A word implying a texture that is repeated in multiple places throughout the novel is the word smooth. This word is used with different characters in different settings. Sometimes it is referring directly to the characters themselves, while at other times, the word is describing a character’s surroundings. The word smooth is used 11 times in Lucifer’s Hammer. The meaning of the word starts out describing the smooth lines on Tim Hamer’s face at the Sutter’s party. The word reappears again on page 60, this time describing the smooth texture of Johnny Baker’s hands. It pops up again on pg. 136, where the description is moved away from face and hands to Leonilla’s muscles, which are described as smooth by the possibly perverted thinking of Mr. Johnny Baker.
The word reappears on pg. 323, when Harry refuses to give up mail duty despite the fact that no one really has any use for his mail anymore, not to mention he clearly is not going to be receiving a paycheck for his services, so why he continues risking his life for the purpose is beyond me. Regardless, when Harry is delivering mail right after hammerfall, the boulders surrounding the location he is in are described as having a smooth texture. So far the word was being used to describe humans, but this is the first time it is describing an inanimate object. On pg. 344 we see the word used in reference to the character of Harry again, this time he is at the chicken ranch. Here, the word smooth is not being used for a description of a physical attribute or texture of a human or inanimate object, but rather it is being used to describe a sound. The sound being that of a truck that Harry finds at the ranch and starts: “It sounded smooth, in good tune” (344).
On pg. 379, smooth is used to describe imagery of the road that Tim is driving on with Eileen, “the road became a smooth straight line” (379). On page 452, Rick Delanty is seen searching for items in a half drowned super market when his foot touches the smooth surface of a glass bottle. Here, the word is describing something that is touched, as opposed to described, observed, or heard. The word shows up again on pg. 544, and then again on pg. 550. On both pages, the word is describing the smooth texture of the faces of the men Weigley and Hamner. This is significant because both men are at the power plant, which, in contrast to the other outside communities, actually has electricity. Both men can take showers, use electric razors to shave, etc. Here, the smooth texture of their clean shaven faces signifies good hygiene and cleanliness that can be obtained through the use of electricity, something that only the power plant seems to have at the moment, and something worth conserving if humans are to live the way they did before.
On pg. 567, smooth is the word used to describe the ground on both sides of the road when Harvey is driving. Finally, on pg. 592, the road ahead is described as “smooth and untraveled” as Harvey is driving his car. The use of the word smooth here could be symbolic in saying that there might not be alot more trouble for the communities ahead, that everything is going to run smoothly from now on. If it had been a bumpy road, however, it might have symbolized the exact opposite about their communities’ future.