#0533

How Count Olaf voices his concerns (and why it matters)

It’s difficult to attest to what is going on in Klaus’ mind in Olaf’s final moments: his reaction is more emotional than rational. He doesn’t explain why Olaf is guilty, he just believes it on an almost spiritual level. This is a theory that Klaus has held onto for a very long time. The Baudelaire orphans know that Olaf is an arsonist since their aunt Josephine died. Olaf straight-up bragged about it to their faces:

Mr. Poe frowned, and coughed into his white handkerchief. "That's enough of your revolting talk, Olaf," he said sternly. "We've caught you now, and there's no way you'll be getting away. The Lake Lachrymose Police Department will be happy to capture a known criminal wanted for fraud, murder, and the endangerment of children." "And arson," Count Olaf piped up. [The Wide Window, Chapter Thirteen]

So from then on the Baudelaire orphans had serious reasons to believe that Olaf had burned down their home. Why is this never discussed throughout the series? Probably because the idea of their parents’ murder is so horrid, so unthinkable that the children prefer not to talk about it. It takes Ishmael committing genocide, Kit Snicket going into labor in an unsafe area and Olaf’s insistence that he was a competent guardian for Klaus to truly lose his temper and admit the truth he’s tried to hide for almost a year.

However, the Baudelaire orphans should know better. They’ve had more than enough to know that every time he’s started a fire or committed a horrible crime of any sort, he’s bragged about it. He only hides his involvement when an authority figure, legal representative or person he wants to manipulate is in the vicinity. There is no such person on the beach as he questions Klaus’ assertion, in fact he is not even aware of Kit Snicket’s presence, which is only brought up later in the conversation.

However, absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. When Olaf is confronted by an incorrect accusation of arson, he denies it unambiguously.

"I had Omeros keep this weapon handy," Ishmael said, "instead of tossing it in the arboretum, because I thought you might escape from that cage, Count Olaf, just as I escaped from the cage you put me in when you set fire to my home." "I didn't set that fire," Count Olaf said, his eyes shining bright. [The End, Chapter Eleven]

Notice how Olaf never denies putting Ishmael into the cage, his dismissal specifically concerns the arson. Considering that Ishmael is currently holding Olaf at harpoon-gun-point, his words are chosen very carefully as to not anger him even more. On that topic, it’s interesting to note that the Baudelaire orphans have picked up on one of Olaf’s tics: his eyes shine brightly whenever he distorts language to make a sinister joke.

His eyes were very, very shiny, which made him look both hungry and angry. "Hello, my children. Please step into your new home, and wipe your feet outside so no mud gets indoors." As they stepped into the house, Mr. Poe behind them, the Baudelaire orphans realized what a ridiculous thing Count Olaf had just said. The room in which they found themselves was the dirtiest they had ever seen, and a little bit of mud from outdoors wouldn't have made a bit of difference. [The Bad Beginning, Chapter Two]

"If I know you, Olaf," said the man with the hook-hands, "you'll figure out a way to get at that Baudelaire money." "We'll see," Count Olaf said, but his eyes were shining bright as if he already had an idea. [The Bad Beginning, Chapter Four]

"Mr. Poe told me," Count Olaf said, "that you appeared to be having some difficulty adjusting to the life I have so graciously provided for you. I'm very sorry to hear that." The children looked at Count Olaf. His face was very serious, as if he were very sorry to hear that, but his eyes were shiny and bright, the way they are when someone is telling a joke. [The Bad Beginning, Chapter Six]

Count Olaf's eyes grew very shiny, but he continued to smirk at Klaus. This was surprising. Klaus had guessed that once he announced what he knew, this dreadful man would have been very angry, even violent. After all, he'd had a furious outburst just because he'd wanted roast beef instead of puttanesca sauce. Surely, he'd be even more enraged to have his plan discovered. But Count Olaf just sat there as calmly as if they were discussing the weather. [The Bad Beginning, Chapter Eight]

"Where can she be indeed?" said a voice behind them, and the two children turned around. Count Olaf was standing in the doorway, watching Violet and Klaus as they searched the room. His eyes were shining brighter than they ever had, and he was still smiling like he'd just uttered a joke. [The Bad Beginning, Chapter Nine]

So in the above passage Olaf is definitely mocking Ishmael (a part of him is certainly toying with him to see if he has the guts to spill Olaf’s and spread the deadly spores of the Medusoid Mycelium). But his eyes do not shine when Klaus confronts him about his parents’ murder. Olaf was is, in fact, telling a joke when he tells the Baudelaire orphans they did not know anything about the fire which destroyed their home. He is not being opaque on purpose or playing mind-games. He is voicing legitimate, sincere concerns and grievances.

