Calling Alan Tom

[Caffeine]

i just went for a second play through on nightmare mode (I never played any game twice, bravo remedy).
Anyone else noticed that as soon as you get the keys from Barbara in the Oh deer diner and you walk back into the diner the andersons immediately call you Tom and Alan doesn't even react to the fact that they call him Tom now. (Or is this old news?) It just really struck me!

Why did they call him Tom?

[Ed321]

Why did they call him Tom?

*sound of can of worms opening*

[Caffeine]

Was it a stupid question?

[SUDDENJONATAN]

Was it a stupid question?

nope. Its just that no one has the answer

[Ed321]

Was it a stupid question?

Nope, it just leads to contentious discussions, hence *can of worms* :p

[Caffeine]

Are we actually playing Tom in Alan's body? Seems like it.

[Caffeine]

Yeah, just thought it was a interesting find (Ofcourse not very original) lol.

[Kahr]

I'd check either of these two threads for thoughts and theories about just this:
Alan Wake Ending Theories (Spoilers) (http://forum.alanwake.com/showthread.php?t=3669)
Is Thomas Zane Alan's father? (http://forum.alanwake.com/showthread.php?t=4106)

[Hukka55]

Why did they call him Tom?

Cannot be 100% sure, but remember they're senile. They might just as well mix him up with Tom for no other reason but the fact that he might look like Tom a little. Or that he is a writer, like Tom was.

[Caffeine]

@Hukka55

Thank you, appreciate the thinking.

[Celeste]

They do it again at the Lodge — in fact, they call him both "Tom" and "Zane." Barbara also calls him Tom late in the game, and during the voiceover fight at the cabin between Tom & Barbara, it's actually Alan & Alice's voices. But, yeah, the weirdest part to me is Alan's total lack of reaction to it all. I have no answer but it's pretty strange.

[Caffeine]

Alan's lack of reaction must be a sign.... of him actually being Tom..?

[Celeste]

Alan's lack of reaction must be a sign.... of him actually being Tom..?

Or alternately, of him being written into the story. Or something else entirely. =)

[Wish]

I guess Alan just figures they're both old and suffering from dementia, especially since Rusty tells him to don't mind them...

As for why they call him Tom? Probably Andersons heard the conversation between Rose and Alan, where she calls him a 'famous writer'. The only famous writer they ever knew was Tom, so they decide it must be him :)

I really hope they won't go with the 'Tom is Alan's father' theory, that would be as cliche as it gets :lol:

[Sirea]

And then there's the theory that we're playing as Mr. Scratch the entire game, and maybe Tom's using Scratch as a vessel for his own ends, and Alan down in the cabin actually has very little input or influence at all. :x

*throws more curveballs* ;) I'm just making crap up.

I honestly have no idea, and I haven't come across any theory that I've even kind of liked.

[Hukka55]

@Hukka55

Thank you, appreciate the thinking.

:lol:
Yeah, I know I'm shooting blanks here, but I really think this is a case of seeing smoke where there is no fire, like the thread here about the meaning of the names.

Many old, senile people recognize younger generation members as someone from their own youth. This is because the short term memory is the first to go when one starts getting senile. Thus the long term memory starts asserting imprints when the person is trying to recognize the face of a person met.

Thus, the two old geezers call Alan with the name of Tom, because their senile minds play this trick on them.

[Caffeine]

"Thus, the two old geezers call Alan with the name of Tom, because their senile minds play this trick on them"

But Alan's reaction to this is zero, isn't that kind of weird?
(Throwing Gasoline on the fire, I know)

[ak1287]

And then there's the theory that we're playing as Mr. Scratch the entire game, and maybe Tom's using Scratch as a vessel for his own ends, and Alan down in the cabin actually has very little input or influence at all. :x

*throws more curveballs* ;) I'm just making crap up.

I honestly have no idea, and I haven't come across any theory that I've even kind of liked.

Don't worry, I feel the same damn way. Or rather, I like EVERY theory to some extent, but can't find one that I feel 100% involved in.

[Hukka55]

"Thus, the two old geezers call Alan with the name of Tom, because their senile minds play this trick on them"

But Alan's reaction to this is zero, isn't that kind of weird?
(Throwing Gasoline on the fire, I know)

No, not really.How would you react to a couple of old geezers calling you by a name that is not yours? You propably would just think "How sad, they think I am someone they used to know" and move on. Just like Alan does in the game, he pays no mind to it.

[Caffeine]

You're probably true!

[Ed321]

You're probably true!

Hehe, potentially intertextual joke here. :P

[Hukka55]

Hehe, potentially intertextual joke here. :P

:lol:

Propably I am true, cannot be sure. After all, how can we know if we are men dreaming of being butterflies, or butterflies dreaming of being men? :)

[Caffeine]

oh Guys :-)

[MikkiRMD]

As always, I don't want to deny or confirm theories here, but let me just throw out a couple of facts:


The Andersons are old and in fairly bad shape. They're senile, addled by a lifetime of substance abuse, and their own encounters with the darkness haven't done them any favors either. They get confused easily.
It's not at all unusual for people in conditions like this to get confused about who they're talking to.
On the other hand, they obviously know quite a bit more than you might initially think, and clearly they manage to be pretty cunning -- and even dangerous -- at times. It's easy to underestimate them.
Have you ever talked to someone in a condition like this? They say all kinds of crazy stuff to you, and you play along, because it's obvious they're confused.