[epicwin123]

So I started to read The Exorcist to my dad, and he posed a question that made me think. If the Oujia Board is what got Regan possessed, then if Chirs threw it away, then would the demon go away. (This is after the party scene, Chirs ponders if getting rid of the oujia will help) 

I pondered that. If that was the gate for the demon to enter, then is the demon rooted in? So, if Chirs had threw it away at that point, it would of done no good. Right? I'm not sure, so i'm asking you guys for your input.

[fatherbowdern]

Just my opinion, epic … I felt that Blatty (and then Friedkin) included the Ouija Board to impose that kind of question in the reader's and viewer's mind. I believe too many readers, and viewers of the film, believe that The Exorcist lands smartly into a horror genre only. It goes far beyond that and into the mysteries of man to broaden their horizons on the unseen and what reality means to each of us. Perhaps for that vague answer, many individuals, religious and non-religious, are intrigued by what Blatty penned.

Father Bowdern

[Jagged]

The Ouija just acts as an invitation to the demon, not a physical gateway.

[Steve Dunlap]

Aye, the way I interpretted it was that the Ouija Board was Pazuzu's guise of child play innocence, adopting a persona with a kid-friendly name like “Captain Howdy”, and a way for him to mentally and emotionally connect with Regan….get her to lower any subconscious defenses, think of him as a play friend, and allow him more into her “life”.

Pazuzu probably played on Regan's sensitivities regarding the whole “divorced/seperated” parents issue, somehow managing to convince her (in a deceptively gentle way) that she was the one at fault for the divorce, and then switching the story to say that Burke Dennings was somehow responsible.  Given the child's impressionability, this was probably not too hard to do.

Once that happened, Pazuzu had a foothold on Regan, and she became powerless over time to prevent it.

 

Again, just an interpretation….certainly not the gospel. 🙂

[fatherbowdern]

Good anaysis, Steve. I do believe Blatty would be happy with your version, too. It would nice if Blatty would write a book about the novel and his own interpretations of what he truly meant and thought as he wrote this infamous page turner. I think we would be shocked that some things are intentionally vague, while others are not.

Father Bowdern

[Steve Dunlap]

Agreed….and thank you for the kind words.  🙂

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