Chapter 18
From Riddley Walker Annotations
Revision as of 23:30, 9 August 2017 by Eli Bishop (talk | contribs)
- (second Punch show; leaving Weaping; the end)
- After a tense confrontation at the gate, Walker & Orfing are admitted to Weaping to perform their unfamiliar show. Despite the audience's religious suspicions, the Punch show gets off to a fair start, but it's cut short: opening night always has unforeseen problems, and in this case audience participation goes too far when a literal-minded villager tries to protect Punch's baby by force. Accompanied by new allies, Riddley and Orfing head on for parts unknown.
- (211:22) "youwl do what youre progammit to do"
More confusion between fate and free will—progam has been used elsewhere to mean "decide" but here it sounds more mechanical.
- (213:19) "Riser Partman"
Possibly a pun on "high-rise apartment."
- (215:17) "That figgers crookit .... You know theres women here and carrying"
Easyer is saying that it's bad luck to bring a deformed puppet near pregnant women.
- (217:26) "Wud you please keap a eye on him ... Give us a shout wil you if he dont mynd that babby right"
This is a traditional Punch and Judy bit in which the children are primed to call out in unison when Punch misbehaves. Of course, it never helps.