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Water and Swimming
In the novel, the place that had no name represents how fear and an overabundance of caution can trap people in a small, unsatisfying life. When Edward Bloom leaves home as a 17-year-old to seek his fortune, he has to tackle a dog (fittingly named “Dog”) who guards the boundary between home and the world at large. The dog is vicious and bites the fingers off people who try to cross his path. A lot of people are afraid to risk facing the dog after a bad first encounter, and so they instead choose to linger in an unsatisfied limbo between home and the world—the place that had no name. Leaving that place and getting past the dog represents the challenge of taking a risky leap into the unknown. Those who lack the courage to take a risk because they are afraid of failing never fulfil their life’s ambitions, and they end up miserable shadows of who they could have been. Others, like Edward, who are brave enough to leap past the dog and escape the place that had no name, are able to transition into the larger world and pursue their ambitions.
The Place That Had No Name Quotes in Big Fish
The Big Fish quotes below all refer to the symbol of The Place That Had No Name. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Part 1: The Day He Left Ashland
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“That’s what this place is all about, Edward. Getting used to things […] This rain, this dampness—it’s a kind of residue. The residue of a dream. Of lots of dreams, actually.”
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“I—I wouldn’t trust that dog […] I just wouldn’t take the chance, son. He didn’t get you before, but you never know about next time. S’unpredictable. So sit tight.”
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My father took his chance and ran through the opening and didn’t look back. He ran through the darkness until it became light again, and the world turned green and wonderful […] When the road ended he stopped and breathed and found that Dog was right behind him, tongue lolling, and when he reached my father, he rubbed his warm body down against his legs.
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And the sun set, and the moon rose, and the water in the lake began to gently ripple, and in the white light of the moon then he saw the girl, her head breaking the surface a good ways out, the water flowing through her hair and back into the lake, and she was smiling.
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Get the entire Big Fish LitChart as a printable PDF.
The Place That Had No Name Symbol Timeline in Big Fish
The timeline below shows where the symbol The Place That Had No Name appears in Big Fish. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Part 1: The Day He Left Ashland
...stop him, but they’re worried, as the only road out of Ashland passes through “ the place that had no name .” Only people who are meant to leave Ashland can pass through unharmed. The others...
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...leaves Ashland on a bright day. It grows darker and foggier as he approaches “ the place that had no name .” He sees stores like Ashland’s, including the pharmacy and the hardware store, but they’re...
(full context)