What Klaus believes (mistakenly)

Klaus does not explain why on Earth Olaf would want to kill the Baudelaire parents, but given what he knows at this point in the series, he can easily imagine three main motives:

PROFIT Killing off the Baudelaire parents would allow Olaf to gain custody of their children and from then on concoct schemes to steal their massive inheritance.

REVENGE Olaf’s parents were assassinated by Bertrand and Beatrice and Olaf wanted their children to endure the pain he felt after his own losses.

DUTY Olaf is part of the side of V.F.D. run by the Man With Beard But No Hair and the Woman With Hair But No Beard, two fanatics who terrify him and burn down buildings of rich children on a regular basis. If they ordered him to kill Bertrand and Beatrice (whom they have described as their enemies), Olaf would be compelled to obey.

Naturally, none of these motives are mutually exclusive. In fact, they combine quite well. Many mansions of rich families have been burned down because of V.F.D.’s schism and unifying theories have been proposed to explain why. Basically, Olaf’s motives could be summarized as such:

V.F.D. used to finance itself by kidnapping rich children and burning down their parents’ home, after which said young volunteers would be brainwashed into using their own fortune to help the organization (Link). Beatrice and Bertrand killed Olaf’s parents so that V.F.D. would gain a rich volunteer ready to finance their cause (Link). Then the schism happened: some remorseful volunteers (such as Bertrand and Beatrice) rejected the system altogether and vowed never to use violence again, while people like Olaf decided to steal fortunes for their own profit rather than that of the organization (Link). Olaf saw Beatrice and Bertrand as hypocrites who had never been truly punished for their actions and as soon as his two bosses allowed it, he decided to inflict on the Baudelaire orphans what had been inflicted upon him.

Klaus is certainly missing some pieces of the puzzle but has enough material to theorize that this is what truly happened. And it’s certainly what many readers of the series believe about Olaf, too.

Except Olaf’s reaction suggests that this interpretation is completely wrong. So what then? Was there a completely different reason to burn down the Baudelaire mansion? Why did Beatrice and Bertrand have to die?

In a predictable and unfortunate turn of events, it all comes back to the sugar bowl.

The timing of the Baudelaire fire (and its implications)

The first point we must examine is the timing of the event. We know that the Baudelaire parents and Olaf were enemies well before Violet was born. If Olaf hates them so much, why did he wait so many years to enact his revenge? How could Bertrand and Beatrice expect to keep their children safe in a city where their arch-nemesis could roam freely, in the public eye? Somehow, they must have had reason to believe Olaf wouldn't dare attack them. The most obvious answer is that Beatrice was the last known owner of the sugar bowl.

"Then you know all about the sugar bowl,” Esmé said, “and what’s inside. You know how important that thing was, and how many lives were lost in the quest to find it. You know how difficult it was to find a container that could hold it safely, securely, and attractively. You know what it means to the Baudelaires and what it means to the Snickets.” She took one sandaled step closer to Dewey, and stretched out one silver fingernail-the one shaped like an S-until it was almost poking him in the eye. “And you know,” she said in a terrible voice, “that it is mine.” “Not anymore,” Dewey said. “Beatrice stole it from me!” Esmé cried. “There are worse things,” Dewey said, “than theft.” [The Penultimate Peril, Chapter Nine]

As Dewey puts it, this put her in a position of power over Olaf, who wants it very badly. It's easy to imagine that he was condemned to simply observe the Baudelaire parents from afar, in the hope of learning where they were hiding the sugar bowl.

“It doesn’t matter, Baudelaires,” Jerome said. “Olaf won’t dare unleash the Medusoid Mycelium unless he gets his hands on the sugar bowl, and he’ll never find it.” [The Penultimate Peril, Chapter Eight]

Daniel Handler wrote a little-known supplement called "The Dismal Dinner" where he reveals important information about what happened shortly before the Baudelaire fire. The sugar bowl was being shown around in the Baudelaire mansion some days before the fire, and Olaf was watching. This means that there was a short lapse of time during which he more or less knew where the sugar bowl was hidden, before it was taken away someplace else. Olaf had a miraculous chance of getting his hands on the item, one and only one. This must have something to do with the fire.

