The Sounds and Smells and Sights

Summary

The website content is a vivid description of the sensory overload experienced at Carnivale, featuring a cacophony of sounds, sights, and smells that are both overwhelming and exhilarating.

Abstract

The text paints a lively picture of Carnivale, highlighting its vibrant energy and the sensory extravaganza it offers. The author uses a rich variety of words like "tintinnabulation," "hullabaloo," and "pandamonium" to convey the festive noise, while describing the continuous performances of jugglers, bands, and dancers. The narrative evokes the intense aromas of food and people, and the visual feast of costumes and colors. It suggests that the intensity of Carnivale can be both a heavenly and a hellish experience, overwhelming for those unaccustomed to such vibrancy, but ultimately it is portrayed as an intoxicating and transformative event that consumes and defines its participants.

Opinions

The author expresses that the sounds, sights, and smells of Carnivale are relentless and all-encompassing.
There is an appreciation for the beauty and artistry of the festival, as seen in the descriptions of costumes and performances.
The sensory experience of Carnivale is presented as both overwhelming and captivating, with a mix of excitement and potential sensory overload.
The author hints at a critique of the mundanity of suburban life compared to the vibrancy of the festival.
The use of the word "tintinnabulation" indicates a delight in the musical and joyful aspects of the event.
The overall tone suggests that Carnivale is an event that can challenge and expand one's sensory and emotional boundaries, offering a taste of everything and leaving participants feeling as though they are part of a greater whole.

They never stop

Carnivale mask lit only by candles, © Paul Mansfield on FLICKR

Cacophony. The razzamatazz, the tintinnabulation, the foofaraw, the hullabaloo, the brouhaha, the pandamonium.

Endless. There are jugglers on every corner. Bands march down the street. Dancers are everywhere.

Beautiful. Bright costumes, naked bodies, twirl, and twist. Leaping to gods. begging for our attention.

Overwhelming. The smells of people, perfumes, sweat, curry, garlic, food, wonderful food.

Crushing. Too many sights, too many sounds, too many smells, too many colours for those used to the flaccid gray of suburbia.

Intoxicating. Heaven, hell, with a fine measure of purgatory thrown in.

It is everything. We are nothing. We are it.

It is Carnivale!

This story is an example of the sort of story that fits the below Weekly Prompt. In it, I used Edgar Allan Poe’s word “tintinnabulation”, which is the joyous sound made by silver bells as they ring out.

You will discover Microcosm’s Monthly Theme here.

MICROFICTION

The Sounds and Smells and Sights

They never stop

Weekly Prompt: The Word is the Story

Stealing other authors’ words

July Theme: Expand Your Vocabulary

Short stories with big words