Straightjackets are shambling creatures wrapped in flesh that appear in Silent Hill: Origins. They also appear in Silent Hill: Book of Memories.
The Straightjacket serves as a semi-boss near the final portion of Alchemilla Hospital before Travis Grady obtains the first piece of the Flauros and, like the nurses, are capable of using a grappling move. They can be found in every area of the game.
Appearance[]
While they initially appear nearly identical to the Lying Figures of Silent Hill 2, they lack the feminine features of those creatures, and seem to be trapped in a "straightjacket" formed from skin, indicated by the notable folds and creases around their torsos. In contrast, the Lying Figures appear to be covered with a sheet of stretched skin.
They are also similar to the Armless Man from the first film, though there are subtle differences between these two as well.
At the Artaud Theater, they have a significantly more bloodied appearance.
Character[]
These monsters have a variety of attacks, such as spewing balls of acid while grappling rather than spraying it, as well as their ability to run at a surprising speed. They chase Travis Grady until he either enters another room/building or kills them. Outside, if the player does not react quickly, Travis can easily be swarmed by an infinite number of spawning Straightjackets roaming the streets. They will also jump up and wrap their legs around Travis, and if the player fails to successfully throw off the creature, it will spew acid into Travis's face, doing moderate damage. If one of these monsters is encountered alone, they are trivially easy for Travis to kill with even his bare hands, especially if he manages to attack them from behind or the side. They are the most common enemy in the game, which, combined with the ease of killing them, makes them quite useful if one wishes to gain the "Butcher" ending.
Symbolism[]
The Straightjacket could represent Travis's mother's stay in Cedar Grove Sanitarium. Travis sneaked into the sanitarium as a child to visit his mother and may have seen patients wearing straitjackets which may have left a striking visual impression on him, so the monsters could be his subconscious memories.
Straightjackets may be a metaphor for Travis being unable to escape his horrors and feeling trapped inside himself, helpless to be freed. They could be interpreted as Travis fearing losing his sanity, evidenced by his nightmares before the start of the game.
A Straightjacket wraps itself around Travis.
Contrastingly, this anomaly could also be yet another beastly manifestation of Travis's sexual deprivation. It is mentioned in the opening that Travis has trouble with "finding the right girls", and other monsters in the game connect to this frustration. The manner in which the monsters wraps its legs around Travis and squirms about, sometimes even bending over backwards, can be seen suggestively.
It is possible the monster is a manifestation of Alessa Gillespie's rather than Travis, evidenced by monsters such as the Caliban being manifested from Alessa. Alessa was hospitalized and bedridden, and these monsters convey ideas of restricted movement. This is evidenced by the monster first appearing in the same hospital where Alessa was hospitalized. Alessa also had a fear of adults, evidenced by the Romper monsters. Having been abused by her mother and the Order, Alessa would naturally be more distrustful of adults, so the Straightjackets throughout the town could represent the adult residents of Silent Hill and how Alessa felt she could not trust any of them because of their mental instability. Throughout the series, the town has been shown to be full of numerous mentally unstable adults.
Alternatively, it is also possible the monster did not intend to have much symbolism and is merely a throwback to Silent Hill 2.
Gallery[]
Concept[]
Silent Hill: Origins[]
.jpg "Straightjacket (about to attack).jpg (72 KB)")
Silent Hill: Book of Memories[]