My discovery of a torn pant leg shows that Sunny, an infant and the youngest Baudelaire child, played a key role in the dinner party held at the Baudelaire mansion quite some time before it was reduced to a smoking pile of rubble. Third-hand reports suggest that just after the sugar bowl was placed on the table, Sunny shrieked, "Funcoot!”, which either meant “My gums hurt!” or “I believe I may have seen someone lurking outside.” [The Dismal Dinner, part 3.]

Recent discoveries support my suspicions about the fateful event hosted by the Baudelaire parents before their death. Near the end of the meal, baby Sunny Baudelaire looked out the window and began to cry with a clarity and force that would soon characterize her ability to bite things. Her cries alarmed a number of guests who were in the process of passing around the sugar bowl. [The Dismal Dinner, part 4.]

But there is also another event which occurs shortly before the Baudelaire fire, this time revealed in the additional notes of "The Bad Beginning: Rare Edition". It concerns another fire, that of ther Royal Gardens, which happened some time before the start of the series. To put it plainly, Olaf failed to burn down a place where he was attempting to steal a poisonous plant, and Jacques reported it in the hope that the authorities would put two and two together and realize that his brother Lemony had been framed for Olaf’s crimes. You can read all about this theory here: (Link).

p.18 [The Baudelaire orphans] passed an enormous pile of dirt where the Royal Gardens once stood. For more information on the destruction of the Royal Gardens, interested parties might turn to the following articles in The Daily Punctilio, the city’s newspaper: “Arson suspected in Destruction of Royal Gardens,” by Jacques Snicket, and “Absolutely No Arson or Any Other Suspicious Thing Associated with the Royal Gardens, which Simply Burned to the Ground and Then Were Covered in Dirt Due to Wind, Says Official Fire Department,” by Geraldine Julienne. [The Bad Beginning: Rare Edition, p.175]

So two very important things happen a few days before the Baudelaire fire:

Jacques is working hard to prove that Olaf is an arsonist, and Justice Strauss is going to be assigned on the case.

Count Olaf is aware that the sugar bowl is being kept inside the Baudelaire mansion.

These two facts combine to explain what may have happened on the morning of the fire.

But most important is the fact that Olaf is indeed implied to have been present inside the Baudelaire mansion on that day…

p.6 One of the things Violet, Klaus, and Sunny really liked about their parents was that they didn’t send their children away when they had company over, but allowed them to join the adults at the dinner table… The Baudelaire table was not used exclusively for dinner. Its surface was handy for unrolling maps, completing jigsaw puzzles, and tracing the faces of people from photographs. One thing I remember from my time at the table was that it was always necessary to use a coaster underneath one’s beverage so as to not leave an unsightly ring on the wood. [The Bad Beginning: Rare Edition, pp.171-172]

p.98 But Count Olaf just sat there as calmly as if they were discussing the weather. Certain kinds of weather-severe rainstorms, for instance-have a dampening effect on fires, which is displeasing to arsonists. There have been reports of alleged arsonists so reportedly displeased with the weather that they have been rumored to pound their beverages on an unprotected wooden table. [The Bad Beginning: Rare Edition, p.179]

…and that he was apparently invited there by the Baudelaire parents:

p.2 The three Baudelaire children lived with their parents in an enormous mansion at the heart of a dirty and busy city, and occasionally their parents gave them permission to take a rickety trolley-the word “rickety”, you probably know, here means “unsteady” or “likely to collapse”-alone to the seashore… On that particular occasion, the Baudelaire parents not only gave their children permission but encouraged them to leave the house, as the adults had some pressing business to attend to. This business was delayed indefinitely due to death. Also note that the trolley has since collapsed, and its remains were recycled into the foundation of a hotel. [The Bad Beginning: Rare Edition, p.171]

pp.12-13 Here and there, the children could see traces of the home they had loved: fragments of their grand piano, an elegant bottle in which Mr. Baudelaire had kept brandy, the scorched cushion of the windowseat where their mother liked to sit and read. Curiously enough, Mr. Baudelaire’s brandy bottle was found on the remains of the dining table, with no coasters nearby. This would indicate that either the coasters were burned beyond recognition, or the Baudelaires had received a visitor who had no manners whatsoever. [The Bad Beginning: Rare Edition, pp.173-174]

There seems to be a number of odd coincidences there. With their knowledge of the sugar bowl’s relevance and the Jacques’ ongoing investigation of Olaf’s crimes, the Baudelaire parents actually have a lot of control over the situation at this point. Is it possible that they lured Olaf into their house? Was his presence part of a secret plan?

