Manifestation

Maria, a woman manifested by the power of Silent Hill.

A manifestation in the Silent Hill series refers to anything constructed from a character's psyche or subconscious and given physical form through the powers of Silent Hill, particularly when referring to people, or more accurately the likenesses of them.

They may be projections of a character's delusions, desires, guilt, fear, or memories that have taken the form of a sentient human being capable of interacting with its surroundings. At other times, they may be real, but are born through unnatural means. They may also be a victim of the "Full Circle".

Manifestations are not necessarily "ghosts", "spirits", or "reincarnations", although it is possible for them to have memories of a past self via the manifestor's memories, depending on their role in the story. Oftentimes the manifestations take the image of someone (alive or deceased) who the manifestor was familiar with before arriving in Silent Hill. However, the line between whether or not a character is a manifestation or a ghost is unclear, and it is technically possible for a character to be considered both a manifestation and a ghost (a manifested ghost).

Monsters are also manifestations, as they are created from a character's subconscious and brought to life by the powers of the town. Even animals, locations, and objects can be considered manifestations if the definition is used from a broader usage of the term.

Notable manifestations

For the sake of organization, even if a being is implied to be a mere ghost, they will be included in the list below.

Video games

• Cheryl Mason (Silent Hill)
  • Cheryl was born through unnatural means when Alessa Gillespie split her soul seven years before the game, thus she can be considered a manifestation of sorts. Cheryl could also interact with reality, like a normal human being.
• Heather Mason (Silent Hill)
  • Similar case to Cheryl, Heather was also manifested through Alessa's powers. Also like Cheryl, she is a real living girl.

"Mary" speaking to James in the "Maria" ending.

• Mary Shepherd-Sunderland (during dialogue and several endings) (Silent Hill 2)
  • An uncertain case, her voice reappeared throughout James's journey, and she appears in certain endings to have a final conversation with him. It is unclear if this is Mary's true self returned as a ghost, or delusions caused by James's strong desire to be reunited with his wife. He mentions this desire is so strong he wanted to even see illusions of Mary. In the "Maria" ending, Mary appears on the roof, although James later claims to Maria this was not the real Mary. In other endings, James is seen having a conversation with Mary in her pajamas, and it is ambiguous if this is the real Mary or not.
• Maria (Silent Hill 2)
  • Maria was manifested sometime around when James entered the town, apparently due to his desire to see Mary again. She bears eerie facial and voice similarities to Mary, which James notes to her. It is implied the powers of the town may have made her believe she was a dancer at Heaven's Night.
• Ernest Baldwin (Silent Hill 2)
  • Heavily implied to be a ghost.
• Amy Baldwin (Silent Hill 2)
  • Heavily implied to be a ghost.
• Memory of Alessa (Silent Hill 3)
  • The imprint and lingering negativity of Alessa made manifest with the purpose of killing the "god" in Heather's body.
• Crying woman (Silent Hill 3)
  • Footsteps of some invisible woman with bloody footsteps, perhaps some imprint of Alessa or Lisa Garland, can be seen wandering the chapel.
• Young Walter Sullivan (Silent Hill 4: The Room)
  • A young child version of Walter roams his Otherworld for unclear reasons. This version of Walter is not a ghost, however, due to the real adult Walter wandering around his Otherworld.
• Ghosts (Silent Hill 4: The Room)
  • The various spirits of Walter's victims have been manifested as ghosts.

"Joshua" appearing to Alex.

• Joshua Shepherd (Silent Hill: Homecoming)
  • The deceased brother of Alex Shepherd, presumably manifested from Alex's delusional traumatic belief that Joshua is still alive. It is unclear if this Joshua is a ghost. The bonus scene where Alex sees Joshua in their bedroom raises many mysteries, such as if Joshua has been revived from the dead and has returned to being a normal human being.
• Harry Mason (Silent Hill: Shattered Memories)
  • Manifested from Cheryl's delusions that her father is alive. This Harry remarks he is not even a ghost.
• Dahlia Mason (Silent Hill: Shattered Memories)
  • Manifested from Cheryl Heather Mason's subconscious as well, and perhaps Cheryl's ideas of what her mother used to be like.
• Charlie Pendleton (Silent Hill: Downpour)
  • Manifested from Murphy Pendleton's subconscious and presumably as a way for Murphy to move on from the guilt of being unable to save his son. It is unclear if he is a ghost.

Young Anne in the Otherworld.

• Young Anne Cunningham (Silent Hill: Downpour)
  • Manifested from Anne's subconscious for unclear reasons. This version is not a ghost because the real Anne is still alive.
• Frank Coleridge (Silent Hill: Downpour)
  • Presumably manifested from Murphy and Anne's shared memories, it is unclear if he is a ghost.
• George Sewell (Silent Hill: Downpour)
  • Presumably manifested from Murphy and Anne's shared memories, he appears to speak to Murphy as a vision. This version cannot be a ghost as the real Sewell is still alive.

