{ "export": { "source": "https://urth.darkrealm.vip/thread/urth/3426", "note": "Exported from an unofficial mirror of a public mailing list. Copyright in each message remains with the person who wrote it. Email addresses are obscured as `user at host`, the form the original archive published. This file was rebuilt from parsed fields rather than retained headers, so it is faithful in content but not byte-exact.", "addresses": "obscured as 'user at host'" }, "archive": "urth", "thread": { "id": 3426, "subject": "The Devil In A Forest and St. Olaf of Norway", "messages": 3, "voices": 3, "first": "2002-08-26T18:27:21+00:00", "last": "2002-08-27T01:32:44+00:00" }, "messages": [ { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "Josh Geller", "address": "dclxvi at dclxvi.best.vwh.net" }, "date": "2002-08-26T18:27:21+00:00", "subject": "(urth) The Devil In A Forest and St. Olaf of Norway", "in_reply_to": null, "reply_link": null, "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "The Devil In A Forest is perhaps a minor work, but an extremely\ninteresting one.\n\nThere's a hamlet in the woods, the woodcutters who are relics of a\nprevious stage of civilization, a bandit who is a woodcutter aristocrat, a\nwitch who knows the technology of the old civilization, megalithic ruins\nthat are 'not a town' etc.\n\nThis is one of the most valuable books for people trying to understand the\nold civilization of Europe.\n\nThere's a story about King Olaf the Holy of Norway. See, it was generally\nknown that he was a reincarnation of Olaf Geirstadtalf, who was buried in\nthe mound at Geirstadt. There had been a prophecy to the effect, he had\nOlaf G.'s sword that came out of the mound etc. The problem was that St.\nOlaf was occupied with the forcible Christianization of Norway, and it\nsort of looked bad that a Christian king should be an incarnate elf. So\nthey did a little stage play, where the King and some of his companions\n(who would also have been out of the mound, by the old way) went to Olaf\nG's mound on horseback and one of the companions asked the King if\nhe didn't remember when they had been there before, and St. Olaf answered\nthat it was not possible for a person to live more than once, because you\nlived once, died once and were resurrected once on the Last Day. Then he\nwas overcome with emotion and rode away, because (in my view) what he was\nsaying was so much at conflict with the reality.\n\nWolfe has a good grasp on all of this, as he shows in 'Devil' and also in\nthe Latro books.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n." } ] }, { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "Alice K. Turner", "address": "aturner6 at nyc.rr.com" }, "date": "2002-08-27T01:09:01+00:00", "subject": "Re: (urth) The Devil In A Forest and St. Olaf of Norway", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "subject", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "----- Original Message -----" }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "From: \"Josh Geller\" \nTo: \nSent: Monday, August 26, 2002 2:27 PM\nSubject: (urth) The Devil In A Forest and St. Olaf of Norway\n\n\nThe Devil In A Forest is perhaps a minor work, but an extremely\ninteresting one.\n\nThere's a hamlet in the woods, the woodcutters who are relics of a\nprevious stage of civilization, a bandit who is a woodcutter aristocrat, a\nwitch who knows the technology of the old civilization, megalithic ruins\nthat are 'not a town' etc.\n\nThis is one of the most valuable books for people trying to understand the\nold civilization of Europe." }, { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "A much better novel, set at about the same time, same station, is -Morality\nPlay- by Barry Unsworth. Recommended to this group.\n\n-alga" } ] }, { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "Michael Straight", "address": "straight at email.unc.edu" }, "date": "2002-08-27T01:32:44+00:00", "subject": "Re: (urth) The Devil In A Forest and St. Olaf of Norway", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "subject", "blocks": [ { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "On Mon, 26 Aug 2002, Alice K. Turner wrote:\nA much better novel, set at about the same time, same station, is -Morality\nPlay- by Barry Unsworth. Recommended to this group." }, { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "Seconded. Excellent book.\n\n-Rostrum" } ] } ] }