The text reaches its climax in the second paragraph. While the first paragraph effectively sets the scene and tells the reader what is going on and a little background to the situation, the second is purely an expression of the desperation and catastrophe experienced by the character. It is a very long paragraph compared to the beginning and end and thus helps the reader to understand the way in which this experience in the belfry seems to be eternal. The sentences become longer and more complicated and the text becomes wordier and harder to get through. Sayers uses semi-colons and commas to link ideas together. As the text does begin to feel more frenzied, we enter almost into the consciousness of the character as he frantically tries to escape. The final paragraph seems, while still somewhat strained, dramatically less urgent than the previous and the reader can relax somewhat as the worst appears to be over. The text describes less the action of the bells and more what exactly is going on: the movements Wimsey is making, the blood that is running from his nose and ears, which creates a more detached feel as at the start of the passage.
Stripping away the evident bells, we see three main themes within this text, all of which seem to relate to the internal conflict Wimsey is experiencing only briefly outlined within the text. The text appears to be alluding almost to hell: the ‘sweating ringers’ would not be out of place with Sisyphus. This furious, infernal atmosphere continues as it gestures towards sin and loss of control: the text mentions drunkenness and violence. Finally, in line 17, the bells are compared to an ‘assault of devils’. There is definitely an element of punishment to it, both for the aforementioned and for Wimsey. This leads us to the second theme which is Wimsey’s self-abuse; as stated at the very start of the text, he no longer wishes to ‘hear anymore’ and we see that this is something which, at the beginning, he wants to inflict upon himself. We do not know whether he trying to pay penance for something he has done or forget things he has seen or heard, but he definitely is not in a stable sense of mind. It is possibly that from the very start he is verging upon insanity and that in the greater sense of the text, this particular passage further enhances his lunacy. The final theme which is only briefly mentioned within the text is the theme of war and of battle. Wimsey is pitted against the bells and their clanging could be said to be reminiscent of gunshots or bombshells. Indeed, this is mentioned in line 15 ‘it was infinitely worse than any roar of heavy artillery.’ This seems to indicate that Wimsey has been in situations with heavy artillery before and that perhaps this experience is done in the hope of forgetting the war he had experienced, instead of reminding him of it.
Sayers’ choice of vocabulary greatly helps to create tension and menace within the passage. She uses alliteration by repeating the z sound with words such as frenzied, brazen and crazy which creates a buzzing effect. As the tension mounts, the words become more glottal and staccato, as if to show the individual clanging of bells and the noise they are producing. Sayers deliberately chooses the word ‘noise’ as opposed to sound or music to show that it is unwanted and intrusive. By calling the bells furious and insane she shows the lack of control in the situation. The build up and change in tone help the tension to mount over the passage and create a very clear climax around lines 14 – 16. By comparing the bells to artillery, she indicates that they are against him and out to hurt him: this adjoins to this sentiment of menace and violence.
The final sentence is a lot calmer than the prior paragraphs. It seems almost to allude to hell and heaven once again, as Sayers mentions the ‘demoniac clangour’. The bells, ‘transmuted to harmony’ seem angelic and celestial. The serenity of these three words seems only to make the previous two paragraphs more intense and angry in comparison. It also demonstrates how the bells are lovely and melodic when kept at arm’s length but that overindulgence in them or just over-exposure makes them painful and insufferable. The words ‘sunk back into the pit’ seem to indicate that the bells are a defeated monster and that, as Wimsey has escaped them, they have slunk back and surrendered; that by walking out of the door, he has managed to evade them and leave with his life only just intact.
Overall, the passage creates an image of fear and distress. From the beginning, the protagonist appears to be at breaking point. However, the fury and anger of the bells show him that he is not prepared to give it all up and that he cannot handle the pain. Sayers uses figurative speech and emotive language to show Wimsey’s desperation and, by subtly alluding to battle and hell, shows the stress and, above all, inhospitability of the situation.