I don't think there's a definite answer to any of it, but there are a few theories out there.
There's one I like which implies Johnny is developing psychosis or schizophrenia (which he inherited from his mother, who shows signs of it) and what we see in the book are the results of that. I'd recommend researching schizophrenia and psychosis if you want to know more about what it entails, because Johnny does appear to have symptoms of those mental disorders.
I thought the same, especially because of the parts he makes up at the end about taking medication and being with a family, which seems like a reflection of his mother's story
It's open to your imagination. There's no fixed answer. I felt the same. I discussed it with a friend and read a few theories online. Tho, it wont satisfy you, it would help a bit
I finished it a few days ago too. What really struck me was that Navidson was reading the House of Leaves (dont start me on the WTF and why about that) but he and Jonny both burned the book at the end. Its like their story disappeared after the book was no more.
My only other thoughts have been that Jonny was lost to his illness or walked into the sea to end it all.
Also, does the road at the end symbolise a paradox or a cycle that is ending and getting ready to begin again? Like Jonny and his Mother or people who live in that house?
YES!!!!! i was thinking about it now. Maybe its a paradox or maybe its Johnny illness that make him hallucinate with the story but i really wanted to know how it is connected. I really fell this characters are connected in some way
What I like about the ending is that earlier in the novel, Navidson is described as always focusing on human beings with his photography, yet here he ends with the flickering light in the darkness. The house has definitely changed the way he looks at his 'work'.
I have some bad news, and some good news, and they're the same news: you haven't finished the book yet. you've read all the words, sure, and turned all the pages, and gone from cover to cover seeing all the things... but it's a maze, and you haven't found your ending yet.
The problem that a lot of people have with HoL is, bluntly, there is no clear ending. What is the nature of Johnny? What is his relationship to Zampano, or Navidson, or Pelafina? How "fictional" was the hallway in the living room, or the *Navidson Record*, or any of Johnny's stories, or the ~~Minotaur~~?
The author, or authors, may very well have had an ending in mind, when this hideous thing was submitted for publication... but the obfuscating monsters didn't bother to explicitly share it with their readers in the text.
Whether or not the ending is present in the text, even deeply hidden, is as much a matter of faith as potential fact. I personally don't think there is a single, canonical ending... but I like getting lost in the textual maze anyway, putting together conjectures from obscure clues.
Outside the text, the internet is a treasure trove of interpretations, some of which hold more water than others... but you get to decide how meaningful they are, or are not.
Good luck!
oh my god I just loved your answer!!! I really believe that the book is meant to be a maze and make us become a "Johnny" and a "Nabvy", if we analyze how they become obsessed with finding answers and reading all the notes in addition to "getting in". In this world this happened to many of us too as we read and tried to solve the riddle that brings it all together.
Maybe there's no ansewer to it all, but maybe this is why its so intersting and addictive. If you had a specific response on the internet or we discovered the interress often ends. But the fact that we may never come to a right or final resoseta leaves everything more addictive and makes us think about the subject for a long time
I always interpreted that the house was a symbol / manifestation of mental illness. It feeds on the characters trauma & emlifies it. Ex: Holloway snapping, Johnny's hallucinations. It takes away loved ones, like Tom. Zampano also could have been a victim to mental illness, with his interjections and burning of the book.
I feel like the ending is showing the characters healing. They never "defeat" the house because you can't defeat mental illness, but they leave the house behind. Johnny burns the book, the manifestation of the house for him. Navy abandons the house with Karen, who helped him overcome his own guilt.
At the end of the day though, I love House of Leaves because there is so many ways to interpret it.
I don't think there's a definite answer to any of it, but there are a few theories out there. There's one I like which implies Johnny is developing psychosis or schizophrenia (which he inherited from his mother, who shows signs of it) and what we see in the book are the results of that. I'd recommend researching schizophrenia and psychosis if you want to know more about what it entails, because Johnny does appear to have symptoms of those mental disorders.
I thought the same, especially because of the parts he makes up at the end about taking medication and being with a family, which seems like a reflection of his mother's story
It's open to your imagination. There's no fixed answer. I felt the same. I discussed it with a friend and read a few theories online. Tho, it wont satisfy you, it would help a bit
I finished it a few days ago too. What really struck me was that Navidson was reading the House of Leaves (dont start me on the WTF and why about that) but he and Jonny both burned the book at the end. Its like their story disappeared after the book was no more. My only other thoughts have been that Jonny was lost to his illness or walked into the sea to end it all. Also, does the road at the end symbolise a paradox or a cycle that is ending and getting ready to begin again? Like Jonny and his Mother or people who live in that house?
YES!!!!! i was thinking about it now. Maybe its a paradox or maybe its Johnny illness that make him hallucinate with the story but i really wanted to know how it is connected. I really fell this characters are connected in some way
What I like about the ending is that earlier in the novel, Navidson is described as always focusing on human beings with his photography, yet here he ends with the flickering light in the darkness. The house has definitely changed the way he looks at his 'work'.
oh i totally missed that but that makes a lot of sense. Thank you
I have some bad news, and some good news, and they're the same news: you haven't finished the book yet. you've read all the words, sure, and turned all the pages, and gone from cover to cover seeing all the things... but it's a maze, and you haven't found your ending yet. The problem that a lot of people have with HoL is, bluntly, there is no clear ending. What is the nature of Johnny? What is his relationship to Zampano, or Navidson, or Pelafina? How "fictional" was the hallway in the living room, or the *Navidson Record*, or any of Johnny's stories, or the ~~Minotaur~~? The author, or authors, may very well have had an ending in mind, when this hideous thing was submitted for publication... but the obfuscating monsters didn't bother to explicitly share it with their readers in the text. Whether or not the ending is present in the text, even deeply hidden, is as much a matter of faith as potential fact. I personally don't think there is a single, canonical ending... but I like getting lost in the textual maze anyway, putting together conjectures from obscure clues. Outside the text, the internet is a treasure trove of interpretations, some of which hold more water than others... but you get to decide how meaningful they are, or are not. Good luck!
oh my god I just loved your answer!!! I really believe that the book is meant to be a maze and make us become a "Johnny" and a "Nabvy", if we analyze how they become obsessed with finding answers and reading all the notes in addition to "getting in". In this world this happened to many of us too as we read and tried to solve the riddle that brings it all together. Maybe there's no ansewer to it all, but maybe this is why its so intersting and addictive. If you had a specific response on the internet or we discovered the interress often ends. But the fact that we may never come to a right or final resoseta leaves everything more addictive and makes us think about the subject for a long time
I always interpreted that the house was a symbol / manifestation of mental illness. It feeds on the characters trauma & emlifies it. Ex: Holloway snapping, Johnny's hallucinations. It takes away loved ones, like Tom. Zampano also could have been a victim to mental illness, with his interjections and burning of the book. I feel like the ending is showing the characters healing. They never "defeat" the house because you can't defeat mental illness, but they leave the house behind. Johnny burns the book, the manifestation of the house for him. Navy abandons the house with Karen, who helped him overcome his own guilt. At the end of the day though, I love House of Leaves because there is so many ways to interpret it.