming - A Family Matter *spoilers*

Poor Alex ... his momma don't seem to like him much. We wonder why in here ...

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LastGunslinger
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Silent Hill: Homecoming - A Family Matter *spoilers*

Post by LastGunslinger »

The Silent Hill series is known for psychological, introspective horror, but a more specific theme common to all of the games is domestic dysfunction. The protagonists, and often the antagonists, have suffered through a history of issues ranging from abandonment to abuse, the memories of which form the worlds we, as players, explore in each game. Silent Hill: Homecoming reinforces the theme of family more strongly than other games in the series, and the world explored is a macrocosm of the family unit as experienced by Alex.

The main thematic conflict in the game is between love and duty. The first way in which this is expressed, and the most obvious example to be taken from the plot, is the duty of the founding families to sacrifice their children. This duty is partly motivated by faith, in particular a pact the families made with the god of Silent Hill's Order for safety in exchange for seceding from the cult. This faith is also coupled with fear, as both the god and the individuals worshiping it are known to be vengeful. For three generations, and most of the fourth, fear and faith win over familial love in this conflict.

At another level, love and duty are expressed by the juxtaposition of Alex's reflections on his family past and the recurring military motif, respectively. Alex spends a significant amount of time reflecting on how much more beloved his brother was compared to himself, and the absence of attention he had suffered from his whole life. Meanwhile, most of the flashback sequences in the game involve Adam Shepherd and the strict sense of duty he tries to instill in his children, complemented by the military paraphernalia in the brothers' bedroom and Adam's ever-present dog tags and crew cut. Love and duty are always presented in close proximity to each other.

The metaphor can be extended to the towns themselves. Shepherd's Glenn can be seen as a "child" of Silent Hill, grown up enough to move out on its own, but still beholden to the rules set forth by its parent. Abstracted to this level, love cannot be easily seen in the actions of either party, except perhaps in the belief that punishing the Order's wayward offspring can save them. Here, duty is adhered to strictly and transgressions are punished with the greatest severity.

Where the interesting aspect of the story comes into play is in how the various characters reconcile these ideals. Mayor Bartlett is shown as being both evasive and indulgent; he entertains the notion of Joey still being alive in his "garden", nurturing it with the corpses of Shepherd's Glenn while drinking himself into oblivion. Adam detaches himself from Alex, avoiding the reality of his love to make the sacrifice easier. Dr. Fitch immerses himself in guilt and self-flagellation, unable to cope with the murder of his daughter and his duty as a physician except by using pain as an escape, driving himself mad. Judge Holloway, meanwhile, simply prioritises her duties and her family, convincing herself that her horrible actions are justified by love itself. They represent the states of denial, detachment, guilt, and acceptance.

All four of these states are experienced by Alex over the course of the story. Alex's denial of his brother's death begins at the moment his father confronts him on the lake, unable to cope with what he had just done and oblivious to the implications for the rest of the town. From then on he develops a dissociative disorder, distancing himself from the tragedy by imagining himself going off to war. His delusion is fueled by guilt, as he becomes obsessed with the idea of protecting people, due to the fact that he was supposed to protect Joshua and instead caused his death out of recklessness. He is finally made aware of this guilt when he remembers the incident.

The process of acceptance for Alex is expressed in a horrifying battle with a mechanical spider, the center of which appears to be a pregnant female. This can be seen as a manifestation of Alex's protective, feminine aspect; in his mind, Alex has safely tucked Josh away from the reality of his death, as if Josh was still in his mother's womb. The grotesque appearance of the creature is simultaneously representative of the wrongness of this delusion, and of the consequences his act brought about. When he defeats the monster and cuts Josh out of the womb, he is bringing his mistake into the open and confronting it, in effect crawling out of his own protective space, ready to accept reality.

What can be gained from analysing these elements, if we are to take what happens in Shepherd's Glenn as synonymous with what happens to Alex's family, is that a line must be drawn when duty infringes upon love. A biblical example is the story of Abraham and Isaac: Abraham, out of duty, is willing to sacrifice his son at God's command. In the case of this story, God stops Abraham from carrying out the deed; it was an exercise in obedience, and when it was clear that Abraham passed the test, Isaac was spared out of love. The Order and the founding families do not offer this consolation. Adam Shepherd spends his adult life preparing to sacrifice his son, and this results in the family unit breaking down, culminating in the incident on the lake. The entire family unit of Shepherd's Glenn then follows, all because the humanity of its residents is crippled under the weight of duty.

