The Unexpected

In the chapter Blind Panic, in Douglas Adams Last Chance To See, Adams deals with the disorientations of another place besides his home. It is a challenge for many people to venture out into places that are unfamiliar to them because they can’t handle getting out of their regular routines. Adams says, “Assumptions are the things you don’t know your making” (143). When we travel to different places, we assume that everything will be just like it is at “home.” This false hope is a bit mind-boggling to us because we figure out that people live a lot differently than we do. Adams goes through many experiences that he was not expecting. Being around a lot of people that you don’t know in large crowds can be very overwhelming. When you add a lot of people plus a lot of bicycles it can be a little scary. It is very uncommon to see many people riding bikes everywhere, unless there is a bike race. We are used to seeing people drive cars everywhere we go. Adams says, “Everyone in China rides bicycles. Private cars are virtually unheard of, so the traffic in Shanghai consists of trolley buses, taxis, vans, trucks, and tidal waves of bicycles” (158). Adams was not accustomed to seeing all the different types of transportation such as trolley buses and bicycles. China’s population causes major traffic issues when seeing it from a pedestrian perception. “The first time you stand at a major intersection and watch, you are convinced that you are about to witness a major carnage” (158). When driving on the road, we don’t usually think about how there is going to be a wreck because we don’t normally have to worry about there being a huge number of people driving bicycles through intersections.

Adams comments, “Next time you keep your eyes open and try to see how the trick’s done; but however closely you watch you can’t untangle the dancing, weaving patterns the bikes make as they seem to pass insubstantially through one another, all ringing their bells” (158).

By referring to the mass chaos of the intersection as a trick, I think Adams is finding humor in the situation. He knows that it is very dangerous, but I think he looks at it as pretty funny because they are all so good at not crashing. Another thing he realizes about China is that sound is a major part of communicating. He says, “In the Western world, to ring a bell or sound a horn is usually an aggressive thing to do. It carries a warning or an instruction: “Get out of the way,” “Get a move on,” or “What the hell kind of idiot are you, anyway?” He is saying we use sound as a meaning of warning someone; we don’t try to look after anybody but ourselves.“In China, you gradually realise, the sound means something else entirely. It doesn’t mean, “Get out of my way, asshole,” it just means a cheerful “Here I am.” (159). He is not used to using sound as a pleasant communication tool, but he accepts how they use it and embraces it. I think that Adams deals with the “disorientations “of China very well because he found humor in them. If you can laugh at a situation you are uncomfortable with, then it makes the situation seem bearable.

Callie Holloway