The Ten Thousand Doors of January Discussion Questions

January often describes letter shapes and how they inherently contain certain qualities. What are some other qualities you can derive from letters that remain unmentioned? What about other alphabets?

The concept is imaginative and refreshingly asks us to consider an aspect of writing that we take for granted. One can think about the significance of learning to write and the close study of those letter forms when they have to be repeatedly written until they are learned. Here, Harrow makes us pause and imagine the act of creating these letters; we are asked to think about every curve, line, and intersection. However, the limitations of this exercise should also be noted. Considering the letters that January does describe in the text, the discussion of “D” for instance is somewhat limited, or reduced to those qualities that match the narrative best. Harrow introduces the letter “D” in the very first page as a passageway, but what about its use in words like “denial,” “defense,” or “dour”? Nevertheless, the exercise is significant because it introduces the theme of the power of words and traces it to the very foundations of writing.

From this standpoint, the reader can begin to think about how the same alphabet can be used in different languages and thereby have different nuanced qualities. “D” in American English is significantly different from a “D” in Italian, French, or other languages. In this sense, the qualities of letters are closely connected to the traditions of their use. In a similar vein, the reader is asked to consider the qualities of letter shapes on a typed page using the English alphabet. What happens when we change the alphabet entirely? It is interesting to think about other alphabets and other modes of writing. For example, ancient Greek inscriptions were sometimes carved in stone, making the act of writing a public act; the letter shapes could vary depending on the skill of the artisan and whether or not that artisan was literate. One can also imagine how traditions of writing that use complex characters or more fluid scripts would compare.

Artifacts from other worlds are described as having magical properties because they are displaced; they are only fantastical in new settings. In what way does this align with traditions of collecting and museums? What happens when objects are on display?

Objects from other worlds play a significant role throughout the novel. However, the context in which they appear and how they are used make all the difference. In Harrow’s world, magic is the result of displacement; objects exhibiting qualities that are commonplace in one world might appear fantastical in another. Yet, the artifacts are relatively lifeless when they are gathered and displayed within the context of Mr. Locke’s house. One can consider how objects wrested from their original contexts are similar to the exploitation of people throughout the novel. In this sense, they can also be symbolic of displaced peoples.

Note how the characters in the novel interact with the otherworldly artifacts differently. Members of the New England Archaeological Society seek and wield these foreign implements to exploit their power; they use these objects as weapons or as a means to achieve their own ends. This differs strikingly from how the Arcadians use the golden eagle feathers. Subsisting, in part, by stealing from our world, they use the feathers’ power of invisibility for the benefit of the collective.

In the epilogue, January makes it her mission to not only reopen the Doors that the Society closed, but also to return the artifacts in Locke’s collection to their rightful contexts. In contrast, when January returns to Ninley and stays in her mother’s childhood home, she takes stock of the objects in her mother’s room that were left undisturbed in her absence. January considers them to be reflective of the person her mother used to be before she left in search of the city of Nin and her father. Here, when the objects are in their rightful context, they become true touchstones not only to the past, but also to the people with whom they are connected.

What are some of the motivations the characters have for seeking Doors? How do they differ?

Characters are driven to Doors throughout the text for varying reasons. Many of the minor characters do not actively seek passage to a new world but rather stumble upon them. Yet, many of these individuals comment about how these worlds, even if they are relatively dangerous or uninhabitable, still provided a kind of refuge.

Those who do chase the folktales, rumors, and tales of magical or monstrous worlds have very specific motivations. Yule Ian studies Doors, in part, out of academic curiosity; his life’s work hypothesizes the existence of these portals, and therefore he devotes his profession to investigating them. One could say his original inspiration was his encounter with Ade as a child. This interaction was the motivation that set him along his course of study. His desire to be reunited with her gnawed at him. In some sense, the same can be said for Ade. The text describes her as unbridled, strong-willed, and free-spirited. The world could not contain her, so she left it in search of others. Like Yule Ian, their encounter had a lasting impact on Ade, so she also seeks Doors to ultimately find the one that leads back to the boy from another world. Both Yule Ian and Ade seem driven by the love they share with each other, which they discovered in that very first meeting in Ninley, Kentucky, when they were both children.