Through Alex's realisation, the flaw in the town's religious practices is exposed. The ritual is always executed at the expense of each family's happiness. While the events following Josh's death lend credence to the notion that it was all to prevent even greater harm, the game also shifts in the latter half to focus on human enemies instead of supernatural monsters. This shift toward reality coincides with Alex's growing realisation of what actually happened, and thus the wrath visited upon Shepherd's Glenn is revealed to originate from other people, not from their god. The ritual, and the consequences for failing to perform it, are imposed by humans.

Silent Hill: Homecoming is a study in the breakdown of a family whose social obligations outweigh its own well-being. When love is sacrificed for the sake of a greater good, the emotional ties that reinforce that good become weakened, and can ultimately destroy an entire community.
“The sinister, the terrible never deceive: the state in which they leave us is always one of enlightenment. And only this condition of vicious insight allows us a full grasp of the world, all things considered, just as a frigid melancholy grants us full possession of ourselves. We may hide from horror only in the heart of horror."
--Thomas Ligotti
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Post by PrescitedEntity »

*Starts slow clap.*

That's an excellent analysis of the strongest theme in Homecoming - the theme of duty versus familial love. And you're absolutely right; this question has underlain quite a few SH games, and was brought to fore here. I remember thinking back to Leonard and his cult views and how he was willing to kill Claudia for bucking the orthodox as he saw it, especially in the scene where Holloway seems to be about to kill her daughter for her refusal to go along with her views of the cult. I think it's not just duty in the strict sense that binds them, but fear as well - fear of religion.

That said, I'm not sure if I agree with your idea that Holloway is meant to symbolize acceptance in a way that parallels Alex. I think Holloway, rather, is symbolizing the other path that branches from guilt - the circular one that leads back into denial, or alternatively, one that leads to delusion. She refuses to step back and look at what has actually happened, refuses to see the root cause, and it's this that allows the cult and, indeed, any Silent Hill ordeal to perpetuate. Thematically, it's like the Maria ending, in which James gains the knowledge of what he's done, but decides to live with the easier to accept delusion than the truth, then spinning any rationalizations for what happened from there.

Regardless, that was a very, very well thought out analysis!
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Post by LastGunslinger »

Thanks for the praise, Prescited.

I agree, Holloway's acceptance of the ritual is in opposition to Alex's acceptance of his wrongdoing. I still believe, however, that it is an acceptance; Holloway is a true believer in what she is doing, and shows little, if any, remorse for what she has done. The difference between the parental figures of the four families and Alex's stages of processing his brother's death is that while Alex is on a path of (potential) healing, each of the other four is "stuck" at whatever stage he or she represents. They do not grow during the story, but are markers for Alex's growth on his journey.
“The sinister, the terrible never deceive: the state in which they leave us is always one of enlightenment. And only this condition of vicious insight allows us a full grasp of the world, all things considered, just as a frigid melancholy grants us full possession of ourselves. We may hide from horror only in the heart of horror."
--Thomas Ligotti
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Post by TheRedOne »

That was all very well said. I praise this game for having a deep storyline, yet I never even gave thought to some of the things you've mentioned.

Nice job!
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Post by put_here_2_feel_joy »

*stands in awe*

LastGunslinger, you have made SHV into something that I can respect and I never thought that would happen. Ever since I finished the game I have failed to find significance in the details, especially in the final boss, but now you made everything as clear as crystal. Thanks!
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Post by PrescitedEntity »

LastGunslinger wrote:Thanks for the praise, Prescited.

I agree, Holloway's acceptance of the ritual is in opposition to Alex's acceptance of his wrongdoing. I still believe, however, that it is an acceptance; Holloway is a true believer in what she is doing, and shows little, if any, remorse for what she has done. The difference between the parental figures of the four families and Alex's stages of processing his brother's death is that while Alex is on a path of (potential) healing, each of the other four is "stuck" at whatever stage he or she represents. They do not grow during the story, but are markers for Alex's growth on his journey.
Praise very well due!

