Summary of Jack's Method
Mar 25, 2021 8:55:48 GMT -5
locolobo, davebakedpotato, and 1 more like this
Post by Jeff on Mar 25, 2021 8:55:48 GMT -5
[The point of this post/thread is not to call Jack a liar or to invoke conspiracy. I assume he operated in good faith and take what he's said at face value.]
I put together a summary of Jack's method. I've used his Medium posts, his YouTube site, the Outside article, and the Mysterious Writings Six Questions. I assume that Jack's solution is the correct and complete solution as intended by Fenn. I tried to be somewhat objective and faithful to his statements but there is obviously going to be some missteps on my part. Do you have any corrections or additions?
Jack's method appears to be the most obvious one: follow the outward directions in the poem as "the clues refer to things in the physical world, so it was a physical canyon" and "you have to go down into to follow the path of the poem" (Jack Gets Mail #2). There is more nuance to the solution (i.e. there is something interesting or elegant about it): the solution "is tied far more to understanding Fenn’s emotions, and to a close examination of the poem itself, than to puzzle-solving skills" as Fenn "was more interested in adventure, legacy, history, narrative" (Outside). Jack's solution does not involve puzzles; when asked "if figuring out the puzzles required the use of anagrams, or GPS coordinates, or sophisticated codes of any sort, [he] was clear:" "No" (Outside). Furthermore, he remarks that the "back half of the second stanza" (presumably: Not far, but too far to walk. / Put in below the house of Brown.) "felt most like solving a riddle" but that Fenn confirmed that he "did not purposefully design the clue there as a riddle" (Mysterious Writings Six Questions).
Jack broadly describes a two step process: "the poem directs you to a section of forest in which to search for the blaze, but that is something you had to search for" (Jack Gets Mail #2). Jack tells us that the most "probable" "section of forest" was "certainly smaller than a football field," although the "possible" "total limits" "may have been bigger than a football field" (Jack Gets Mail #2). Jack identified this small target area confidently, but not with absolute certainty, from the comfort of his metaphorical armchair and a visit to that place only served to increase his confidence in the area (Mysterious Writings Six Questions). Jack needed to physically search the area in order to discover the blaze. He may not have known the nature of the blaze or at most had a set of possible blazes ("I didn't know what blaze I was looking for") during his initial visits to the section of forest, although he "fixed" that during visits the following year (Jack Gets Mail #1).
In the first of the two step process of Jack's solution, he identified the "section of forest" through a "close read of the text" or "correct interpretation of a poem" similar to what may be in the wheelhouse of "an English major" (Outside). For this "correct interpretation" of the poem, it "tells the story of a journey [Fenn] took and the things he saw along the way from his perspective," "imbued with emotion" (Jack Gets Mail #1). He stresses that this "story" is "at one" with" Fenn's "oeuvre," which Jack specifies as his memoir and other poems therein (Jack Gets Mail #2). He repeats this point: "the poem is like many of those stories in that it reflects his point of view and his emotions on a journey that was important to him" and "it was important to see it not as a separate work of writing defined by its unique purpose, but rather within that broader context" (Mysterious Writings Six Questions).
With the idea of Fenn's "oeuvre" in mind, Jack specifically reiterates Fenn's "best" advice: "try beginning anew by reading TTOTC just like it was any other memoir on the shelf" (Jack Gets Mail #1). The "oeuvre" Jack refers to includes "The Thrill of the Chase and its poem" as well as "every personal story Forrest wrote of his life" (Mysterious Writings Six Questions). It specifically does not include at least one of Fenn's earlier books, Seventeen Dollars a Square Inch--Jack had not read the book before finding the chest (A Remembrance of Forrest Fenn). TTOTC is specifically not a clue factory, so a re-reading is presumably not a clue finding exercise--""[Fenn] once gave us an idea of how many hints were in TTOTC, and it wasn't very many" (Jack Gets Mail #2). Probably somewhat separate from his concept of Fenn's "oeuvre," Jack also specifically "read, watch[ed], and listen[ed] to every single article about the chase wherein Forrest was quoted and every interview he ever gave on the subject," although it appears that this was more used "to understand ... the nature of the problem at hand" rather than reflect "his unique point of view and his emotions" of the core "oeuvre" (Mysterious Writings Six Questions).
Regarding the poem, Jack more than once stresses the terms simplicity, straightforwardness, and the big picture. Regarding the big picture, Jack says that "the poem itself was not the point, but rather finding the special place where he wished to die." He describes this as the place Fenn wanted to entomb himself. He essentially repeats Fenn's words: "[Fenn] wrote what he wanted to say. The poem is straightforward" (Jack Gets Mail #2). Lastly, Jack tells us to "listen to everything Forrest has to say surrounding the subject of simplifying, and try to consider everything in context, both the big picture and small" (Jack Gets Mail #1).
The summary provides some focus to the problem but a it is a very soft focus. It embraces the emotional or poetic and eliminates traditional puzzles--perhaps this is what he and Fenn mean by the simplicity and straightforwardness of the poem. (Note to self: look up what Fenn has said about simplicity). The Fargo TV show clip that Jack references has the line: "Sometimes the answer is so obvious you can't see it because you're looking too hard" (Jack Gets Mail #1). The big picture may be the meaning of the poem when it is read as a work unto itself rather than as a vessel for a series of clues. And Fenn's intended meaning of this "poem as a poem" may be arrived at by considering it in relation to TTOTC and his related writings. Perhaps this provides the general idea of the type of place Fenn wanted to entomb himself.
