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Sorry Thalassocrat I think my brain has been to distracted and addled this week to write a good post. I'll get back when I can. FWIW- In the vein of of a Thais connection to Thea…
01 Jul 2008, 17:11
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Roy, I not sure I understand the point of your previous post. Are you saying you see no connection between Severian's loggia scene and the Contessa's story in the play? If so tha…
01 Jul 2008, 12:42
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Yes, having a man in his 80's father someone in their 20's-30's is possible but a stretch. I was only hinting that my ideas might help: if Fechin is Dorcas' husband instead of f…
01 Jul 2008, 12:01
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Dave Tallman, to continue the debate: Yes, my scenario involves two time travels, one forward, one back, while yours involves one. I don't see mine being so very unparsimonious. …
30 Jun 2008, 12:59
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Regarding Dave Tallman's Catherine scenario, I just have a gut feeling that if there is an exultant cell donor for the Catherine maids, Wolfe wouldn't be so unfair as to not toss …
30 Jun 2008, 03:23
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Dave Tallman I agree with Marc Aramini. I think you are really ON to something here! I don't think anyone else in the 11 or 12 year history of this list has noted the beheading …
27 Jun 2008, 21:08
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Roy says: Actually I think it referred to both her hair and dress (no books here) and I don't know what sort of dress is metal-trimmed. Are you hinting at something? Maybe Valeri…
27 Jun 2008, 13:38
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Roy C. Lackey says: Sorry I didn't remember that Roy; it must have been a couple years ago. Good that you rememer clearly. But didn't you prompt my response with your earlier ch…
27 Jun 2008, 03:09
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Jeff Wilson writes: Now Zama had already been reanimated, in zombie form, by Ceryx when Severian worked his magic. So zombies move around without cellular function? Zama is pale a…
26 Jun 2008, 12:54
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Dave Tallman, earlier I missed your post in this thread which discussed Catherine and Valeria, but I'll comment now: I think Borski came up with some brilliant observations and a…
25 Jun 2008, 14:34
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Jeff Wilson writes: I'll disagree on the basis of the many micro-connections that would need to be carefully mended. As an analogy, it would be impressive to watch a previousl…
25 Jun 2008, 13:54
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Brunians says: I have to agree. I thought I was going out on a limb to suggest the remote possibility that Severian had sex with Catherine and this is the reason for his silence …
25 Jun 2008, 03:05
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Regarding Sev's mother, Thalassocrat writes: I think I have an inkling of the meaning but I am confounded by the lack of real evidence. I see a missing piece in a jigsaw puzzle a…
22 Jun 2008, 23:13
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Jeff Wilson says: Yes, me calling the channels "ocean" could be a notable error since we are discussing size. Battle of Hampton Roads! I hadn't heard the Monitor and Merrimac b…
20 Jun 2008, 14:02
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Jeff Wilson says: Some versions say Lilith and Adam's mating produced the monstrous offspring. Others say they resulted from Lilith mating with demons after Adam rejected her. …
20 Jun 2008, 13:44
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Though it is a mangled legend, I agree, keeping in mind that it is a naviscaput= ship head monster, the big ship being only the tip of the "iceberg". I always assumed the rest of…
19 Jun 2008, 13:32
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Dave Tallman, keep the ideas coming. I think some of your veins of thought are very fruitful! I've always assumed the old Autarch's explanation that kaibits were clones of exul…
18 Jun 2008, 19:59
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Thalassocrat writes: I must agree that in this situation the play's the thing! But if I remember Eschatology and Genesis correctly, the temptation is for Meschia, to which he suc…
17 Jun 2008, 03:01
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Just a few responsive blurbs: Dave Tallman, to clarify, I don't see Urth as being the same as Earth nor Jesus appearing in Severian's universe, Briah. That universal history is …
16 Jun 2008, 19:25
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I like Thalassocrat's post connecting Dorcas and Fechin. Some new wrinkles I hadn't considered. But if Fechin is Dorcas' father then Casdoe's (or Becan's?) father, as an age peer…
16 Jun 2008, 14:23
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Dave Lebling says: I'm pretty convinced that there has never been a Jesus on Urth (and that is a major underlying theme of the series). Hence the Norse name "Urth" and the many a…
16 Jun 2008, 12:55
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At the beginning of UotNS, while on the Ship deck, Severian specifically notes his weight has been reduced by 7/8. So Roy's assertion that the Ship is of planetary size is a bit ex…
12 Jun 2008, 03:45
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I feel the need to tout my interpretation of the eclipse again. By having Severian himself (subconsciously) cause the eclipse, the multiple problems of a ship-caused eclipse are …
11 Jun 2008, 12:35
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I've seen the arguments about the eclipse before. The timing of a black hole or hiero-ship caused eclipse seems too coincidental. Quite a double duty for that event....trans-unive…
10 Jun 2008, 15:05
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Thalassocrat, I am confused. Could you explain who the hiero-dudes are. Not hierodules I guess. Nor Hierogrammates. They are the humans who spread across the galaxy and who in…
10 Jun 2008, 14:44