Well, when put that way, I agree that she does accept what she does, only, with the caveat that her acceptance leads right back to delusion rather than being stuck at acceptance (because we get to see her action past acceptance, which by itself is just a recognition of fact), whereas Alex's leads to healing.
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Post by ItsDaChibs »

Well, I learned something today. I didn't know the Mayor brought the bodies back to the garden.
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Post by Tenna »

Great post/analysis! There have been many claims in reviews and such that the storyline just isn't as deep and symbolic as the other games and you just proved them wrong. :D I actually really enjoyed SHH and with this analysis of yours I find myself enjoying it even more. Thank you for posting it!
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Post by LastGunslinger »

Thanks everyone. I found this game fairly compelling compared to the rest; it's less mystifying in a way, but I think it has plenty to ponder over.
“The sinister, the terrible never deceive: the state in which they leave us is always one of enlightenment. And only this condition of vicious insight allows us a full grasp of the world, all things considered, just as a frigid melancholy grants us full possession of ourselves. We may hide from horror only in the heart of horror."
--Thomas Ligotti
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Post by Skele »

Nicely done.

after having read everything you presented and remembering the story and events in SH:H, i agree with you. I especially like how you tied the states of denial, detachment, guilt, and acceptance from the heads of the four families, to Alex.
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Post by _Drake_ »

Damn, this one hell of a Theory,
I read it all and I must say that I agree with most of the points.

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Post by LastGunslinger »

Thanks again. It's less of a theory and more of an analysis; I've kind of abandoned grand unifying theories of Silent Hill for now, in favour of trying to interpret the games as literature.
“The sinister, the terrible never deceive: the state in which they leave us is always one of enlightenment. And only this condition of vicious insight allows us a full grasp of the world, all things considered, just as a frigid melancholy grants us full possession of ourselves. We may hide from horror only in the heart of horror."
--Thomas Ligotti
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Post by AlessaChevalier »

Dude, you were the reason I played the game. I didn't think Homecoming would have anything that would make me take a walk and think about the story but way to prove me wrong. Your theory of the Amnion's symbolism wasn't just enough to get me to play it but if it's true then that is one of the best metaphors they have ever used for a monster in the entire series.
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Post by Mis Krist. »

Christ, I should float this. This is amazing. I... don't know if I can add much more to it.
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Post by jthomp1286 »

Very well done. I think this ties a lot of the story together neatly.
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Post by Lostkitsune »

Fantastic, *claps*, that was beautiful, I have been wracking my brain over Amnion's purpose for quite a while and suddenly thanks to you, it all makes since.
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Post by LastGunslinger »

Thanks everyone. It's kind of funny, my girlfriend recently told me I need to write papers on every movie we watch now, because she doesn't fully appreciate it until I do. That's not to say that I'm "right" about all of this, just that this is how it makes sense to me.
“The sinister, the terrible never deceive: the state in which they leave us is always one of enlightenment. And only this condition of vicious insight allows us a full grasp of the world, all things considered, just as a frigid melancholy grants us full possession of ourselves. We may hide from horror only in the heart of horror."
--Thomas Ligotti
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Post by AlessaChevalier »

Dude, I don't want you to be wrong. This is the only possible way I can consider Homecoming a true Silent Hill. Your theory is so rock solid that it must have been intentional, proving Double Helix did have some idea of what they were doing...
At least they better say that :evil:

The moment I read this not only was I compelled to appreciate Homecoming but I literally screamed, "THIS IS HOW YOU RIGHT AN ESSAY!" Hell, your writing contributes to what I believe makes the series so great. Not the horror, not the emotion jerking story, not the characters, and not Pyramid Head; these are all secondary reason why I love it. But because it is in the best way to describe it, "thought-out". The first Silent Hill was a masterpiece not only for the horror genre, but in the way it shatters the idea that a video game can be "just a video game." The series is the closest thing the industry has ever come to making a jump from "a well written book" to Shakespeare, and your writing can most defiantly convince even experts on literature of this. Also the reason I dislike Climax; they made a great game that actually made me feel like I was playing the original Silent Hill but, they disrespected Team Silent by ignoring this view and made the retconing changes in the story.
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Post by Mis Krist. »

>"THIS IS HOW YOU RIGHT AN ESSAY!"

But not how you spell write ;)
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Post by stopped_clock »

This theory is brilliant, I had never made the connection between the family heads and the stages of Alex's journey to that sort of extent. Methinks a third playthrough is in order with this theory in mind. Nice work.
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