Comments on: Ballard's 'The Recognition' on BBC7

By: Doubleclick

Doubleclick — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 03:04:40 +0000

@Hank Young – Exactly. The detail I found most interesting is quite small and easy to miss. In that last section, as the narrator inspects the cages and the “animals” howl at him, he says “the thin figures stood openly in front of the bars that protected them from me” which is an intriguing way of wording it. There’s still a huge mystery here in terms of what exactly happened and why, and it’s a little bit maddening being so close but so far away, but that’s quite enjoyable too.

By: Hank Young

Hank Young — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 22:46:57 +0000

The clue – if you’d like one – is that the lock on the cage the sailor enters is on the inside. Or is that Jim just providing an easy answer for those that need them?

By: T.D.McKinnon

T.D.McKinnon — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 00:23:54 +0000

All the previous comments are possible and, indeed, probably the responses J.G. Ballard sought to evoke and, although I agree with all those comments, my personal feeling is that it is a well written, evocative, thought provoking, self indulgent little riddle (well done the BBC dramatization by the way) in which J.G. Ballard himself had no fixed conclusion to hint at. In other words the story ends up being a little pointless.

By: teigan

teigan — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 04:51:23 +0000

the animal in the cages is human. but the cages and circus are metaphors. the meaning of the allegory is that humans are after all just another animal, and perhaps the oddest animal of all.

By: Kate

Kate — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 19:03:21 +0000

I think the story is designed to be thought-provoking, and to stay in the mind as a mystery. I don’t think J.G.Ballard meant anyone to guess what the animals or the smell was. That’s the strength of the story.

By: David Pringle

David Pringle — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 17:17:52 +0000

It’s human beings in the cages — and the smell is the smell of humanity.

By: David Bjoraker

David Bjoraker — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 04:43:44 +0000

Funny thing is I really liked the story (or more accurately, the BBC dramatization) even though I can’t figure it out.

By: David Bjoraker

David Bjoraker — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 04:32:40 +0000

I didn’t have the recognition, but the guy in the story certainly recognized the smell and knew what was in the circus cages. The best guess I have is that the rude drunken circus patrons were caged up the next morning. But that still doesn’t make a lot of sense. And i still don’t know what the smell is.
Another possible mystery is why a previous response was deleted (it was by Simon Sellars, who said he’d re-read or re-listen to the story and get back to me).

By: Maziar

Maziar — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 06:53:52 +0000

Well, in that case you did not have ‘the recognition’.

By: David Bjoraker

David Bjoraker — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 21:25:46 +0000

I listened many times to “The Recognition” on BBC (both last week and some months ago when it also was on BBC7), but I still have no idea what the animals were, or what the familiar smell is, or what’s the story behind the circus, or anything. Can you please explain this story to me??

By: Peter Barrymore

Peter Barrymore — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 19:25:20 +0000

I listened to this in the early hours during the week on BBC 7 – and am still uneasy …