“The Other Town” is about a town that is being completely replicated in an adjacent town, even down to the smallest details. The odd part is that nobody lives in this replicated town; however, it is frequently visited by residents of the adjoining town. It is compared to a museum during the story.
In spite of these noisy quarrels and harsh attacks, which have plagued us during our entire history, one thing that remains certain: the other town is there. Tirelessly it exercises its powers of attraction even on those who protests against it, and perhaps especially on them. Scarcely a week passes when we don’t make our way, by foot or by car, through the north woods and into the other town, a town so exacty like our own that for a moment a confusion comes over us, before we remember where we are. Then we wander across backyards, nothing details that migjt have escaped our attention, walk along streets thta are just like our streets, except for certain differences, check to see whether the new stop sign has gone up, enter a neighbor’s house to explore a rumor of adultery– the necktie over the clock radio, the blue bra draped over the cordovan loafer– or observe the work of a replicator rearranging chairs, opening a door, placing a cup in the sink. (140)
After reading this passage, I realized how vulnerable this duplicate town made everyone feel. It exposed the simple details of people’s houses, including the extremely intimate moments that are meant to be kept private. Thus, the town begins to watch over every small detail about themselves. They can compare this lingering and worry to the transformation from childhood into adulthood, always being aware and concerned about everything around oneself. But also, being intrigued about what goes on in the lives of others, whereas if you were a child, there would be a naive and innocent misunderstanding of the world around you.
Preoccupied as we are with domestic and finanical cares, we pass through our lives noticing so little of what’s really around us that we might be said to inhabit an invisible town; in the other town, the visible town is seized, we feel compelled to look at things closely, to linger over details that would otherwise fail to exist at all. In this way the other town leads us to a fuller or truer grasp of things. Far from being a childish diverson intended to distract us from more serious concerns, it’s a necessary way stage away from the simplicities of childhood and into the richness of adult understanding. (137-138)