Symbols/Motifs in the "^Twin Peaks^" Universe Version 10!!!
Well, the tenth version is finally here! Sorry for the LOOOOONG delay
and enjoy!! Lots of new updates as well!!!
--
**SPOILERS ABOUND FOR THOSE HERE AND IN EUROPE**
Background: This list was first done as a tongue-in-cheek joke by yours
truly, but is now a "canonical" listing of the legitimate and not-so-
legitimate recurring imagery that occurs freqently in the "^Twin Peaks^"
TV show.
Well, here's the TENTH version of this list.
Special thanks go to the following people for contributing:
Linda Birmingham (twice), Scott L. Vandenberg, Ann Hodgins,
Jeanne Stapleton, Bradford H. Needham (twice), Palmer Davis,
"Arachnid", Greg M. Brown, Eric Daniels, Ron Sires, Bill Downing,
"Scratch", Rocky Giovinazzo (thrice), Kathleen Hunt (twice),
Bob Hettmansperger, John Locke, Nadir Ahmed (twice), Gary Kacmarcik,
Marc Kriguer, David Barker-Plummer, S. Clark (twice), "Cool Bean",
Kenneth Bays, Rod Johnson (twice), Kurt Svihla, Malachi O. Kelerison,
Jeff Calhoun, Raymond S. Flournoy, Darren T. Burton, Scott Johnson,
Robert Russell, Jim Shaffer, and a special thank you to Paul B. Loux
for the BIG list.
Symbols/Motifs in the "^Twin Peaks^" Universe Version 10
(last updated 6/1/91, 4/21/91...):
1. Sex, comedy, violence, and rock 'n roll music (what else could
one want in a TV show?)
2. Rotating objects:
a. Ceiling fan in the Palmer home
b. Ticking record player in the Palmer home
c. Ticking fan in the Hayward's attic
3. Traffic light
4. "Invitation to Love" soap opera
5. Waterfall outside The Great Northern Inn
6. Sprinkler on the Sheriff's Office ceiling
7. Birds:
a. Robin (?)(from opening sequence)
b. Crow (when Agent Cooper, Sheriff Truman, Deputy Hawk, and
Doctor Hayward enter Jacque Renault's log cabin)
c. Woodpecker (Sheriff Truman sees one outside the Sheriff's
Office window--Episode 1005?)
d. Chickadee on a Dodge Dart
e. Waldo the minah bird
f. Owls:
i. Owls
ii. Owl Cave
8. Psychic visions
9. Trees/forest/wood:
a. Forest in/outside Twin Peaks
b. Log Lady's log
c. Book House Boys patch
d. Knob on drawer in The Great Northern Inn
10. Dead people:
a. Laura Palmer
b. Bernard/Jacque/Jean Renault
c. Emory Battis
d. Blackie O'Reilly
e. Harold Smith
f. Madeleine Ferguson
g. Leland Palmer
h. Douglas "Dougie" Milford
i. Eric Powell (dead drifter)
j. Jeffery Marsh
k. Malcolm Sloan
l. Jonathan Kumagai
m. Thomas Eckhardt
n. Josie Packard
o. Rusty Tomaski (heavy metal victim)
Also:
a. Theresa Banks
b. The Log Lady's husband (see #15)
c. Nicholas "Nicky" Needleman's parents
d. Caroline Powell Earle
11. Phases of the moon
12. Glasses/sunglasses:
a. Doctor Jacoby
b. Benjamin Horne
c. Jerry Horne
d. The Log Lady
e. Madeleine Ferguson
f. Laura Palmer/Donna Hayward
g. Evelyn Marsh
h. Thomas Eckhardt
e. John Wheeler
13. Cigarette/cigar smoking:
a. Benjamin Horne
b. Shelley/Leo Johnson
c. Bobby Briggs
d. Audrey Horne
e. Josie Packard
f. Donna Hayward
g. Evelyn Marsh
14. Fire:
a. The Log Lady's husband died in a forest fire
b. "Fire, walk with me"--Mike and BOB
c. "Fire is the devil, hiding like a coward in the smoke"
--The Log Lady
d. The scorched smell that Doctor Jacoby and Madeleine Ferguson
