History Literature / Piranesi

* PlatonicCave: PlayedWith. [[spoiler:A common interpretation of the House is that it is this. Piranesi is aware of concepts like “University” because he has seen statues of related things, but he is unaware of the true reality of them in the outside world. However, it is PlayedWith in that the House is a mixture of the concepts of the Platonic Cave AND the Platonic Ideal; the items in the House might not be the real thing, but they are idealized, beautiful, and eternal. The house may “just” be a reflection of the real world, but as Piranesi says, it has its own inherent value.]]

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: The man who was Piranesi returns to the normal world and builds a new identity, although he never regains his memories and identity as Sorensen. He has formed a close friendship with Raphael, and they both visit the House (fulfilling his dreams of touring it with 16), though the man who was Piranesi is unsure whether Raphael will find the peace she seeks in the House or if she'll be able to resist being lost in it. The man who was Piranesi visits James Ritter and helps him visit the House, and considers returning there permanently with him.]] In the final chapter though the narrator finds two sources of serenity and joy: [[spoiler: in winter snow London can resemble the House, and the statues of the House can be glorious reflections of living people]].

''Piranesi'' is a novel by Creator/SusannaClarke, author of ''Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell''.

* CapitalLettersAreMagic: Played with. Piranesi uses capital letters very liberally, but it’s unclear if he actually knows how or if he’s just throwing them around. [[spoiler: After he comes back to the real world, his narration no longer features so many of them.]]

* SpiritualSuccessor: The world of ''Piranesi'' is clearly separate from that of ''Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell'', based on [[spoiler: the history of the real world]]. However the two books' magical systems bear some similarities. In both, magic involves directly communing with the world around a person, has faded from the world but left traces behind, and is linked to madness, irrationality and amnesia.

* BiggerBad: [[spoiler: Laurence Arne-Sayles aka the Prophet, a sociopathic cult leader who taught Ketterley all he knew, and almost certainly murdered at least one of the bodies Piranesi tends to.]] Interestingly, while he's almost certainly a worse person than [[spoiler: Ketterly]] he is not at all hostile to Piranesi, and in fact he gives [[spoiler: Raphael]] the information needed to rescue Piranesi from the House.

* BigGood: [[spoiler: 16 aka Raphael, a heroic police officer who comes to the House to rescue Sorenson, and wishes she could bring justice for the dead in the House.]]
* BiggerBad: [[spoiler: Laurence Arne-Sayles aka the Prophet, a sociopathic cult leader who taught Ketterley all he knew, and almost certainly murdered at least one of the bodies Piranesi tends to.]] Interestingly, while he's almost certainly a worse person than [[spoiler: Ketterly]] he is not at all hostile to Piranesi, and in fact he gives [[spoiler: Raphael]] the information needed to rescue Piranesi from the House

* TheAloner: Piranesi is all alone in The House, except for The Other’s bi-weekly visits. [[spoiler: The prospect of living like this permanently when he knows there are other people out there is what ultimately convinces him to leave.]]

* ClothingDamage: Time and corrosion have taken their toll on Piranesi’s clothing. He repairs what he can, but his general appearance is somewhat disheveled. He also walks barefoot until The Other brings him new shoes.

* EnlightenmentSuperpowers: What The Other is looking for, although he may be missing something fundamental about how it works. The ability to come into the House at will also works like that. [[spoiler: Piranesi develops the ability to correctly interpret omens and signs that the House gives him as his memories of the Other World are replaced with his knowledge of the House.]]

** Also The Prophet/Arne-Sayles, who is almost certainly a worse person than The Other.

** There are numerous shout-outs to ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfNarnia,'' notably including the faun statue which makes Piranesi dream about a faun talking to a little girl in a snowy forest. The book also opens in a quote from “The Magician’s Nephew”, [[spoiler:and The Other's real family name, Ketterley, is the same as the eponymous magician's, whom he greatly resembles.]]. The narration even refers to them as “a very old Dorsetshire family”, which is a direct quote from ''The Magician’s Nephew''. Eventually the plot is revealed to have a similar premise to [[spoiler:the exploitation of Digory Kirke in the beginning of ''The Magician’s Nephew'']].

* ItsAllAboutMe: Arne-Sayles and Ketterley, to various degrees.
* {{Jerkass}}: The Other, despite being Piranesi's only "friend", which is an early clue that Piranesi's view of the world is misguided.

* {{Cult}}: Arne-Sayles ran a low-key, rather realistic one in the form of his circle of students. Anyone who disagreed with him would be verbally demolished, and he forced his most devoted and talented student to act as his servant and eventually to cut off her parents, thus destroying her only other close relationship.

* BiggerBad: [[spoiler: Laurence Arne-Sayles aka the Prophet, a sociopathic cult leader who taught Ketterley all he knew, and almost certainly murdered at least one of the bodies Piranesi tends to.]]

* BigLabyrinthineBuilding: The "House" where Piranesi lives is a surreal, endless series of chambers, each one containing a wild variety of flawlessly sculpted marble statues of humans and mythological figures. The lower levels are flooded and periodically send tides surging up through the higher levels. The uppermost levels are filled with clouds. Piranesi has lived there for years and has only explored a tiny fraction of it, and the building may actually be infinite.
* BrokenAce: [[spoiler: Raphael is a respected, heroic and intelligent police officer. However she appears to be disillusioned with the real world, and is drawn to the House (perhaps too much) for its solitude and lack of corruption by others.]]

* SamusIsAGirl: [[spoiler:16.]]

* EldritchLocation: The House is a relatively benevolent version. It’s a seemingly infinite labyrinth of halls and statues which has an internal ocean and its own climate, and prolonged stays produce confusion, distress and eventually amnesia (with memories being replaced with knowledge of The House itself). However, it’s not evil in any way, and holds great beauty and wisdom for those open to see them.
** The statues themselves are a mystery, with no obvious sculptor. Piranesi when talking to the Prophet that they may be shaped by thoughts that flow out of the real world alongside magic, which the Prophet says may well be true. [[spoiler: Later Piranesi discovers that at least two statues have their faces modelled on real people.]]