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The setting often has a significant influence on the characters, particularly on their emotions and the conflicts they encounter. In Miss Peregrine's, Jacob faced an external conflict when attempting to cross the path that leads to the old abandoned house, this problem was caused by the setting, due to all the fog, the trees, the bog, and the ivy which seemed to surround the house. Many times in the book, the setting also influenced how and why the character feels a certain way. While Ricky was driving Jacob to his grandfather's house after his grandfather had called him in a state of panic, Jacob narrated "I joked only to calm my nerves. The quiet makes me anxious" (Page 29) This openly indicated that the dark and silent night made him feel uneasy and terrified.
Many parts of the setting have historical aspects to World War 2,one of them being the sunken ships. The shipwrecks were mentioned twice in the book, the first time was when Jacob and his father were on the ferry on their way to Cairnholm, and the second time was on page 237 in the loop world when Emma and Jacob sneaked off. Throughout World War 2, ships were used for various different tasks. Officially, 1,554 ships sank due to the war, some of which were never discovered.
There were many types of ships used in the war, some examples include...
Battleships
Carriers
Cruisers
Destroyers
Submarines
House in the real world
House in the loop world
I think the two orphan homes have a symbolic meaning behind them. There is the house in the present time that has been severely demolished and seems to have came straight out of a horror movie, and then there is the house in the loop that seems to be so lively and cheerful; they are polar opposites. In my opinion, these two orphanages symbolize how Miss Peregrine wants her wards to see the real world and the loop world. She wants her wards to be terrified of the real world in hopes it will convince them not to leave, but she wants them to love the loop world so that they will always want to stay.This would also explain why Miss Peregrine only seems to talk about the bad parts of the real world. Emma explains on page 276 "The bird only keeps good things about the future to herself, but you can bet we hear all the brown-trouser bits." (Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, 276), which would explain why Miss Peregrine was so dismissive about the real world and why she became frustrated when the children expressed their interest in the future.
This is how I believe Emma would describe the setting of present-day Cairnholm: "Everything suddenly seemed so much more vibrant and real. People I've never seen before were walking along talking to each other, some wore interesting clothes while others spoke in an interesting way. There were massive boats and rows of buildings, some old and some new, but most appeared to be abandoned. The town's church had been converted into a dull and cliche museum. As I walked through the bog I came across the house and it was horrific. It had debris, vines, and plants covering every corner, making it unrecognizable. It was no longer the same house that had provided me a sense of safety so long ago, now it was just a reflection of all the horrors of the past. The lighthouse stared back at me, seeming to have not changed much over the years.
Indirect statements
Things from the setting that have been indirectly stated include...
- The dock
- The island is fairly underdeveloped
- The ground near the abandoned children's home is covered in deep mud
- The house is covered in vines, ivy, and trees
- The forest is fairly large
- It is difficult to get past the bog
Direct Statements
Things from the setting that have been directly stated include...
- The mist/fog
- The variety of birds
- The shipwrecks
- The old styled houses
- The flock of sheep
- The hills/cliffs
- The bog
- The generators
Alignment between direct and indirect characterizations
Some of the indirect characterizations align with the direct ones. The bog and the indication that it is really difficult to get around align, so do the old styled houses and the fact that the island is fairly underdeveloped.
What they reveal
Some of these descriptions reveal to be much more important later on in the book. The sheep are a good example of this. Their murder provides a major indications that there is a hallowgast and possibly a wight on the island.
"I could feel the bog sucking me down with it. The more I struggled, the more it seemed to want me"(Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children, Page 303) and "I tried to paddle toward solid ground but succeeded only in pushing myself deeper. The muck seemed to climb me, rising up my arms, my chest, collaring my throat like a noose." (Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children, Page 303)
These two quotes highlight the importance of the bog because in a way they reflect how powerful the bog is. The bog is not only powerful in the sense that it is strong enough to pull someone in with it but also in the sense that it is the gateway to a whole other timeline. It is an incredibly crucial setting throughout the story and it isn't just important to the peculiar children but also to the people in Cairnholm. It's important to the peculiar children because it is the gateway to their loop and it's important to the people in Cairnholm because their ancestors saw it as a passage to heaven.
"Yours is a world they can never be part of, Mr. Portman. So what’s the point of filling their heads with grand talk about exotic wonders of the future?" (Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children, Page 206)
This quote highlights the importance of the loop world for the children. The children depend on the loop world in order to stay alive for two major reasons. The first reason being that they are safest from the hallowgast and the wights inside of the loop, despite the loop seeming like a prison at times. They would lose that protective barrier between them and the hallowgast if they left, and the fact that they have never fought a hallowgast before makes them even less likely to survive in the real world. The second reason is that if they are out of the loop for more than a few hours time will catch up with them just like what happened with the apple and before they know it they would either become really old or die.