Beyond Expectations is the second chapter of The Phantom Tollbooth.
Characters[]
- Milo
- The Whether Man (first appearance)
- Lethargians (first and only appearance)
- Tock (first appearance)
Plot[]
After passing through the tollbooth, Milo leaves his house and ends up on a road that he's never seen before. He passes through a beautiful area that he learns is called Expectations. He reads a sign that says "Please Stop here and honk". He honks his horn, and immediately, an excitable little man called the Whether Man rushes out. The Whether Man has a habit of saying everything three times. In response to Milo's questions about how to reach Dictionopolis, the Whether Man talks a lot of nonsense about navigation and the weather. Milo presses on, leaving Expectations. After a while of driving, Milo is caught unfocused and takes a wrong turn. The road gets increasingly curvy and repetitive. Bored by the seemingly endless circles, Milo's mind begins to wander and he becomes very drowsy. The car also seems to tire and grinds to a halt. As he sits, almost asleep, a distant voice informs Milo that he is in The Doldrums.
Milo wakes up, finding himself surrounded by a small group of people called the Lethargarians – who, like chameleons, blend almost entirely into their surroundings. They introduce themselves and take turns talking in order to describe their idle lives in the Doldrums. They explain that thinking is outlawed, and so is finding things funny. They continue to explain that have a very strict calendar of events each day, where they do different types of nothing that are all very strictly laid out. Milo finds this very unusual. The Lethargarians encourage Milo to hang out with them, and he's strongly considering it. Suddenly, a large dog with an alarm clock for a body (whom the Lethargians call "the watchdog") comes running up, frightening the Lethargarians away. The watchdog's job is to make sure nobody wastes time, and he suspiciously asks Milo what he is doing in the Doldrums. When Milo replies that he is "just killing time," the watchdog becomes furious and tells Milo that the only thing worse than wasting time is killing it. He tells Milo that the only way to get out of the Doldrums is to actively think, which is the opposite of what got him there. Since Milo drifted into the Doldrums by not thinking, he concentrates on thinking and his car begins moving. Soon he is back on his way to Dictionopolis with the watchdog.
Chapter Guide[]
< Milo (Chapter 1) | Welcome to Dictionopolis (Chapter 3) >