Revelations of The Mezzanine in Chapter 14
The Mezzanine is certainly not a book that conforms to the general structure of other novels. There is no general plot, Baker makes heavy uses of footnotes even though the story is fictional, and we don't see any of the characters develop over the course of the novel. In fact, these deviances from the norm make us wonder if we can even call the book a novel, but that is a discussion for another day. The purpose of the book may seem confusing to many, as it is simply a collection of the day-to-day observances of the main character, Howie. However, I believe that the purpose of The Mezzanine is clearly explained in Chapter 14. Soon after starting Chapter 14, Baker uses the space in the footnotes to talk about... his interpretations of the footnotes. He starts by talking about how he has seen footnotes being used in Hartpole Lecky's History of European Morals to bring historical characters to life. In one example, he remembers how reading abou...