both smelled when BOB was around
e. Packard sawmill fire
f. The fire from the fireplace at the Great Northern lobby
reflecting off Thomas Eckhardt's sunglasses
15. White horse:
a. Laura Palmer's pony (Troy) that was seen by Sarah Palmer
right before BOB killed Madeleine Ferguson
b. "General" Benjamin Horne's Civil War piece(s)
c. "General" Benjamin Horne's stuffed horse "Traveller"
16. Light and dark/White and black:
a. White/Black Lodge
b. Chess pieces (see #21)
17. Light fixtures/lightbulbs on the ceiling:
a. Sputtering light in the morgue of the Calhoun Memorial
Hospital when Agent Cooper Cooper inspects Laura Palmer's
body
b. Sheriff's Office light when Eric Powell is found
c. Leo/Shelly Johnson's ceiling light when Leo awakens
18. Animal heads:
a. A chicken head (maybe a whole chicken) on "'Big' Ed's Gas
Farm" sign (see #33)
b. The mounted deer head in the Sheriff's Office with "The Buck
Stopped Here" sign
c. The deer head that's on the table when Sheriff Truman and
Agent Cooper bring in Laura Palmer's safety deposit box
d. The assortment of trophys in the den (?) in Pete/Catherine
Martell's home
e. The deer head next to Eric Powell
f. The cooked pig head that Josie serves as the main course in
the dinner to Catherine Martell and Thomas Eckhardt
g. The mounted dear head in the Book House
h. The goat head that's visible when Andrew Packard opens the
puzzle box
19. Hank Jenning's domino
20. Chess/chess pieces:
a. Agent Cooper and Windham Earle's chess game
b. "Dr. Gerald Craig's" gift (black knight) to Dr. Hayward
c. Rusty Tomaski inside giant (black pawn) at the gazebo
21. Twins/opposites:
a. Agent Cooper/Windham Earle
b. Agent Cooper/Albert Rosenfield
c. Laura Palmer/Madeleine Ferguson
d. Bobby Briggs/James Hurley
e. Bernard/Jacque Renault
f. Mike/Bob:
i. Mike Nelson (Nadine Hurley's crush)/Bobby Briggs
ii. Phillip Michael Gerard (the OAM)/Bob Lydecker (vet)
iii. Mike (spirit inside OAM)/Killer BOB
g. The Giant/Little Man from Another Place
Also:
a. Laura Palmer/James Hurley's broken heart necklace halves
b. Jade/Emerald from "Invitation to Love" (see #24)
c. Laura Palmer's two diaries
d. The two Packard Sawmill ledgers
e. $10K cash bundles
f. Boots ([Spit] "New shoes.")
22. "Family trios" (warped versions on Daddy/Mommy/Child):
a. Bobby Briggs/Shelly Johnson/Leo Johnson
b. (Dick Tremayne/Andy)/Lucy Moran/Nicholas "Nicky" Needleman
c. "Big" Ed Hurley/Norma Jennings/Nadine Hurley
d. Bobby Briggs/Audrey Horne/Benjamin Horne
e. Malcolm/Evelyn Marsh/James Hurley
f. (Pete Martell/Andrew Packard/Thomas Eckhardt)/Catherine Martell/
Josie Packard
23. The color brown
24. Lookalikes (characters who physically resemble each other):
a. Benjamin Horne/Leland Palmer
b. Audrey Horne/Donna Hayward
c. Laura Palmer/Madeleine Ferguson
d. Sarah Palmer/Sylvia Horne
Also
a. Jade/Emerald from "Invitation to Love"
25. Tattoos:
a. Phillip Michael Gerard (the OAM)
b. Major Brigg's neck
c. The Log Lady's leg
d. Windam Earle (in one scene)
26. Red curtains in various dreams/visions/places:
a. The Roadhouse stage
b. Agent Cooper's first dream sequence with the Little Man from
Another Place
c. Jacque Renault's log cabin
d. One Eyed Jacks
27. Furry animals:
a. The llama