I've ignored or largely ignored Jack's statements about the blaze, Fenn's two "slip-ups," and the geographic scope of the solution as they aren't as helpful from a methodological perspective.
I put together a summary of Jack's method. I've used his Medium posts, his YouTube site, the Outside article, and the Mysterious Writings Six Questions. I assume that Jack's solution is the correct and complete solution as intended by Fenn. I tried to be somewhat objective and faithful to his statements but there is obviously going to be some missteps on my part. Do you have any corrections or additions?
Jack's method appears to be the most obvious one: follow the outward directions in the poem as "the clues refer to things in the physical world, so it was a physical canyon" and "you have to go down into to follow the path of the poem" (Jack Gets Mail #2). There is more nuance to the solution (i.e. there is something interesting or elegant about it): the solution "is tied far more to understanding Fenn’s emotions, and to a close examination of the poem itself, than to puzzle-solving skills" as Fenn "was more interested in adventure, legacy, history, narrative" (Outside). Jack's solution does not involve puzzles; when asked "if figuring out the puzzles required the use of anagrams, or GPS coordinates, or sophisticated codes of any sort, [he] was clear:" "No" (Outside). Furthermore, he remarks that the "back half of the second stanza" (presumably: Not far, but too far to walk. / Put in below the house of Brown.) "felt most like solving a riddle" but that Fenn confirmed that he "did not purposefully design the clue there as a riddle" (Mysterious Writings Six Questions).
Jack broadly describes a two step process: "the poem directs you to a section of forest in which to search for the blaze, but that is something you had to search for" (Jack Gets Mail #2). Jack tells us that the most "probable" "section of forest" was "certainly smaller than a football field," although the "possible" "total limits" "may have been bigger than a football field" (Jack Gets Mail #2). Jack identified this small target area confidently, but not with absolute certainty, from the comfort of his metaphorical armchair and a visit to that place only served to increase his confidence in the area (Mysterious Writings Six Questions). Jack needed to physically search the area in order to discover the blaze. He may not have known the nature of the blaze or at most had a set of possible blazes ("I didn't know what blaze I was looking for") during his initial visits to the section of forest, although he "fixed" that during visits the following year (Jack Gets Mail #1).
In the first of the two step process of Jack's solution, he identified the "section of forest" through a "close read of the text" or "correct interpretation of a poem" similar to what may be in the wheelhouse of "an English major" (Outside). For this "correct interpretation" of the poem, it "tells the story of a journey [Fenn] took and the things he saw along the way from his perspective," "imbued with emotion" (Jack Gets Mail #1). He stresses that this "story" is "at one" with" Fenn's "oeuvre," which Jack specifies as his memoir and other poems therein (Jack Gets Mail #2). He repeats this point: "the poem is like many of those stories in that it reflects his point of view and his emotions on a journey that was important to him" and "it was important to see it not as a separate work of writing defined by its unique purpose, but rather within that broader context" (Mysterious Writings Six Questions).
With the idea of Fenn's "oeuvre" in mind, Jack specifically reiterates Fenn's "best" advice: "try beginning anew by reading TTOTC just like it was any other memoir on the shelf" (Jack Gets Mail #1). The "oeuvre" Jack refers to includes "The Thrill of the Chase and its poem" as well as "every personal story Forrest wrote of his life" (Mysterious Writings Six Questions). It specifically does not include at least one of Fenn's earlier books, Seventeen Dollars a Square Inch--Jack had not read the book before finding the chest (A Remembrance of Forrest Fenn). TTOTC is specifically not a clue factory, so a re-reading is presumably not a clue finding exercise--""[Fenn] once gave us an idea of how many hints were in TTOTC, and it wasn't very many" (Jack Gets Mail #2). Probably somewhat separate from his concept of Fenn's "oeuvre," Jack also specifically "read, watch[ed], and listen[ed] to every single article about the chase wherein Forrest was quoted and every interview he ever gave on the subject," although it appears that this was more used "to understand ... the nature of the problem at hand" rather than reflect "his unique point of view and his emotions" of the core "oeuvre" (Mysterious Writings Six Questions).
Regarding the poem, Jack more than once stresses the terms simplicity, straightforwardness, and the big picture. Regarding the big picture, Jack says that "the poem itself was not the point, but rather finding the special place where he wished to die." He describes this as the place Fenn wanted to entomb himself. He essentially repeats Fenn's words: "[Fenn] wrote what he wanted to say. The poem is straightforward" (Jack Gets Mail #2). Lastly, Jack tells us to "listen to everything Forrest has to say surrounding the subject of simplifying, and try to consider everything in context, both the big picture and small" (Jack Gets Mail #1).
----
I've ignored or largely ignored Jack's statements about the blaze, Fenn's two "slip-ups," and the geographic scope of the solution as they aren't as helpful from a methodological perspective.
Jack felt and, by his actions, exhibited a high degree of confidence, but not certainty, in his identified section of forest. At this time it is impossible to evaluate whether the confidence was appropriate, even in light of his actual discovery of the chest therein and his understanding of cognitive bias (Jack's YouTube video). If we take this confidence as deserved, any application of Jack's method should provide an answer that is beyond a reasonable doubt.
So what do you think? Have I missed something or misunderstood something? Does this help direct your efforts, if you're putting any efforts into this anymore, elsewhere? I for one am going back and reading TTOTC anew (I have a love/hate relationship with the book).
