Sound is an important motif in several narratives of the collection and is used to emphasize The Devastating Effects of Selfishness. Sound plays a key role in three stories in particular: “Mute,” “The Jazz Machine,” and “Shock Wave.” In each of these stories, sound is personified and becomes an almost conscious, willful presence. For Paal Nielsen, sound acts like an assault on his delicately trained telepathic mind. Having never been exposed to so much sound and never to the sound of voices, he interprets sound as a violent, vicious thing that is “[d]rumming, pounding at raw sensitivity” and “kicking at him,” “[t]rying to dislodge his grip” (120). In his mind, even the sound of his name is empty and devoid of true meaning, and he sees all words as superficial symbols of matters that are far more complex and multidimensional. Eventually, Paal loses his telepathic abilities, which are replaced by a painful, strained voice.

By contrast, in both “Shock Wave” and “The Jazz Machine,” music and instruments are used to illuminate the emotional state of the characters and to make grand statements about maintaining Hope in the Wake of Destruction. For example, Mr. Moffat is deeply attached to his organ and his life, and he cannot bear the thought of either one being taken from him. As the organ destroys the church and itself, Mr. Moffat intends to go down with it all, but his cousin reminds him of hope and pulls him out of the crumbling church in time to save his life. Similarly, the jazz musician finds hope in destroying the white man’s exploitative jazz machine, and this act becomes a form of protest, illustrating his need to protect the connection that Black people have to their music rather than to yield its essence to the very people who oppressed them. In this context, the jazz musician refuses to allow the soul of the people to be analyzed and monetized in such a callous fashion.