Tailspin

A Look into Tailspin

     Christine Wilks brings the Internet and all its users an interactive piece of electronic literature. This piece, named Tailspin, can come off as quite odd to the viewers. Without the description on the home page, one may find himself lost in this crafted digital realm confused by the distorted cartoons and overly amplified music and sound effects. The lack of color throughout the piece creates a space of dark emotions and pushes these effects upon the audience.

     Even though all this media takes place all at once, it is quite necessary to focus on the work's purpose. The piece focuses on a former air plane mechanic from World War II with a hearing impairment. Due to his hearing loss, or tinnitus, he tends to get angry with his grandchildren easily. Frequent miscommunication leads his grandchildren to be confused by his anger. The way the author created this piece allows the audience to understand how life plays out from the grandfather's perspective. The portrayal of obnoxious and over-amplified tones of scratching forks, chuckles, and video game tones are enough to irritate some readers. It can be implied that the old man's loss of hearing started dating back to the war or is a result of fighting in the war.
     Living with the grandfather seems to be quite fearsome to the children. They do not talk at dinner because they have learned it is best to just let him do the talking at the family meals because they do not want to trigger their grandfather. The piece focuses and plays with the idea of shame. The feeling of shame is present when the old man is addressed about using a hearing aid or even just listening about new studies on tinnitus. The former army mechanic may be feeling this shame because his hearing loss can be a sign of his old age which leads him to deny that he has a problem. His daughter has adapted to his stubborn choice of not seeking aid by keeping quiet and not raising voices or shrieking. The kids also learned to follow in their mother's footsteps when dealing with their grandfather. The mother has adapted to be passive with her father since he won't listen, and realize it is best to leave him alone when he is angry.

Written by Chase 
Edited by Bailyn
Hyperlinks by Alex
Media by Tim