Situations 21&22
ENIGMA AND INVENTION

“Never try to solve all the problems at once—make them line up for you one by one.”

–RICHARD SLOMA

Enigma

Enigma means an action, mode of action, or thing that cannot be satisfactorily explained. It is puzzling.

This situation requires an Interrogator, a Seeker, and a Problem. An Enigma is an intriguing mental plotline par excellence, holding the audience’s attention as they, too, try to solve the riddle or figure out the secret. It is what great mysteries are made of.

There are three types of Enigmas in stories—the Baffling Enigma, the Anticipating Enigma, and the Spiritual Enigma.

In the Baffling Enigma the reader either can’t believe what has happened or can’t figure out how it happened. It seems beyond explanation—though probable. For example, the girl was locked in the safe but, even though the safe was never opened, as the guard was watching it, she has escaped and managed to kill her husband. It’s a magic trick of sorts. The audience reads on just to find out what the secret behind the trick is.

In the Anticipating Enigma the reader tries to figure out what happened or tries to solve the riddle, always anticipating what will come next. The Enigma seems clear-cut to the reader, even though she knows there will usually be a twist at the end revealing clues she missed.

The reader also thinks she knows who did it, but how he did it or the people who were involved may be a mystery to her. There is no “magical act” here, though.

The Spiritual Enigma is an Enigma that fosters inner growth in the Seeker. Think for instance of a Zen Koan. The Seeker has asked a question and in trying to figure it out has grown beyond measure. The answer doesn’t even matter anymore; it has become irrelevant.

An example of a Zen Koan follows:

Bokuju, a great sage, was asked, “We have to dress and eat every day. How can we escape from that?” Bokuju answered, “We dress, we eat.” ”I do not understand,” persisted the questioner. ”Then put on your food and eat your dress!” replied Bokuju.

Ultimately the Enigma situation is a search for an answer; whether it is why something happened, how it happened, or the answer to a riddle does not matter. The Seeker is still seeking an answer of some sort, piecing the puzzle together as he goes along.

THE INTERROGATOR

The Interrogator is someone who loves to drive others crazy, in a sense. She loves to play games and is never forthcoming with answers. She tests people, pushing them to their breaking points. Many fall apart under her questioning. This only proves them unworthy of her help.

Or, in the case of many mythological stories, the Interrogator is like a trickster. She may be the prize to be claimed by the hero who can answer her riddle. She’s not going to make things easy, as she values herself highly. She does not take pity on those who step forward and take a risk to win her favor. They find the answer or they don’t, and they pay the price for it either way.

THE SEEKER

The Seeker is someone who aspires, searches, and investigates. He is an explorer, a hunter, and a scout. Questions drive him toward his goal. They stimulate his brain and fuel his heart. Without questions to answer, his life seems dull, boring, and lifeless.

He is the student who asks a question but doesn’t want to accept the answer because then the search is over. His mind is always thinking, analyzing, and comparing. If he wants to know the meaning of life he will seek answers from several different holy men and weigh all the answers against each other, never fully accepting one at face value.

When he does give an opinion on something, people tend to listen because they know he didn’t arrive at it lightly. He will explain how he came to his opinion, analyzing the facts, reading body language, and taking into account other people’s opinions.

In a detective role, he can be very deceiving at times, acting like an innocent who doesn’t understand much. But this is only a ploy to keep people talking—like Columbo. He notices everything, watches body language, and intuits things unsaid. He’s a master of human behavior.

There are two types of Seekers—one who just sticks to the facts and one who allows his gut instinct to help him. They both start out with the facts, but if it comes down to deciding between two answers, the latter will go with his gut. The seeker can be a computer hacker, a CIA code breaker, or an analyst of some sort. Great intellectual pursuits are usually motivated through the desire to seek new ways of doing something or the desire to be the first one to figure something out.

Whether Enigma is used as plot, subplot, or incident, the elements of the beginning, middle, and end are the same:

BEGINNING: Something happens that causes the Seeker to approach an Interrogator. The Interrogator presents a riddle of some sort.

• What is the main cause? Is the Seeker personally involved in the Enigma or its outcome?

• How do the Seeker and Interrogator meet? Is the Interrogator hard to come by?

• What type of riddle is there? Baffling, Anticipating, or Spiritual?

• Is there more than one riddle?

• What resources does the Seeker have?

• What additional conflict stands in the way of the Seeker answering the riddle?

MIDDLE: The Seeker must overcome several obstacles and twists. He may think he has the answer but finds out he is wrong. The Interrogator makes things more difficult for him.

• What type of obstacles does the Seeker face? Internal fear-related obstacles? External events? Other characters trying to throw him off track?

• Can you throw in some red herrings to lead the reader astray and keep her guessing?

• Can you plant clues that are hidden enough to be revealed in the end, yet believable?

• Can you figure out the answer to the riddle before you plot out the middle? Then layer other characters into it to confuse things a bit?

