“The bleak mountain wind, sighing through the olive grove and the tomb-tree,
had an uncanny way of forming vaguely articulate sounds.”
(The Tree, pg. 86)
Welcome back to Our Daily Lovecraft. Are you brave enough to read on?
If you’re just joining us, you can start your Lovecraftian journey here!
Apparently we’re now in the era in which Lovecraft liked to model things after the writings of Lord Dunsany, whom I’ve never read but am now curious about. It’s a very short, basic story about three men who attempt to rob an old man. Two go in while the other waits outside in the getaway car. Later on, three slashed bodies are washed in by the tide, and the car found deserted.
The Terrible Old Man himself is described for much of the story, from his house to his odd practices inside the home, and no one even really remembers his name. It’s another quicky sort of tale, only a few pages long, that hints at the supernatural, murders a few robbers, and moves on.
“The Tree”
Now this one is a little on the odd side, from the setting itself to the sharp, strange turn the story takes. It tells of two brothers, Kalos and Musides, who are the best sculptors in Greece. They don’t compete, they don’t try to outdo one another with their works, and each of them finds inspiration in different things. And then, for reasons unknown, Kalos takes ill and dies. Musides is beside himself with grief over his lost brother.
Here’s where the story switches from being what could be an actual Greek tale to something very definitely Lovecraftian. Kalos had asked Musides to plant a few olive tree twigs near his head when he died, which Musides did. Then a very bizarre tree grew from that spot, attaining abnormal height within a short span of time, and looking semi-human but ultimately rather grotesque. It grows a branch over where Musides lives and finally the branch falls one night and Musides is no more (not just dead, he’s just gone, as are all the sculptures in the place).
While this, too, is a very brief tale, to me it makes no sense. The brothers never show any animosity toward one another, they only make beautiful things, and Musides even stops his work for a time after his brother dies. So what’s up with this ugly tree and why does it kill (or obliterate) Musides? Does Kalos, in death, want to bring his brother to him instead? If so, then why is the tree so ugly? Why does it scare people? It’s as though Lovecraft tried to take a regular story and spooky it up a bit, and it doesn’t work. Or maybe I’m an idiot because I’m not delving into it in the right way and I’m missing something. Either way, as it stands now for me it leaves something to be desired.
Editor’s note: You’re not seeing things! The featured images on this series were taken by Nicole during the most recent eclipse. Keep an eye on the progression. The full eclipse will be revealed in all of it’s magnificent glory!
Featured image © Nicole Taft
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