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Well put.…
06 Jun 2010, 17:39
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Yes, it is. And in a sense I agree with Brunians, because I too see the natural universe as screaming evidence of something---in my case the absolute unnecessariness of a anthrop…
06 Jun 2010, 17:27
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I'll take a stab and guess that the sane person sees the world as it is. Of course, the sane person actually sees the world as it best serves (or suits) him or her, but that's an…
06 Jun 2010, 17:20
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Pedro Brunians is not being evasive. Rather, as far as I can tell, he considers the existence of the natural world (as he defines it) and the entire universe to be an argument for…
06 Jun 2010, 14:05
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The Ottomans laid siege to Vienna three times over centuries, each time failing to capture the city. They did however take Constantinople and never gave it up. Note that Nessus is …
06 Jun 2010, 13:34
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You're being "friendly," right?…
06 Jun 2010, 13:26
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Well, as I suggested, it was a childish response. I think I regarded Middle-earth and Narnia etc. as my own personal escape from a mindless existence in which being dragged (some…
06 Jun 2010, 13:24
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That's really interesting. I've been pondering the imagined geography of Middle-earth my entire life, and it's always seemed to me that it is a re-imagination of the early mediev…
06 Jun 2010, 13:17
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The comparison is a personally interesting one. Perhaps the difference is largely one of timing. I too felt somewhat betrayed by Lewis; I encountered Narnia not long after Middle-E…
05 Jun 2010, 23:58
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aha!…
04 Jun 2010, 21:58
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To distinguish him from the Transformers character, yes.…
04 Jun 2010, 21:54
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Pretty much, yes, and for both sexes (not just semen, but orgasms). They are either controlled, or controlled and released, for individuals of a certain status, or for everyone. G…
04 Jun 2010, 20:03
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James, you should post this kind of stuff more often. Would it be safe to say that the apparent theme or motif of incest committed by Severian derives directly from the twinned s…
04 Jun 2010, 12:08
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Interesting. Can you elaborate on the distinction? (I'm not familiar with the Gnostic Christ's achievements.)…
04 Jun 2010, 00:43
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Bingo. Although who exactly is meant by "we"---since the Heiros are knee-deep in the manufacturing process? Do they express some universal desire for such a figure? And who dete…
03 Jun 2010, 20:17
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Yes. Is it too much to ask that the subject line be used as intended to promote efficiency of communication and discussion? It has nothing to do with the value of a particular mess…
21 May 2010, 12:19
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And it's a great pun. Wouldn't want to overinterpret, but if Latro is hunting (seeking) something in a world where gods present themselves to him daily, what is he seeking except…
19 May 2010, 18:04
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And now I grasp another layer of meaning in Latro's name. Am I always the last to know? ;)…
19 May 2010, 15:32
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Exactly. This is how Tolkien handled it too; his elemental gods were clearly angelic, and Elves remembered this if Men didn't. Just acknowledging the gods as real doesn't mean they…
19 May 2010, 15:26
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Of course, the great thing about a "spiral" evolutionary scheme is that is it both circular AND linear and can easily be asymptotic as well. "Circular" and "linear" answer the qu…
18 May 2010, 21:56
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This is perhaps the best description/explanation for what Wolfe "seems" to be doing in NS as I have seen. I've had a difficult time grasping the Increate's purpose in all the hug…
17 May 2010, 19:34
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Great! One thing that a correspondence scheme can do here is confirm the primary "meaning" or point of each chapter---to tell us what to look out for, what is important. Since the…
28 Apr 2010, 21:44
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A few guesses at connections to the Arcana, based entirely on Dave Tallman's chapter descriptions: 15: "Women" and 30: "Freedom!" 15 is to Shell. 30 is from Millie. Common feature…
28 Apr 2010, 02:00
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I haven't read the book yet myself, but here are the Arcana minus their various interpretations. Anyone want to take a shot? (no "silver bullet" pun intended, I swear.) Number…
26 Apr 2010, 23:55
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Sean You raise an interesting possibility: that "amnesia" is merely an advanced anthropological method, easily "learned," that relieves the observer of (at least the more consciou…
20 Apr 2010, 20:55
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Can we put this together with John's post and call this "the reification of narrative desire"? Any story is, naturally, true and false at the same time, in exactly that way. Story…
