My take on the "curse" of the Finch family [SPOILER ALERT]

[Copydawg]

In case this sub forum and title aren't enough, this thread is a major spoiler. So for anyone who hasn't beaten the game, please walk away immediately. And one other thing, sorry if this thread or theory has been brought up before. I've searched the forum but couldn't find something similar.




Now after we got the disclaimer out of the way, on to my theory:

After completing the game and taking the time to process everything, I think I know the real form of the "curse", which is neglect and ignorance. The whole Finch family and the game itself is an analogy of how neglect (which comes from ignorance) is a "curse" that comes with the innocence of youth.

There are hints that can be picked up throughout the game:
Youth, a new beginning, and/or birth are represented through various events, such as:

• Odin's house was shipwrecked just as they arrived in the American shore
  
• When Edith was born, it was the lowest tide in centuries
  
• Edith died giving birth
  
• Most of the Finches who died didn't even got the chance to reach adulthood
  
• The images being shown in the ending credits are the childhood pictures of the developers.

And the Finches that died were all caused by either ignorance or (child) neglect (with the majority caused by Edie,... who was cruelly being left alive as the oldest Finch).

• Edie didn't give Molly her dinner, forcing her to eat questionable and possibly poisonous stuff in her room.
  
• Odin wasn't even seriously injured, why wouldn't there be any ambulance or emergency care sent to help him? They were forced to leave Barbara (who was only 16) and Walter alone, with a serial killer on the loose? They didn't even know that Barbara was invited to a monster convention too!
  
• Calvin died because Edie wouldn't even bother getting to the swing.
  
• Gregory died due to Kay's parental neglect. Adding insult to injury, Sam refused to accept Kay's mistake and decided to divorce her.
  
• This is followed by Sam's on negligence to take care of Gus, too busy with his own marriage he didn't even bother to take Gus to safety, resulting in his death.
  
• Walter died because of his own ignorance (that's a train track, like seriously). He ignores the things that really mattered and ignored the stuff that wasn't.
  
• Sam died because he ignored checking the deer for any vital signs AND Dawn's warnings
  
• Dawn died because she ignored her own health
  
• Lewis died because he chose to ignore reality

As you can see, ignorance and neglect are the real curse here.
And Edie refused to accept this reality, thus creating the idea of a "curse" as a way to blame something else that caused the death of her children. Bad parenting is a trait that is easily passed down to one's children (I know since my wife is a victim of one. Some of my best friends experienced it too). Thus, Sam, Dawn, all followed Edie's bad parenting style. Subconsciously copying her attitude and negligence, while telling themselves it's perfectly okay since if something bad happen, they can just blame the "curse".

Going back to the analogy of youth, innocence, and ignorance. I think the game is all about embracing life (youth), to stay young, to be alive, yet also being wary of its dangers. Watching the signs, accepting our own mistakes, accepting our own flaws and weaknesses. Only then we can embrace life and live to the fullest.

[Randy]

I actually loved this post as an in depth reading of the game and the "curse"!
And indeed, seeing Edie as the cause of all that is a great perspective on things. Would explain why her story(in the book that child edith finds) is the only with a bit of "Paranormal" stuff in it.
What leaves me wondering, tho, is the fact of the "curse" is a myth that has been going on for 500 years or so(Odins story.) But it may just a myth that Edie used as an excuse.
That was left me without explanation, and whatever was in the garage, but i suspect it was just an animal.
All and all, great post!

[Tyler]

I noticed this too. The "curse" was largely full-blown stupidity on their part. They should stop breeding.

[Roscoe]

Nice write up

[starrtennis]

Just a brief comment: Under dire dire situations (starvation, 30 years of isolation, etc.) it can be hard to "care about what's important" because what's important changes.

[Jinan Dangor]

While this post certainly provides some interesting insight into the possible meaning behind the game, there seems to be a few character details awry. Sam explicitly goes out of his way to tell Kay that Gregory's death was not her fault, and their divorce seems more the result of continual conflict than the singular event of Gregory's death.

In similar ways, your descriptions of the reasons behind the deaths of the other Finches seem to stretch the facts a bit. Despite your criticisms of Edie's poor parenting, the game clearly casts Dawn as the more villainous parent for refusing to let Edith engage in her family history, and Edie is given constant praise by Edith.

I can see the conjoining theme of ignorance throughout the game, perhaps, but not the theme of bad parenting.

[Sankt Nimmerlein]

Originally posted by Jinan Dangor:

the game clearly casts Dawn as the more villainous parent for refusing to let Edith engage in her family history, and Edie is given constant praise by Edith.

Are we really supposed to read it that way? While Edith has a great love for Edie, I found that the game overall wasn't painting her in as bright a light.

[starrtennis]

Originally posted by Al Dhi:

Originally posted by Jinan Dangor:

the game clearly casts Dawn as the more villainous parent for refusing to let Edith engage in her family history, and Edie is given constant praise by Edith.

Are we really supposed to read it that way? While Edith has a great love for Edie, I found that the game overall wasn't painting her in as bright a light.

You know I actually felt quite neural towards Edie. I don't know. It just seemed like she was... innocent. I have no real explanation. She always showed enough care towards her children. It was just one bad accident after another...

[Furnus]

Edith points out something. "Yeah, I guess we are all cursed, seeing how the cemetary was built before the house". Another trick pulled by Edie? Maybe Edie had a hand in Odin's death and decided to come up with the curse from then on: "We'll be needing a cemetary".

Predicting peoples deaths is hard though. The theory is good, but even with neglect etc, it's very hard to go "hmmm, someone just died - nevermind just carry on the same way as always".

I would have liked to have known what was in Edie's book really. Something that made sense of it all or turned things upside down. After Edith and Dawn left the house, the next day Edie was gone. Dead? Disappeared? Suicide? We're not told, and perhaps even Edith is not told - her whole family is a mystery anyway, and so is how the hell their house stands as tall as that and all the other weird things going on.

Is there something more going on, and if so is Edie someone like an angel of death or something? It's very easy to speculate, but without the game actually going "BAM!" with the answers, I felt it was quite weak for an experience with more questions and speculations than answers, and the potential oh so great, is lost.

[Space Pirate Orez]

They why didn't Edith get to live?

[Furnus]

Originally posted by Space Pirate Orez:

They why didn't Edith get to live?

Maybe just by chance, or because she was really really ignorant about the birth :S who knows. There could be a message about the others anyway, that they died due to ignorance and so on. She could just be the odd one out.

[Space Pirate Orez]

Originally posted by Furnus:

Originally posted by Space Pirate Orez:

They why didn't Edith get to live?

Maybe just by chance, or because she was really really ignorant about the birth :S who knows. There could be a message about the others anyway, that they died due to ignorance and so on. She could just be the odd one out.

Still isn't fair

[Elrecoal19]

Originally posted by Space Pirate Orez:

Originally posted by Furnus:

Maybe just by chance, or because she was really really ignorant about the birth :S who knows. There could be a message about the others anyway, that they died due to ignorance and so on. She could just be the odd one out.

Still isn't fair

Yeah,I thought the same thing.I thought that finally,after god knows hoy many years,there would be at least one finch aware of the family's history AND alive in 2017 and ahead.Her death hit me like a bullet.I just hope her son has a healthy and numerous family after discovering his family's history, so they can be remembered as the "Family's bad luck streak" and not as "How all the finch died".
I also hope there is a sequel about Edith's son.