Under the Whispering Door

When teaching Wallace how to live as a ghost, Nelson tells him that “you need to learn to trick yourself into believing the unexpected” (155). Essentially, because ghosts can’t rely on their senses to understand reality like living people can, Nelson is telling Wallace he needs to rely on faith. This holds true for something as simple as moving a chair or something as complex as crossing over. The concepts of faith and trust emerge when characters must make large decisions, or when they must accept that things are out of their control, lest they cause themselves or others harm.

In life, Wallace only relied on himself and systems and methods that had already been proven to work. After his death, Wallace must “start from scratch” and believe in things he can neither see nor prove (155). Though Klune’s focus on faith is not religious, it often relates to having trust in the order of the universe and what comes after death. Though no one, not even the Manager, knows what lies behind the door, people must have faith that it will be good and that crossing over will bring peace, or else people like Hugo and Mei would never be able to help the dead cross over.

The one thing Hugo asks of the visitors to the tea shop is to have faith in him, as he has faith in the order of the universe even though he does not understand it. Mei and Nelson, in turn, show their faith in Hugo by repeatedly saying things like, “[H]e knows what he’s doing. Trust him” (361). However, Mei and Nelson know Hugo the way that visitors to the tea shop do not. For characters like Wallace and Alan Flynn, doubt is only natural: Both of their deaths came as a surprise, and the actuality of the afterlife goes against everything they were taught to believe in. Both men initially react with anger and doubt when faced with the reality of their fates. While Wallace grows to accept the unknown and puts his faith in Hugo and the others, Alan never lets go of his anger and his doubt, which leads to the Manager forcing him through the door.

Nancy, too, struggles with faith. Nancy is torn between two people promising her different things—Desdemona, who tells her what she wants to hear, and Hugo, who does not, but genuinely has her best interests at heart. With no proof of anything either way, Nancy is caught in a limbo of hope and doubt. Hugo, in a way, is trapped by his faith in the unknown; it does not occur to him to utilize Desdemona’s predatory practices for good, and it is Wallace who suggests getting through to Nancy via the person she unfortunately trusts.

Wallace also puts his trust in the unknown when he saves Cameron. Removing his hook from his chest is the ultimate sacrifice; Wallace knows, by this point, that it will sever his connection to Hugo and possibly end his existence. Wallace has no proof that his actions are the right thing to do—but he trusts his instincts, and he is rewarded for it.

Klune suggests that having faith in one another is just as important as having faith in the unknown. When Hugo is at his lowest and doubts even himself, Wallace tells him, “I have faith in you” (419). Hugo is surprised by this, highlighting just how much Wallace has grown since his first days in the tea shop. Though part of Wallace’s faith in Hugo is driven by his romantic feelings, much of it stems from his observations of Hugo’s devotion to others. Hugo’s belief in his work—that being a Ferryman helps people, and that there is good behind the door—convinces Wallace of his goodness and enables Wallace to embrace the unknown as well. Similarly, Cameron puts his trust in Wallace, going through the door despite his fears.

Most importantly, Wallace and the others convince the Manager to have faith in them. This is an ironic take on the concept of belief in a higher power: Typically, religious or spiritual humans are expected to trust that their god, or godlike deity, knows more than they do and that things happen for reasons humans may never understand. Wallace and Hugo subvert this concept by insisting that they understand humans better than the Manager does, including what dead souls need and why it is so important. As Cameron is their only successful case, and the fate of Husks matters little to the Manager, the Manager decides to take a chance on them—not because he has human empathy, but because he is curious to see what they’re capable of, and because he has faith in himself to make the right changes.

Under the Whispering Door does not promote one specific religion or system of beliefs. Instead, it emphasizes the necessity of having faith in something or someone by showing how one person can never know everything about the world, and that even the universe itself is not all-knowing.