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Brunian asks: I don't know!!! I think so. And I'm not alone in that. But maybe that's just because I/ we were looking for evidence. From my first readings of this series I felt …
07 Jun 2008, 14:12
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Thalassocrat I don't have strong opinions on the black hole in the sun. I've just seen the point argued in the past. Actually I find the whole hiero-human cognate race concept a b…
07 Jun 2008, 05:31
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Chris, I think that scene can be attributed to Gene Wolfe playing with the reader's hopes and expectations a bit. When Severian and Typhon first met (in the future, in book 3 of t…
07 Jun 2008, 04:15
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In my post I discuss something of an ethical stance which seems to be presented in a book by Gene Wolfe. I certainly didn't mean to presume to say this reflects Gene Wolfe's person…
06 Jun 2008, 04:11
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I think Dave Lebling is closest to being on track. There are Wolfe interviews and texual clues that make it clear that Urth is a twin to Earth, existing in the alternate universe …
01 May 2008, 20:03
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That's how I see it too. Humans came to the planets in several waves. The first ship crashed and the few survivors became the template for some shadow children to become human-like…
15 Apr 2008, 11:45
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Just tossing out a speculative resolution for this problem. On first reading, Wolfe's use of the term "wet nurse" adds to the sense of this being an archaic society from our pas…
01 Nov 2006, 11:51
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Scott K writes: (snips) Some good points are raised. I'll mention that the scene with The Cumaean, at the end of Claw, spells out in rather specific detail what was done to Jole…
31 Oct 2006, 13:47
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I agree with Dan Rabin's analysis. The hint about Dorcas and Jolenta's relationship is in Jolenta bragging that she turns all women into tribadists. We're led to think this app…
31 Oct 2006, 12:53
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I don't know if Roy subscribes to the theory that Urth is not Earth (though I think the spelling, the text clues and Wolfe interviews make it clear they are different). I think …
26 Oct 2006, 15:41
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Regarding the multiple possible photo sources for the moon picture- given the baseline technology base of The Commonwealth I have operated under the assumption this was a painti…
23 Oct 2006, 15:00
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Dave Lebling writes regarding the female soldier: Oooh how could I not think of Foila. Yes, she is likable enough to dispel accusations Wolfe can't develop an admirable female c…
20 Oct 2006, 19:03
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Scott K asks: I've heard venom and derision heaped on Borsky by some members of the old guard from here. I applaud him for daring to raise a lot of questions about BotNS and pu…
20 Oct 2006, 18:52
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I'll follow up on Jeff's, Adam's and Daniel's biological posts to note with evil irony that the European and Islamic codes of chivalry which extend such great protection to femal…
20 Oct 2006, 15:03
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Jack Redelfs takes me to task responding to my post: any point in the lifespan, males are in greater danger and are injured and killed more often than females. With- Men remain …
20 Oct 2006, 02:33
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Dan'l writes: Sorry Dan'l I had thought you used the term misogynist to decribe Wolfe's scenarios (not Wolfe) but it was the other Dan, Daniel D Jones in a discourse with Jeff …
19 Oct 2006, 17:35
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I'll chime in by suggesting that there is a continuum here, as for most human characteristics. I suggest the poles of the continuum are not misogyny and reality but rather misog…
18 Oct 2006, 12:35
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Roy writes I'm not the first to consider that Severian's mother did not die shortly after his birth as most torturers' mothers did. My conjecture that armigers might use kaibits…
17 Oct 2006, 13:05
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I concur with others who always felt Severian asks about a dark haired woman because his own hair is dark and Ouen is fair. Roy writes: The maid playing St. Katharine doesn't ch…
16 Oct 2006, 03:25
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So, if I understand correctly, Roy is suggesting that Severian's two greatest loves, Dorcas and Thecla, are his grandmother and his great, great etc....grandaughter? Surely the…
04 Oct 2006, 15:41
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Josh Young writes: The paradox is in causality, as Roy outlined. We have Severian's spoken words inspiring Canog's Book of the New Sun which inspires Talos' outrageous and dis…
02 Oct 2006, 11:27
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JWillard writes: I can agree with that in conjunction with the observation that Severian periodically mentions Roche during his travels while I don't think Drotte gets much ment…
19 Sep 2006, 11:56
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Addressing some notes from JWillard's post (and apologies for repeating things from my previous posts) I think it is very important, paired with Severian's later, augmented reco…
11 Sep 2006, 19:05
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I can't say I strongly disagree with what Dan'l and Tony recently posted but for the sake of argument I'll address a couple things (at the risk of straying too far from Wolfe, so…
10 Sep 2006, 04:44
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Tony writes: I spy a difference in perspective and I think I've bumped into this difference before (correct me if I'm wrong Tony). Perhaps it boils down to some combination of…
08 Sep 2006, 02:30
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