Why the Baudelaire fire resembles the Denouement fire (for all the right reasons)

"A Series of Unfortunate Events" largely deals with the problem of history repeating itself, particularly when it comes to the cycles of violence. Sons and daughters follow in their forbearers’ footsteps and commit the same kind of mistakes, never learning anything. Near the end of the saga, the Baudelaire children discover that Olaf was orphaned by their parents for something related to V.F.D., and that he seems to do what he does based on retribution. Furthermore, the schism which broke the organization is followed by several smaller, similar schisms: the separation of Klaus and Fiona, the mutiny of the Islanders, etc. Many events of the past and present are explicitly presented as parallel to each other.

In many ways one would think that, the most logical way to uncover the truth about the Baudelaire fire is to compare it to a similar fire. Let's see what we know:

It had something to do with the sugar bowl being exchanged there and Olaf wanting to get his hands on it.

The fire happens in relation to a big investigation regarding Olaf’s crimes.

One or several characters may have survived and their fate is left ambiguous by Lemony in the narration. Lemony himself might have been there.

The existence of a secret underground complex changes the entire meaning of the event.

As the similarities pile up, it becomes clear that the set-up of the Baudelaire fire clearly mirrors the one which destroyed Hotel Denouement. And there is reason to believe that the sugar bowl is actually a red herring, a sinking lure that the “noble” side of V.F.D. uses to get the other side where they want them, when they want them (Link). The entire sugar bowl chase in “The Penultimate Peril” is actually an elaborate trap set up by Dewey and his allies to arrest Olaf and his allies, and to put them on trial in the Hotel Denouement’s lobby where all evidence of their crimes will be presented to the judges of the High Court.

The Baudelaire fire was a trial version of the Denouement fire. The Baudelaire parents made sure that Olaf knew that the sugar bowl was being kept there, to use his greed against him. Then they invited him into their home on a false pretext, knowing he would waste time trying to find the Vessel For Disaccharides. In the meantime, Jacques was supposed to present the results of his investigation to the police. The authorities would then come to the Baudelaire mansion and arrest Olaf.

This scenario is key to understand why the building eventually caught fire.

Why Olaf burned down the Baudelaire mansion (as he tried to retrieve the sugar bowl)

There's a particularly strange detail about the scene of the crime which everyone in the series overlooked: the broken pieces of the brandy bottle. Now, anyone who read the un-Authorized Autobiography can tell you that brandy is traditionally drunk at V.F.D. committee reunions. So the fact that the bottle is highlighted by Handler, and presented out of its liquor cabinet, must be significant. Firstly, it reinforces the idea that some discussion related to V.F.D. was going on while the children were having fun at the beach.

pp.12-13 Here and there, the children could see traces of the home they had loved: fragments of their grand piano, an elegant bottle in which Mr. Baudelaire had kept brandy, the scorched cushion of the windowseat where their mother liked to sit and read. Curiously enough, Mr. Baudelaire’s brandy bottle was found on the remains of the dining table, with no coasters nearby. This would indicate that either the coasters were burned beyond recognition, or the Baudelaires had received a visitor who had no manners whatsoever. [The Bad Beginning: Rare Edition, pp.173-174]

J— Please pass the brandy. [Lemony Snicket’s un-Authorized Autobiography, p.37]

After the pudding, the older gentleman of my acquaintance and I retired to an enormous, imposing living room to enjoy and after-dinner brandy, and the arcane smile returned to his face as a number of older gentlemen not of my acquaintance joined us, clearly for some sort of meeting. [Lemony Snicket’s un-Authorized Autobiography, p.xiv]

Secondly, however, it brings up a much more salient point: why was the bottle broken? Glass melts easily under fire, and in fact Daniel Handler makes a point of showing a glass instrument which has melted because of the damage caused by the heat. Alcohol is flammable, so a brandy bottle should burn even more easily as the liquid ignited. And yet the bottle is clearly well-preserved enough for the children to recognize it as their father's brandy bottle immediately. It's in shards, so it would have to be barely burned for any identification. How is this possible?

The solution to this problem is that Olaf poured the brandy out of the bottle on a particularly flammable object (a book?), and used his matches to light a fire in the Baudelaire library. He then kept the empty bottle on his person as he ran to the other side of the house. This side of the house was less affected by the fire as the fire department had arrived by the time the flames caught up with him.