• Can you up the stakes? Make the problem worse?

END: The Seeker solves the riddle and the Interrogator must pay up.

• What does the Seeker gain for his troubles? (Foreshadow it.)

• How does the Interrogator feel about the Seeker being successful?

• How does the Seeker feel? Is he itching to find the next riddle to solve? Or does he pat himself on the back for a while?

• Who is helped or saved by the Seeker?

• Are other characters shocked by the answer?

• Does the Seeker use any special talent or device to solve the riddle?

• Does the Seeker trick anyone to help him find the answer?

“I have a great belief in the fact that whenever there is chaos, it creates wonderful thinking.”

–SEPTIMA POINSETTE CLARK

Invention

Invention is a new device, method, or process developed from study and experimentation.

In this situation the Seeker becomes the Inventor. Whereas Enigma is about searching for an answer, Invention is about creating your own answer to a problem.

A seemingly insurmountable problem has come into a character’s life. She may go to others for help but they can’t seem to help her. She has to figure out a way to help herself. There is no other option for her. This problem can be:

• PHYSICAL: She can’t physically do something or get to a certain place so she has to invent something to help her accomplish the task.

• MENTAL: She can’t figure something out so she has to learn a new way of going about the task. Perhaps she needs to be more creative in her thinking. She has to step outside of her own “box.”

• EMOTIONAL: She can’t see the truth right in front of her eyes because she is too emotionally involved. She needs to relax and try to gain an objective point of view to move forward.

• SPIRITUAL: She won’t see the truth or the answer right in front of her because it may be too painful or it may shatter all her accepted beliefs. Perhaps she is a scientist who believed in Darwin’s theory of evolution and is now faced with the possibility that the Bible is right.

At first she may rebel and ask why this is happening to her but in the end she sees the growth this situation has offered her and wouldn’t have it any other way. Her life may be completely changed but it is usually for the better. She has done something she never thought possible, at least not for her to do.

Perhaps she needs to create a new way to help the homeless, pregnant teens, or abandoned animals. Or she may need to create a physical product.

The conflict comes from the naysayers who don’t want to see her succeed. Perhaps they are scared of what will happen or how things will change if she does. Think of The Time Machine and Frankenstein.

Whether Invention is used as plot, subplot, or incident, the elements of the beginning, middle, and end are the same:

BEGINNING: An Inventor is faced with a seemingly insurmountable problem.

• What type of problem is this? Physical? Emotional? Mental? Spiritual?

• How does this problem present itself? Does someone else cause it and then ask her for help?

• Will the naysayers come out right away?

• Will the naysayers have any effect on her? Does she care about them or their opinions?

• How does she feel about this problem? Does she feel up to the task or try to get out of it?

• If she tries to get out of it, who or what pulls her back in?

• What is at stake if she doesn’t figure things out or make the Invention?

MIDDLE: The Inventor is going about the task of inventing a solution to the problem when a naysayer interrupts her work.

• Do other naysayers agree with this naysayer? Does a whole group stand behind him?

• What do the naysayers want? Is one of their beliefs being challenged by the Inventor’s work?

• Will someone threaten her safety?

• Will the Inventor get scared and stop working or press on?

• Is time running out and the Inventor can’t bother with the naysayers?

• What type of ingenious approach does the Inventor take to solve the problem?

END: The Inventor solves the problem, but it may or may not effect and help others.

• How does the Inventor finally solve the problem? Was the answer right under her nose all along?

• Does anyone know she has invented a solution? Does the solution affect anyone else?

• Do the naysayers successfully stop her? (Think of Contact and how the Main Character travels on an alien device only to be treated like a fool by the government when she returns. No one will really know or benefit from what happened to her.)

• What happens to the naysayers? Are they made out to be fools, or do they get what they want in the end?

• Is the Inventor happy with her accomplishment? Does she wish she had done some things differently?

• What will the reader learn from this story? Will the reader’s beliefs be challenged?

EXAMPLES

Contact, ROBERT ZEMECKIS

ENIGMA AS PLOT— Dr. Ellie Arroway finds conclusive radio proof of intelligent aliens, who send plans for a mysterious machine to be built.

Enigma, MICHAEL APTED

ENIGMA AS PLOT— During the heart of World War II, crypto analysts at Britain’s code-breaking center have discovered, to their horror, that Nazi U-boats have changed their Enigma Code.

Frankenstein, MARY SHELLEY

INVENTION AS SUBPLOT— Dr. Frankenstein creates a human creature from stolen body parts. The creature turns into a monster when Dr. Frankenstein rejects him.

Cats and Dogs, LAWRENCE GUTERMAN

INVENTION AS SUBPLOT— A top-secret, high-tech war is going on between cats and dogs, of which humans are unaware. The cats want to destroy a new vaccine that, if the human scientist can develop it, would destroy all human allergies to dogs. The dogs want to stop the cats.