The Enormous Room · Chapter
IX: Zoo-Loo explained
The chapter focuses on the character of The Zulu, whom Cummings describes as an 'is'—a being beyond description.
What happens
The chapter focuses on the character of The Zulu, whom Cummings describes as an 'is'—a being beyond description. It recounts the fight between The Fighting Sheeney and The Young Pole, the latter's punishment in the cabinot, and the aftermath, including The Zulu's silent suffering and the narrator's deep appreciation for his indescribable essence.
Themes in this chapter
Human Dignity and Community
The narrator's deep appreciation for The Zulu's indescribable essence highlights the value of individual dignity and the bonds formed among prisoners.
Suffering and Transformation
The Young Pole's beating and subsequent cabinot punishment lead to his humbling and transformation into a friend.
The Absurdity of War
The camp's chaotic and arbitrary authority, exemplified by the planton's lecture on venereal ailments and the fight's resolution, underscores the absurdity of wartime detention.
Characters to notice
- The Zulu
Described as an 'is'—indescribable, drifting, angular, and spontaneous. Reacts profoundly to the fight, suffers silently, and is deeply appreciated by the narrator.
- The Young Pole
A vain, stupid boy with a peaches-and-cream complexion. Beaten by The Fighting Sheeney for his bravado, sent to cabinot, and emerges humbled.
- The Fighting Sheeney
Brutally beats The Young Pole in a fight, is exonerated, and later tries to become the narrator's protector for money.
- B.
Present during the fight; comments on the planton's appearance, calling him 'a June bride.'
- The Black Holster
Intervenes to stop the fight, cuffs the participants apart, and sends The Young Pole to the dungeon.
- Judas
A spectator who blames The Young Pole for the fight.
- Monsieur Auguste
Expresses sorrow over the fight, admits The Young Pole brought it on himself, but notes he is only a boy.
- The Machine-Fixer
Refers to The Fighting Sheeney as 'Un Mangeur de Blanc.'
Key passages
“He is, of all the indescribables I have known, definitely the most completely or entirely indescribable.”
The Zulu is the most indescribable person the narrator has ever met.
Cummings emphasizes the impossibility of fully capturing The Zulu's essence in words.
“The Zulu, then, I must perforce call an is.”
The narrator is forced to label The Zulu as a pure state of being, a verb rather than a noun.
This reflects Cummings' philosophical approach to describing a person who defies conventional description.
“Gentlemen, I am inexorably grateful for the gift of these ignorant and indivisible things.”
The narrator is deeply thankful for the simple, unlearned, and whole experiences The Zulu represents.
Cummings expresses gratitude for the ineffable qualities of his fellow prisoners.