Hanna, a girl who drowned in 1918, appears in Brookhaven Hospital in 1993.

• Hanna (Silent Hill: The Arcade)
  • Hanna was manifested in the town for unclear reasons. It is implied she is a ghost.
• Lorraine (Silent Hill: The Arcade)
  • Similar case to Hanna.
• Captain (Silent Hill: The Arcade)
  • Similar case to Hanna.
• Alessa (Silent Hill: Orphan and Silent Hill: Mobile 3)
• Lucas (Silent Hill: Mobile 2)
• Karen (Silent Hill: Mobile 3)
• Lisa (P.T.)
  • A murder victim, she is apparently a monster/ghost haunting her family home.

Television

• Ingrid Johansen (Silent Hill: Ascension)
  • After her death, Ingrid constantly appears in visions of Astrid, Brit and Karl. Her nature is unclear.
• Eva Johansen (Silent Hill: Ascension)
  • Like Ingrid, Eva manifests herself to Astrid and, particularly, to Karl in various scenes. Her nature is unclear.
• Joy Cirelli (Silent Hill: Ascension)
  • After dying in the purification ritual, Toby and Rachel have constant visions of Joy. Her nature is unclear.

Comics

Sara realizes she is dead.

• Christabella LaRoache
  • Heavily implied to be a ghost.
• Sara Linwood (Sinner's Reward)
  • It is heavily implied this Sara is a ghost. She is a victim of Jack Stanton's, apparently manifested using the powers of the town for Jack to confront his past.
• Digger (Sinner's Reward)
  • Jack's deceased childhood dog, it is unclear if the dog is a ghost.
• Helene Leek (Past Life)
  • Helene was killed and returns to haunt Jebediah Foster, and it is strongly implied this is the real Helene who became a ghost.
• Jonas Leek (Past Life)
  • Similar case to Helene; also implied he is a ghost.

Films

• Dark Alessa (Silent Hill film)
  • Alessa Gillespie split her soul, creating a being that became the dark part of Alessa.
• Sharon Da Silva/Heather Mason (Silent Hill film, Silent Hill: Revelation)
  • A being created by Alessa splitting her soul, containing Alessa's pure side. She is not a ghost and was manifested through unnatural means.

Possible manifestations

• Lisa Garland (Silent Hill)
  • In Cage of Cradle, it is shown Lisa was murdered by Valtiel, implying she is a ghost in the first game.
• Subway Ghost (Silent Hill 3)
  • Considering how it only appears if Heather reads a newspaper article, this would imply it is a hallucination. However, it is unclear if it is just a manifestation or the real ghostly spirit of the victim.

The fridge cat.

• Fridge cat (Silent Hill 4: The Room)
  • A deceased cat is implied to be manifested as a haunting, becoming a lump of meat. It still makes meowing sounds.
• Victim Henry Townshend (Silent Hill 4: The Room)
  • A strange, dark facade of Henry can be seen manifested outside the peephole. This figure is not a ghost because the real Henry is still alive. It may serve as a warning to show what may happen to Henry.
• Lisa Garland (in "Sleaze and Sirens" ending) (Silent Hill: Shattered Memories)
  • Similar case to Harry and Dahlia Mason.
• Michelle Valdez (in "Sleaze and Sirens" ending) (Silent Hill: Shattered Memories)
  • Similar case to Harry and Dahlia Mason.
• Nun (Silent Hill: Downpour)
  • Her existence is strange, appearing as a nun in a dilapidated monastery.
• Howard Blackwood (Silent Hill: Downpour)
  • He has been delivering mail in Silent Hill for over a century. He could be a Full Circle victim unable to age as a result of being a manifestation/ghost.

Trivia

• A popular theory is that Laura, Eddie and Angela from Silent Hill 2 are manifestations of James' psyche. Masahiro Ito has debunked this on Twitter.
• There seem to be some ghosts seen in Downpour as part of the sidequests, such as "Stolen Goods".

References

v · e · d Silent Hill: Ascension
Characters
Major Characters
Astrid Johansen - Brit Johansen - Eric Hernandez - Karl Johansen - Rachel Hernandez - Toby Cirelli - Xavier Candless
Other Characters
Aurora - Barbara - Eva Johansen - Faith Hernandez - Ingrid Johansen - Joy Cirelli - Krista Lee - Lejo Kant - Mette Dahl - Nils Grønbekk - Nora Jackson - Olivia Haugen - Orson Johansen - Zayn Davies
Monsters
Crawler - Fighter - Hanger - Snarler - Stinger - The Bruiser - The Collector - The Entangler - The Immolator - The Smotherer - Wanderer
Locations
Hope's Junction - Stilledalen
Terms
Monster - Fog World - Otherworld - Paul Radcliffe - The Foundation - The Heralds - The Purifier - The Withering
Archives
Episodes - Story Branches - Cameos - Arcane Library - Soundtrack