The Empowering Paradox of “1 = 2.” Mark Z. Danielewski’s Arithmopoetics

Abstract

This paper analyzes Danielewski's poetics of numbers and digits in the first season of The Familiar. I argue that Danielewski's recent work signals a balance shift from the topological to the arithmetical. In this regard, numbers fulfill a crucial role (1) in the serial makeup of the volumes, which could be labelled as his exorithmetic; (2) in the plot of the novel itself, his endorithmetic; and (3) as a recursive device that conjoins the materiality of the novel with the numbers in the plot, his mesorithmetic. While Danielewski's exorithmetic provokes hypotheses about the voluminousness of the project, the staggering numbers in the world of The Familiar are related to Xanther's epilepsy, Dov's teachings, and Anwar's trauma.