"The fire department arrived, of course," Mr. Poe said, "but they were too late. The entire house was engulfed in fire. It burned to the ground. " Klaus pictured all the books in the library, going up in flames. Now he'd never read all of them. [The Bad Beginning, Chapter One]

Olaf's main goal was to escape, yes, but he also had a secondary objective in mind: in the heat of the brazier, the sugar bowl would be threatened and the Baudelaire parents would have no choice but to retrieve it from its safe. It was the quickest, easiest way for Olaf to learn where it was hidden and to get his hands on it. This tactic is used with some success by Sherlock Holmes in the story "A scandal in Bohemia".

The Baudelaire parents soon realized that a fire had started in their home and decided to split. Beatrice went to the library where she attempted to salvaged as many V.F.D. documents as she could, and to retrieve the sugar bowl from its hiding place. The Baudelaire library indeed holds many documents precious to V.F.D. and the Baudelaire parents were always afraid that a fire would destroy them:

"Our mother would get mad, too," Klaus said. "Remember, Violet, when we left the window of the library open, and that night it rained?" "She really flew off the handle," Violet said, using a phrase which here means "became extremely angry." "We spoiled an atlas that she said was irreplaceable." "You should have heard her yell," Klaus said. "Our father came down from his study to see what was the matter." "And then he started yelling, too," Violet said, and the Baudelaires paused and looked at one another uncomfortably. [The Grim Grotto, Chapter Seven]

"And sometimes you burn the toast," Klaus said, and they smiled. They were both remembering a time when the two of them got up early to make a special breakfast for their parents. Violet had burned the toast, and their parents, smelling smoke, had run downstairs to see what the matter was. When they saw Violet and Klaus, looking forlornly at pieces of pitch-black toast, they laughed and laughed, and then made pancakes for the whole family. [The Bad Beginning, Chapter Three]

Bertrand, meanwhile, ran after Olaf to prevent his escape and to make sure he wasn't following Beatrice to the sugar bowl's hiding place. Olaf was apprehended by Bertrand but broke the empty brandy bottle to make a shiv, and stabbed him in (debatable) self-defense. Bertrand fell to the floor as he bled from the stab wounds and Olaf jumped out a window. His body would later be destroyed by the flames. Beatrice, meanwhile, got badly burned trying to secure the sugar bowl and her books and soon found herself trapped. Her only escape was the secret passageway under the house, where she remained for quite some time. For more information on how Beatrice could have survived the fire, read this theory: (Link).

How other passages of the series mirror the event (through symbols)

There is indeed reason to believe that the brandy was used to ignite the fire and that its broken pieces were used to create a shiv: the plot quite literally spells it out for us. In "The Bad Beginning", Klaus and Violet find themselves trapped in Olaf's lair. The only items at their disposal are Olaf's empty wine bottles, scattered around. Violet Baudelaire, in a typical display of thuggish swagger, suggests flaming alcohol and a shiv as an escape plan. And the Baudelaire fire happens in the same book, too! How fitting would it be for the Baudelaire children to re-enact the method that Olaf used to burn down their house... to burn down his own house?

"If we had any kerosene," Violet said, around noon, "I could make Molotov cocktails with these bottles." […] "They're small bombs made inside bottles," Violet explained. "We could throw them our the window and attract the attention of passersby." […] "We could break these bottles in half," Violet said, "and use them as knives, but I'm afraid that Count Olaf's troupe would overpower us." [The Bad Beginning, Chapter Eleven]

The similarities do not end there: let's go back to the Hotel Denouement fire. How did Olaf light it, exactly? A burning book, right next to dangerous chemicals. The scene is described as unsettling. Part of that, of course, has to do with the fact that our protagonists value education and that autodafés bring up very distasteful connotations. On another level, however, it's possible that this method of arson subconsciously reminds them of the way Olaf destroyed their own home. It's no wonder they bring up this possibility in the next book. The lighting of the book acts as a triggering event: it's the moment the children actually admit to themselves that Olaf probably murdered their parents.

The Baudelaires leaned forward to see if they could read what the injustice expert had written, and caught only the word "passageway" before Olaf lit a match and tossed it expertly onto the page. The paper caught on fire at once, and the book began to burn. […] "We'd best get away from here," Count Olaf said, breaking the silence. "In my experience, once the flames reach the chemicals, the fire will spread very quickly. [The Penultimate Peril, Chapter Thirteen]