b. Josie Packard's vicuua coat
c. The white animal (fox?) in Benjamin Horne's office
d. The pine weasel
28. Picnics:
a. Laura Palmer/Donna Hayward/James Hurley
b. Donna Hayward/James Hurley
c. Audrey Horne/John Wheeler
29. Items on shelves:
a. The Hurley home ("Big" Ed)
b. The Palmer's home (fireplace mantle)
c. The Great Northern
30. Alteregos/characters:
a. Madeleine Ferguson/Laura Palmer
b. Hester Prinn (sp?)/Audrey Horne
c. Leo/Bobby (he did an impression of him)
d. Mister Tojamura/Catherine Martell
e. Dennis/Densie Bryson
f. (Woody and name)/Andy Brennan and Dick Tremayne (when they were
looking for Nichola "Nicky" Needleman's file)
g. Civil War characters/Benjamin Horne, Jerry Horne, Bobby Briggs,
Audrey Horne, and Doctor Jacoby
h. Mr. and Mrs. Inkman/Mike Nelson and Nadine Hurley
i. Dr. Gerald Craig/Windham Earle
j. Edward Perkins/Windham Earle
31. Astrological symbols
32. Lumber trucks
33. Signs:
a. "Welcome to Twin Peaks"
b. "Twin Peaks Sheriff Station"
c. "Mar-T"/"RR Diner"
d. "The Great Northern"
e. "Twin Peaks High School"
f. "'Big' Ed's Gas Farm"
g. "The Road House"
h. "One-Eyed Jack's"
i. "Wallie's Hide-Out"
j. "The Book House"
Also:
a. "The Bang Bang Bar"
34. Poetry:
a. Mike--"Fire, walk with me"/"His name is BOB"
b. BOB--"Fire, walk with me"/"I'll catch you in my death bag"
c. Shakespeare--"Shall I compare thee to..." (poetic lines from R&H)
R&H)
d. Yeats--"Love comes in at the eye..."
e. Shelley--(fragment of "Love's Philosophy" sent by Agent Cooper
to Caroline Powell Earle, and by Windham Earle to Audrey
Horne, Donna Hayward, and Shelly Johnson)
f. Pete Martell--(limerick/ode to Josie)
35. Food:
a. Donuts at the Twin Peaks Sheriff's Station
b. Cherry pie and coffee at the RR Diner
c. Benjamin Horne and carrots
36. Skirts (almost all of the females in Twin Peaks and at least one
male seem to prefer them to pants)
37. Overlap of two faces:
a. Donna Hayward/Laura Palmer (Sarah Palmer's vision)
b. BOB/Owl (Agent Cooper's first dream sequence and BOB at Laura
Palmer's bed)
38. Couples in a room with red curtains:
a. Little Man From Another Place/Laura Palmer (Agent Cooper's
first dream sequence)
b. Mrs. Tremond/Grandson
And now, the BIG list:
There are some visual images and themes which don't seem to attract
much discussion. I thought I'd see if I could elicit some debate by
throwing out a few observations. So here goes...
39. Quick shots:
a. The tricky dissolve from the picture of Leo's truck, in
_Flesh World_ magazine, to the actual truck (Episode 1000,
1005). This gave the viewer a connection between Leo and
Ronnette long before the lawmen.
b. The connection between the flashing flourescent lights in
the morgue, and the stobe light in the dream sequence
(1000, 1002).
c. The ceramic figurine at Big Ed's and Nadine's place, of a
woman wearing an eye patch (right eye) (1002, 1003).
d. The ceramic Twin Peaks train depot in the model train set in
the window of the Twin Peaks General Store (1001).
e. Maps and books on Tibet (1002, various subsequent).
f. The "Just Say NO to Ghostwood" poster in the Double-R Diner
(with the slash-thru-the O bit) (1004, various subsequent).
g. The sappy arrangement of "Talk to the Animals", from "Dr.