19 Apr 2010, 16:24
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And there's also the eery significance of carts in /*Le Morte d'Arthur*/ and elsewhere: The condemned were carried in carts to the gallows, but goddesses were also carried in carts…
19 Apr 2010, 15:27
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Oh Joshy Is a pedant someone who knows more about something than you do?…
17 Apr 2010, 00:52
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Well, it figures Wolfe would notice Green Goddess salad dressing. I suppose there isn't a salad dressing with "wolf" in its name, so one works with what's at hand. ;) And the tim…
22 Mar 2010, 22:51
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Just reading that again gave me chills.…
19 Mar 2010, 21:11
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- During the dinner date, Reis seems pretty confident that he knows the gunsel who attacked Chase, but doesn't know who he works for. The gender is wrong, the gunsel is not describ…
15 Mar 2010, 21:32
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Which explains a lot of literary fiction ... I've always followed this particular piece of advice. Some authors talk about letting their characters find their way (Le Guin for exa…
05 Mar 2010, 22:57
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Furthermore, if those calculations are based on American calorie intake, you could cut the Green Man's food energy needs by up to 50% just by changing that assumption to a level mo…
29 Jan 2010, 23:22
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Severian's friend the Green Man always seemed quite plausible to me. I hadn't realized just how plausible. Apparently a sea slug has incorporate algae genes into its genome and p…
18 Jan 2010, 00:48
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Well that not only answers the question but obliterates it! Well done. I didn't know Silk/Horn was Malrubius. Pray continue ...…
13 Jan 2010, 00:37
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First, apologies for posting the entire digest last time! I too had some trouble with that episode. But I'd respond with 2 comments: (1) Why would Silk/Horn be part of Severian's…
12 Jan 2010, 19:44
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Jerry--- Regarding: The appendix to _Claw_ says "I am certain the word [horses] is not strictly correct." Usually "not strictly correct" means "but close"--otherwise there's no …
12 Jan 2010, 16:43
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I think sometimes it's that simple. If anything, I think they are markers of otherworldliness. Gnomes, kobolds, dwarves (my email composer wants me to say "dwarfs"!), orcs, etc., …
11 Jan 2010, 22:19
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I have to disagree with that. There is no evidence whatever to suggest that destriers are in any way related to horses. I could see that if Wolfe presents them as swift horses, but…
11 Jan 2010, 14:29
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Touche. Hmm. The waters just get deeper.…
09 Dec 2009, 22:21
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The fact that no one shows up with a horrible facial scar, when one was so clearly indicated, does suggest that Something is Up. Either it's a red herring or ... We could specula…
08 Dec 2009, 23:48
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Thanks! Again, a precedent is available, so I'll buy that, even if Maragaret being a later Cassie isn't necessarily pivotal to the plot. In Free Live Free, four people resembling …
30 Nov 2009, 12:58
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Thanks! Who else was MB? Has anyone cross-checked initials with those of Lovecraft characters living in Kingsport? There's a conversation with Chase where it almost seems as thou…
25 Nov 2009, 23:12
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Of course you're right about the storm. That's much better. The only necessary time travel I see so far is that Cassie will use the hopper to Woldercan to return to an earlier tim…
25 Nov 2009, 23:08
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I will have to read that again. I think I didn't know the Storm King was Cthulhu then ...…
25 Nov 2009, 13:25
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Yes, that seems likely. See http://members.shaw.ca/csstrowbridge/Tulzscha/Information.htm…
24 Nov 2009, 19:36
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Tomayto/tomahto. OK, I just finished AEG. Could someone please summarize all the discussion so far? I need to catch up. ;) My first observation is that the novel is intended to…
24 Nov 2009, 13:42
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Good thoughts ... ------------------------------ Message: 2 Date: Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:56:08 -0800 (PST) From: Jerry Friedman <jerry_friedman at yahoo.com> To: The Urth Mailing Li…
22 Nov 2009, 23:58
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True. It's because Wolfe uses so many literary antecedents. AND bad puns. Both of which fit into the "duh" category---if you've read the author in question, or if you get the pun…
22 Nov 2009, 12:32
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Fascinating! The "apparatus" is clearly a Kafka reference, and one that has been in my memory since I first I read that story as a child. My take on the exchange between Thecla …
21 Nov 2009, 22:54
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