The Telegraph Relay Station, a short story written by Norman Lavers, focuses on the plight of a stranded traveler. The traveler, referred to as the narrator in this essay, is stranded for the winter in a telegraph relay station. His only companion is the operator of the station who teaches him Morse code. When the narrator learns that the operator has been tampering with messages and has created his own little world, the narrator is shocked. He is appalled that the operator could interfere with so many people’s lives with such ease. The narrator is quick to point out the operator’s mistake. Realizing his error, the operator disappears into the blinding snow. The narrator is left alone to transmit messages. Shortly after the operator’s departure, the narrator finds himself considering whether or not a message should be changed. Soon, he is altering messages and has created his own world; he abandons his role as the created and becomes the creator. In this paper, I plan to show that the evolution of thought and actions of the narrator demonstrate that though the narrator acknowledges and respects the existence of some divine being whose role is to control the world and its destiny, when presented with the opportunity to exercise that same power, he cannot resist the temptation of wielding that absolute power over a human life.
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The narrator is not happy about being trapped in the relay station, but the lonely host is obviously thrilled to have company. The two make small talk to pass their time and the operator, eager to have a companion, “cannot seem to stop talking” (651).
Eventually, the narrator begins to read the only material available in the station: a Bible, which the host has wrapped in a cloth package. The Bible is described by the narrator as a “true treasure” (652) that holds a “whole great nation’s compendium of wisdom and philosophy and morality” (652-3).
His description and the reverence he shows toward the Bible shows that he cherishes it, believes its content, and believes in God (“such is the state of my spiritual nature”) (653).
From the outset, the narrator acknowledges that there is a higher being that has the world under His control.
The first passage from the Bible the narrator reads is:
In the beginning God created the heav’n & the earth & the earth was without form, & voyde; & darkness was upon the face of the deep. & the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
With the Bible, the religious message the story holds is introduced. The passage on creation introduces God as an all-powerful God, who created the world, and has control over it. God’s power is further emphasized when the narrator is learning Morse code. The first message he decodes is “What hath God wrought,” (654) meaning “what has God created.” Early in the story, God’s role as creator is established as is man’s role of the created.
When the narrator first learns of the operator’s interference, he is appalled. He denounces the operator’s actions and says that the operator “can’t take responsibility for someone else’s life” (655) and he must let “people…be free to make their own mistakes” (655).
The operator defends his position, claiming that he was just protecting the innocent from getting hurt. He tells the narrator of “whole families”(656) that have been invented and “contact marriages that are going forward or being restored when one or the other probably don’t exist” (656).
His admission of his mistakes sends a wave of emotion through the operator. He leaves for a “call of nature” (656) and never returns.
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Though his initial response to the operator’s actions is shock, the actions of the operator intrigue the narrator and make him realize that he is in a position of power. Moments after the operator leaves, the narrator finds himself questioning his own convictions about meddling with the messages. In the beginning, he is very conscious of his thoughts and knows it would be wrong to tamper with other people’s lives. He is able to realize that he is “falling into the same trap” (657) in which his host had been caught. However, the temptation of absolute power overcomes his convictions. Earlier in the story the narrator was quick to proclaim his belief in God and recognize his role as merely a human being. However, he cannot resist the opportunity to mimic God’s power and possess the same control He has over a human being’s destiny. The narrator allows some messages to pass, alters some, and withholds others. He assumes the role of God the creator and creates his own world under his control and manipulation.
Throughout the story, the narrator never admits whether or not he realizes what he is doing is wrong. Subconsciously, he is aware that he has taken on a role that no human can assume and he is making the wrong decisions. The rats scratching at the walls are his conscious. He hears them “all night trying to get in” (658) when he is trying to sleep and louder, scratching “at the walls, the ceiling, under the floor” (659) when he continues to alter messages. Though subconsciously he knows he is wrong, the narrator continues his actions. He cannot stop. His morals have been overcome by the experience of absolute control over someone’s life and he is unable to relinquish that power.
Like in The Telegraph Relay Station, stories or poems show that when man is given power over another, he will not hesitate to use it. The poem The Goblin Market, by Christina Rosetti, explores the reaction of one human after she is given the power of knowledge over another. Lizzie reacts much as the narrator does, seizing the opportunity to control Laura. Lizzie is able to use her experience with the goblin men to save Laura, and in doing so, convince her to give in to Lizzie’s desires.
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The Telegraph Relay Station closes with the narrator confused, questioning whether he has done the right thing (“Is what I create worse than what I leave alone?”) (660).
He realizes that he has lost control over his world and doesn’t know how to fix it. He is reminded that he is only a human. Throughout the story, the author toys with the idea of humans playing God. The story makes the reader explore his own thoughts on God’s role and man’s role. Would you assume God’s role if you could? Is there a God? The last lines are a plea from an anxious daughter searching for her father, begging that he speak to her so she can know he exists (“please my father speak to me else how can I know you exist”)(660).
These final lines represent the human search for proof that God exists; although humans may believe in God and have been told He is real, they still yearn for proof of His existence. The closing forces the reader to question his own beliefs on faith, religion, and God. Is God real and in control of their destiny? Or is their life merely the result of another human’s puppetry?
