Interview with California Native, Haley Parrett, on Her Visit to the Fremont Troll

I chose to interview my friend who visited the Troll with me to hear her account of the experience. Below is our interview and a summary of the key takeaways from our interview.

Picture of Haley visiting the troll.

Brielle: How did you feel looking at the troll?

Haley: My gut reaction was “Well… this is weird.” I certainly had never seen anything like it before. The troll seems random and strange, but is also a fun landmark in the Seattle area. It adds character to the Fremont neighborhood. It’s iconic and clearly brings in many visitors.

Brielle: What was the first thing you noticed about the troll?

Haley: Emo hairstyle. The stringy hair covering its right eye.

Brielle: Why did you visit the troll?

Haley: I was out studying with friends in Fremont. We decided to take a break to explore the cute downtown area, which looks like it’s right out of Gilmore Girls. Our exploration led us to the troll.

Brielle: How does the troll contribute to the atmosphere of Fremont?

Haley: The troll creates an expectation of the character of the town. It paints Fremont as quirky and fun. It gives the town a sense of humor. It also separates it from U-District and the rest of Seattle. I knew Seattle was quirky and iconic, but the Fremont Troll is a different kind of quirky and iconic.

Brielle: If the troll could speak, what would they say?

Haley: “Get out of my bridge!” The troll reminds me of Shrek saying “Get out of my swamp!” I imagine the troll is sick of dealing with people and just wants to listen to Panic! At The Disco and vibe.

Brielle: What is your favorite Seattle landmark?

Haley: The space needle. I just think the space needle is iconic to the Seattle skyline. Everyone is familiar with the space needle and I as very excited to see it when I visited. I also loved how they put a Christmas tree on top during December.

Brielle: What do landmarks, such as the troll, contribute to their cities?

Haley: They create a quirky atmosphere. They give the people of Fremont a sense of identity in their town, knowing that they have an iconic landmark. It gives them something to talk about since they all have a commonality of living in Fremont: the home to the iconic Fremont Troll.

Key Takeaways

While Haley did not have to think as critically about the Fremont Troll as I did for my analysis, she came to similar conclusions as me. She saw the Troll as an addition to the quirky atmosphere of Fremont. She also saw the Troll as a defender of Fremont (with her idea of the Troll being similar to Shrek). Her answer to my last question further emphasizes my point that the troll brings the people of Fremont together with a unique, small-town atmosphere in comparison to technology-driven Seattle.