A tiny window of sorts, the peep hole on my dorm room door offers a view to the world

on the other side of my door while limiting my view beyond the immediate area. The peep hole

gives me knowledge because I can see more with it than without it, therefore, opening up a world

of adventures I would have never known and learning a few things about what is going on

outside my door. Noise and commotion outside my dorm door are a regular occurrence. The

peep hole has been quite a handy little thing to have and use on many occasions. At times, the

peep hole has been a source of entertainment, has invaded privacy, and added security. At the

same time, it is mysterious and controlling. Mystery lurks through the tiny piece of glass every

time I look to see what is outside my door. The viewing area is small and leads me to

assumptions and guessing when I can’t see all the action. The tiny hole has so much power that

it can control me and allow me to only see a small area. The peephole on my dorm room door is

a telescope and microscope. It allows me to see more than I could without it, while at the same

time, limiting my view to only that which can be seen through the tiny hole. Strange to think

about something so tiny having so much power. But the peep hole with its power, decides how

much I can see and limits my vision which can lead to confusing situations.

Sounds that were once a mystery can now be seen through this mysterious and tiny hole

in the door. The tiny window I have on my door opens up a world to me that could only be heard

otherwise. The peep hole gives me a secret view of the hallway in the dorm. People passing by

or activity happening outside of my door is no longer a mystery because my peep hole gives me

access to all I want to see in the hall.

 Anyone on the other side doesn’t know I am watching nor can they see me watching.

They can see the peephole but not me. From the hallway you can see the peephole on my door,

but of course you cannot see through the hole. The peep hole is made of glass but it does not

allow anyone on the outside to see in. Therefore, it is as if I am spying on them when I peek out.

This puts me in a precarious situation if I see something that I know wasn’t meant to be seen by

anyone else. Based on some of the things I have seen I will assume most people are not ever

thinking about the fact that they might be watched by someone on the other side of the door.

Sometimes it feels like I am looking in the window of a house and watching people and it strikes

me as weird to watch people who have no idea they are being watched. It’s almost as if I am

invading their privacy, but they are in a public place and not trying to be private or hide things

form others. The little window on my door becomes a mystery to me and I wonder if it is a good

thing to be watching when others don’t realize they are being watched. The access my peep hole

gives me to the activities of others is so tempting that I rarely refuse the invitation.

A window to the world outside my door has the power to control what I see. The peep

hole is very tiny and can only give me a limited view. It can be frustrating to know there is

something going on because you can hear noise or people talking but you cannot see any of it

because the peep hole limits the area. Garrison wrote of this when he said, “Galileo’s telescope

simultaneously allowed him access to other worlds and brought about the dramatic limitations of

his own world.” Pg30

My door is large, yet this peep hole consumes less than an inch of space. There have

been numerous times that I have wondered why the hole wasn’t made larger. Of course, I want it

to be larger so I can see more but it doesn’t make much sense to me that my door is probably

eight feet tall and three feet wide with a peep hole of less than one inch. With a limited viewing
area to a large space in the hallway I am left to guessing what is happening and at times that can

be very frustrating. My peep hole can be a telescope one minute and the very next become a

microscope. I can see activity and people, but just as quick as I see them, the view is limited and

controlled by the size of the peep hole.

The University of Dayton community is very friendly and social. We often leave our

dorm doors open during the day so friends feel free to drop in and say hello. The peep hole isn’t

much use to me during most afternoons, but becomes very important at night, especially on

weekend nights. Usually people will send a text or call if they want to stop by for a visit, but at

the University of Dayton we are very social and people stop by unannounced all the time. It’s

the normal culture here to leave doors open and say hello as you pass by an open door. Once

night rolls around it is a good idea to close and lock your door for security and safety reasons.

The peep hole really helps me to know what is happening outside my door or to see who is

knocking and wanting to come in to visit. If I have a knock at my door, I know that my door is

locked and I can look out the peep hole to see who is on the other side. The tiny window that

allows me to see the world outside my door protects me from it too. There is always the

possibility that someone wants to come in your room for the wrong reasons. Their intent could

be to harm you or steal items from you. The one inch hole on my door is a shield between me

and a possible dangerous situation. Without the peep hole I would be tempted to answer the door

anytime there is a knock because I would assume it was a friend stopping by.

My tiny window to the world outside my door gives me excitement, pleasure,

information, frustration, and a feeling of emptiness. I love hearing commotion and then being

able to see what is happening without going out to the hall and getting involved. I love the

pleasure of inviting a friend in that has stopped by and the information I get from looking out and
seeing things happen with people in the hallway. I get annoyed and frustrated at the limited view

and the feeling of emptiness when I missed something or couldn’t see enough to figure out was

going on. Small, round, and rather unassuming, the peep hole on my dorm door is mighty,

powerful, and controlling. My mysteriously controlling little window to the happenings in my

hallway is a good friend and a sworn enemy. My good friend gives me knowledge and

information, while my enemy keeps secrets and controls me.