[Spoilers] Significance of the Snow Woman story

[Zombra]

SPOILERS. Post assumes you have completed the game and discovered the motivation for two of the murders (those of "Bullard" and Rosanna Turner).

The prominent appearance of the Snow Woman story still had me confused, until I reread a "Bullard" (Lowry) journal entry praising the tale. Then something clicked in my mind.

Lowry killed Rosanna Turner, and Josie had recurring dreams about the murder. Where did these dreams come from? It is generally agreed that Josie witnessed the killing as a child, and blocked it out of her conscious mind until it was unlocked by the dream apparatus. The important part for the purpose of this thread is that Josie was present at the murder.

One summary of the Snow Woman story is: a monster confronts an innocent. The monster by its nature should kill the innocent, but spares him instead, direly warning that the innocent should never turn on the monster. The innocent does break his word, but the monster still has the last laugh.

Map this to the murder. Lowry murders Rosanna, and Josie is a witness. To be safe, Lowry should also kill the only witness, but for reasons unknown he chooses to spare her.

This is only half the story, but Lowry's admiration of the Snow Woman becomes far more sinister. He is amused by a story of a murderous monster sparing an innocent, because that is exactly what he has done in real life.

The second half of the story ironically reverses the roles. In the original tale, the monster returns in disguise to live with the innocent, until its secret is betrayed. In Dead Secret, it is the innocent who returns under another name to (unknowingly) live with the monster. The innocent does turn on the monster, but this time she kills it ... and in doing so becomes a monster herself.

The parallels aren't perfect, but there are enough common themes here to see why it was included.

Your comments are welcome.

[Robot Invader Chris]

I won't comment on this topic beyond saying that I think that the Snow Woman document is the most important document in the game.

[Zombra]

Originally posted by Robot Invader Chris:

I won't comment on this topic beyond saying that I think that the Snow Woman document is the most important document in the game.

I'm not a bit surprised to read that. :) Dramatically speaking, its early establishment and subtle reinforcement clearly mark it as a major theme. It's almost the first thing Patricia reads, and it seems so out of place at first glance that one has to wonder about its inclusion. The painting on the wall is a constant reminder about it every time she passes through the study (several times; it's almost the "home base" of the game). And of course "Bullard's" note draws attention to it again mid-game.

I didn't really devote much thought to it in my first playthrough - I was a bit more worried about a murderer grabbing me every time I opened a door - but watching friends play the game gave me enough distance to give it due consideration. That's how I got as far as I did with the post above.

I am surprised that apparently no one else ever posted their theories about it. It's a shame, because despite the commonalities I perceived, I feel like I am missing the point. Maybe I need to play the game again :)

[DreeVee]

Well that all sounds perfectly consistent, logical, reasonable and matching the story. From the psychology point of view it is indeed possible.

[Zombra]

Something else to consider: at one point Lowry/Bullard writes to Josie, telling her "I know about your secret room behind the wardrobe." This means that he has very likely seen her diary, photographs etc. and is perfectly aware of her true identity and investigation into his. Unlike in the Snow Woman story, in Dead Secret there are two people with hidden identities*; and Lowry is aware of both. So which part amuses him the most? The fact that he is the "monster" in disguise? Or does he see Josie as the Snow Woman, whose secret he knows?

*Not counting Woodcutter!

Perhaps that's it. It's after he reveals that he knows her secret that she turns on him (though not for that reason!) This is critical in the Snow Woman story but not so much in the murder case, as it was not this revelation that drove Josie to kill Lowry. But the parallel is there.

Once that note was written, did Josie and Lowry have a frank discussion about their identities? If not, why not?

Nothing fits neatly enough. I still feel like I'm missing the point.

[Bee]

Well this is the story of the Yuki-onna, from Lafcadio Hearn's "Kwaidan." It's similar to the French folktale of Bluebeard. The story was re-hashed in movie form in Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990), in a vignette called "Lover's Vow."

The theme is that a person can live contentedly in a fiction and repress their curiosity about the true nature of their circumstances, or they can expose the ugly truth, thereby blowing everyone involved's lives apart. In short, curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction does most definitely not bring him back.

(speaking obliquely about a spoiler)

In Dead Secret, this would be Rosanna Turner's daughter's quest.