V.F.D. Codes

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In A Series of Unfortunate Events, V.F.D. is a fictional secret organization, although its exact nature has never been revealed in the series. Throughout the books, a variety of codes are used by individuals working for or against the organization.

Contents 1 The Sebald Code 2 Punctuation Code 3 Verbal Fridge Dialogue 4 Couplet Code 5 Verse Fluctuation Declaration 6 Anagrams 7 Vernacularly Fastened Door 8 Other

[edit] The Sebald Code

The Sebald Code is first mentioned in Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography, attributed to Dr. Gustav Sebald, and was usually used to communicate messages through Dr. Sebald's movies. When a ringing sound is heard (or occasionally ringing just has to be mentioned), the code is activated. The first word after the ring is in code, then every 11th word is in code. When the ringing is heard again, the code ends. A typical scene from a film might go like this:

(Doorbell rings)

Gertrude: This is a very pleasant surprise! Please come in, Bob!

Bob: How is Ebenezer?

Gertrude: He is very ill. I have to give him an injection every hour.

Bob: That's a shame. He once was an example of good health.

Gertrude: For comfort he looks at old photos of when he was healthier. I took him to see Dr Sebald, but it seemed as if he was just talking in code.

(Alarm clock rings)

Gertrude: He must need another pill. Coming, Ebenezer!

(All leave)

The code relies on the actors speaking the words perfectly, and on the viewer being able to notice the scene. In The Unauthorized Autobiography, the movie Zombies in the Snow, Werewolves in the Rain, and wedding invitations from the Vineyard of Fragrant Drapes feature the Sebald code, although the only instance in the main series is on page 67 of The Penultimate Peril. Either Frank or Ernest used it when speaking to the Baudelaires. The message was "I can't tell if you are in or enemies please respond."

The Nameless Novel, a promotional website for Book the Twelfth of the series, presented an excerpt from the Sebald movie Ants in the Fruit Salad that used the Sebald code.

In The Reptile Room, Uncle Monty's death could be attributed to the fact that he never learned Sebald Code, as Lemony Snicket claims. In the novel, Dr. Montgomery watched the Sebald movie Zombies in the Snow, which warned him that his new assistant was a traitor, but it is suggested that Uncle Monty did not understand the code. Sebald himself is presumed dead, and his estate is being handled by his sister, Sally Sebald. Because of evidence provided in The Reptile Room and the Unauthorized Autobiography, it is believed he was drowned by Count Olaf.

[edit] Punctuation Code

In The Wide Window, a code used by Aunt Josephine to communicate the location where she was hidden. It is not necessarily a V.F.D. code, but Aunt Josephine is possibly a member of V.F.D.

The code was recognizable because Aunt Josephine was such an avid lover of grammar. The orphans realized that there were many grammatical mistakes inside her letter. The message is formed by the letters or punctuation that should be there. For example:

Coded Statement: I saw a kat today. It was so udd that I snappeD a picture of tha cat.

Corrected Statement: I saw a cat today. It was so odd that I snapped a picture of the cat.

So in this example, the coded message is "code".

[edit] Verbal Fridge Dialogue

Verbal Fridge Dialogue is a code whereby volunteers can contact others through the use of a refrigerator. It is noted in The Slippery Slope that it is used as an emergency communication. Fridges are used due to their contents having a high likelihood of surviving fires. These are few of the guidelines of the code:

• The recipient of the message will know that the code is being used by finding Very Fresh Dill in the fridge and his or her initials scraped into the top of the darkest jam. A poem is used in The Slippery Slope to explain:

The darkest of the jams three,

Contains within the addressee

• To represent days of the week for a gathering, a cured, fruit-based calendar is used. One olive means Sunday, two means Monday, etc.

• Any spice-based condiment will have an ingredients label referring to coded poems.

• While the entire code in The Slippery Slope is incomplete, Lemony Snicket indicates that one of the remaining ingredients in the instance of Verbal Fridge Dialogue in that book, a pickle, was to be used inside a coded sandwich. The other remaining ingredient, lemon juice, also hints at Lemony's role in the code.

(See also List of VFDs.)

[edit] Couplet Code

In The Vile Village, Isadora and Duncan Quagmire use a code within couplets to send a message to the Baudelaires about their location. It is not necessarily said to have been a V.F.D. code, but it is possible that Isadora and Duncan are members. It is also possible that Duncan and Isadora learned about some of the V.F.D codes when they were kidnapped by Count Olaf. In The Vile Village, Isadora wrote four couplets:

For sapphires we are held in here

Only you can end our fear.

Until dawn comes we cannot speak

No words can come from this sad beak.

The first thing you read contains the clue:

An initial way to speak to you.

Inside these letters the eye will see

Nearby are your friends, and V.F.D.

The first letters of each line spell out “FOUNTAIN”, referring to Fowl Fountain where they were held hostage by Count Olaf. They sent the messages by tying them to the feet of crows that flew from the fountain to the Nevermore Tree each night. The Nevermore Tree's name is based on The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe.

[edit] Verse Fluctuation Declaration

From the book Versed Furtive Discourse in the novel The Grim Grotto, this code works using a piece of poetry; words in a poem that the communicator wishes to use as code are substituted for alternate words. The book gives the example that My Last Duchess by Robert Browning may instead be written as My Last Wife by Obert Browning; in this case, the coded message is "Duchess R".

(See also List of VFDs.)

[edit] Anagrams

Main article: Ambiguous Names and Initials (A Series of Unfortunate Events)

In several of Lemony Snicket's books, most notably in The Hostile Hospital, anagrams are used by Count Olaf to diguise himself and his henchmen. Lemony Snicket also uses anagrams to hint that several plays written by a Mr. Al Funcoot were actually written by Count Olaf.

[edit] Vernacularly Fastened Door

A Vernacularly Fastened Door is a special lock used in V.F.D. meeting places. It contains a keyboard. To enter, a user must answer three questions, which are secret themselves, by typing the answers into the keyboard. Lemony Snicket explains that to do this, a volunteer must know a large amount of information. If they are correct, the door will open. The Vernacularly Fastened Door was first discovered by Violet Baudelaire and Klaus Baudelaire in The Slippery Slope.

(See also List of VFDs.)

[edit] Other

Other codes or coded messages from the series are:

• "The world is quiet here" (V.F.D.'s motto), to be said in response to the phrase "I didn't realize this was a sad occasion." Also used as the password to access secret places.
• "Well, young lady, have you been good to your mother?", which should to be responded to with "The question is, has she been good to me?"
• Mozart's 14th Symphony, whistled, is also referred to as a coded song.
• If there is nothing outside, what was that noise?