All of the Society members seek Doors in order to establish a system of rule. They seek the portals to new worlds to close them and take the artifacts invested with otherworldly power to further secure their position. To these individuals, who are themselves emigrants from other worlds, open Doors allow passage of additional powerful entities who might challenge the Society. These hypothetical travelers could, again, bring change and drastically impact our world.

January’s motivations are complex. When considering her character arc throughout the novel, Doors offer the freedom of mobility and exploration. These experiences are novel to the January under Locke’s tutelage and control. The January in the first third of the novel is concerned about living up to her guardian’s expectations, while she secretly desires to accompany her father on his expeditions. With Brattleboro as the turning point, January’s motivations change quite drastically. Some of her motivations include self-exploration; she wishes to experience the world in which her father was born. However, it can be said that the January of the epilogue travels between worlds as an expression of her freedom from the constricting social prejudices that seek to limit her based on her gender and race. Throughout the novel, Doors become symbols for opportunity, freedom, and independence from societal limitations, which the Society seeks to reinforce by closing those gateways.

Describe how characters move through Doors. What do you think about the Threshold?

Travel between worlds—and through Doors—seems similar to our use of doors in everyday life. These passageways work much like the portals in a home, in public buildings, or even those that lead to historical sites. Doors (both magical and mundane) are transportive; they lead to new spaces. Individuals move through doors usually with a specific intention in mind, namely to move into one space from another. This necessarily involves passing through the middling in-between space of the Threshold. These borders are the dividing lines that do not neatly exist in either space. They are a neutral zone that is used to mark a successful passage. In Harrow’s text, the Threshold appears as a shadowy void. It is useful to compare this to the fact that if one were to stop in the middle of a doorway, one would remain in-between, neither in one space nor the next.

At the end of book, January notes that Locke would have been able to follow her to the city of Nin through the reopened blue Door if he fully intended to arrive there. We can surmise that Locke was ultimately conflicted. He wanted to stop January but at the same time include her in his plans. His will was shaken, unfocused, and it was no match for January’s. Therefore, when he enters the space of the Threshold, he is lost there because he does not know where he is going or why. January’s intention is comparatively clear. She travels to find out about herself and to explore her freedom. A certain resolve is needed to chase opportunities, particularly for the marginalized characters, which is similar to the resolve needed to pass through these portals to other worlds.

The villains in the text have specific abilities. After January overcomes them, how do you understand her power differently?

When looking systematically at January’s foes, one realizes that January’s power is not that she can reshape reality using words, but rather she can enact change in the world through her will. This can be seen by the threat each Society member poses throughout the novel. Mr. Havemeyer feeds off of life-force; his vampiric touch drains the physical energy of his victims, thereby incapacitating them and draining them of the physical ability to fight back. January, however, fights the effects of his power, summoning up her own strength to open a Door. It is suggestive that she manages to escape him by using her own body as a page to write a Door that takes her out of Brattleboro.

The next primary threat is Mr. Ilvane. As a hunter, Mr. Ilvane manages to track his quarry unseen and then strikes when he knows he has the advantage. He surprises January in Arcadia by disguising himself as an old woman and using otherworldly artifacts to make sure he has the upper hand in the encounter. When he leaves Arcadia, he makes use of the golden eagle feather to become invisible. In this sense, Mr. Ilvane becomes an unseen and potentially omnipresent threat who may be lurking in any shadow. January overcomes him by forging ahead, accepting the fact that she would encounter him along her path. Here, January again exhibits the strength to continue on her personal journey despite the threat that Ilvane poses. When she does encounter him, January reacts decisively and once again escapes.

Mr. Locke is positioned as the most insidious of the group. His power strips away an individual’s ability to act independently. He usurps the mental will of the people who fall under his control. The final confrontation between him and January proves that her will cannot be quelled. Her anger and her true identity fuel her to fight his influence. In a clash of wills, January emerges as the clear victor as Locke is lost to the Threshold.

From this perspective, January’s true power is not wholly Word working; words are merely the medium through which she changes reality. Instead, it is the willful expression of her voice that is her true power. This power stems from all of the facets of her identity. Her lineage, her struggle, and her resilience all inform her power in the context of a world that aims to close Doors, thereby limiting her to an established role with no hope for change. By internalizing and embracing her own narrative in The Ten Thousand Doors, she creates her own mobility and freedom in the face of undermining social prejudices against her gender and race.