Doolittle", playing on the Muzak in the Lydecker Veterinary
Clinic (1004).
h. The nice cut from the discussion, at the Palmer's house, of
the broken heart necklace, to Emarald's necklace on
"Invitation to Love".
i. The life-sized cardboard cutout of Emerald (or Jade?) next
to the tray of cosmetics at the perfume counter of Horne's
Dept. Store, the day Audrey went to work there; the
"Invitation to Love" Collection (1004).
j. Cover your left eye whenever discussing One Eyed Jack's
(1002, various subsequent).
k. When Audrey is told to "Pick a card", by Blackie, she
selects a Queen of Diamonds; a much larger version of this
same card is later sewn onto her costume (the girls use
the cards much like numbers on a football jersey) (1007).
l. The chalkboard at the Double-R Diner proclaims the Soup of
the Day. It has portrayed such delicacies as Rabbit
Chili, Split Pea and Lamb, and other yummies (2004,
various subsequent).
m. The cut from the close up on the neon sign in front of the
Road House, "The Bang Bang Bar", to Judge Sternwood's
gavel, sounding "Bang Bang" inside (2005).
n. The close up of this same neon sign, "The Bang Bang Bar", is
reflected upside down in a puddle, along with two rifle
cartridges (2007).
o. The flashes of the police photographer's camera, at Harold
Smith's house, punctuating the discovery of key evidence
by the lawmen (2007).
p. The similarity of the many handballs being dribbled in the
lobby of the Great Northern, and the many golfballs being
pitched by Leland in his living room (2007, 2008).
q. The highly effective use of the phonograph as a presage of
Maddy's killing by Leland (2007). It hadn't been since
1002, when Leland played music, danced with Laura's
portrait, and fought over it with Sarah, breaking it and
smearing his blood over her picture; then there's the
incident at the funeral...
r. The amazing similarity between the Dwarf, in the dream
sequence, and Leland, in the Great Northern lobby, when
told of the arrest of Ben Horne. He has his back to
Cooper, holding a golf club in front of him with both
hands, shivering with tears/laughter, in a foyer run riot
with red drapes.
Many contributers have made note of various twin pairings in the
series, but little discussion has grown from the metaphor of
left-sidedness. This assymetry is the anitithesisi of duality, or
twin-ness. The left side is classically (literally) _sinister_ and
there are a multitude of references to this in the show, mostly through
characters bearing some deformity on the left side of their body.
40. Left-sided references:
a. Nadine's eyepatch, over the left eye.
b. One Eyed Jack's (1002). The neon sign shows the right eye,
it is missing the left one; when discussing OEJ, the
speaker covers his own left eye in sympathy.
c. The One-Armed Man (seen earlier in 1000 than Cooper is). He
is, of course, missing the left arm.
d. The bandage on Big Ed's head, following his getting knocked
out in 1000, is on the left side.
e. Shelly's bruises, courtesy of Leo, on the left side (1002).
f. Letters under the left ring fingernail (1000, various
subsequent).
g. Tattoos ("Fire--Walk With Me") on the left arm of the OAM
and Killer BOB (1002).
h. Leo shot in the left arm (1005).
i. Jacques Renault shot in the left arm (1007).
j. Tape concealed in heel of Leo's left boot (2007).
k. Cooper cut by left eye, by Jean Renault, lingering injury
(2013, various subsequent).
l. Leo stabbed in left leg (2014).
The series' central duality metaphor is richly portrayed through the
constant use of twinning symbols. I have collected a list of the more
obvious ones.
41. Twins, opposites, or yin-yang pairs:
a. The two ledgers for the mill, maintained by Catherine.
b. Twin Peaks versus "Invitation to Love".
c. The two sets of $10,000 (one of which was held by Laura, the
other half had been paid to Leo).
d. The two brands of twine used to bind the victims, Laura and
Ronette.
e. The two poker chips (one from Jacque's cabin, with the notch
in Laura's stomach, the one in Ben's pants pocket).
f. The two Queen of Diamonds playing cards, from Audrey's debut
at One Eyed Jack's (the one Audrey picked out of the deck
offered by Blackie, and the matching large one sewn onto
her costume by the hunchbacked seamstress).
g. The two diaries of Laura Palmer
h. The two safe deposit keys (Ben and Josie, holding blackmail
evidence for protection from each other (2006).
i. Dennis/Denise Bryson (2011).
j. Jade and Emerald, from ITL (1003, various subsequent).
k. Laura and Maddy versus Jade and Emerald (1003).