{ "export": { "source": "https://urth.darkrealm.vip/thread/urth/5486", "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": 5486, "subject": "Tree Is My Hat & AEG", "messages": 4, "voices": 2, "first": "2009-09-11T15:34:03+00:00", "last": "2009-09-15T12:05:41+00:00" }, "messages": [ { "message_id": "<5F65D55FBEAA46FFBBABA7F13C39D87C@eMachinePC>", "from": { "name": "James Wynn", "address": "crushtv at gmail.com" }, "date": "2009-09-11T15:34:03+00:00", "subject": "(urth) Tree Is My Hat & AEG", "in_reply_to": null, "reply_link": null, "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "Questions arising as I re-read AEG:\n\n[page 13]\n\"On Earth, this guest was known as Gideon Chase\"\n\nWhat are his other names? And where is he known by them? He claims to the \nPresident to have not returned to Woldercon since he was a small child. He \ncould be lying or he could be known by other names by the aliens of Takanga.\n\n[page 14]\nPresident says: \"[Reis] was smart enough to see the big money went to them \nthat had friends in high places. You want to bellyache about it? I have, \nmore'n once. Don't do any good.\"\n\nStrange statement coming from the President. Apparently, 'friends in high \nplaces' did not refer to politicians. The aliens of Takanga? I presume so. \nAren't the true \"evil guests\"?\n\nSo what is the relationship between the US government and Hanga's people? \nThe protagonist in 'The Tree Is My Hat' is a fellow who had recently had a \nnervous breakdown. He was chosen by the government to be assigned there and \nwas told that he would be absolutely alone. He seems to have had few duties \nthere. But, when he at last brought family, Hanga immediately tried to kill \nthem all.\n\nWas Bill Reis's goal to lead a world-wide coup against all the Earth \ngovernments in order to drive out the real powers of Earth: the Takanga \naliens?\n\n[page 15]\n\"I said if there was only one evil man in the whole world, it'd have to be \nBill Reis. There's a hell of a lot of evil men in the world.\"\n\"Three in particular\"\n\"We haven't gotten to that yet, John, an' I don't think we will.\"\n\nThis has been pointed out before, but I'll note that the \"three evil men\" \nrelate directly to the issue of Bill Reis. They were an *issue* in the Bill \nReis affair but the President chose not to address it.\n\nJ. " } ] }, { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "James Wynn", "address": "crushtv at gmail.com" }, "date": "2009-09-14T17:04:32+00:00", "subject": "(urth) Tree Is My Hat & AEG", "in_reply_to": "<5F65D55FBEAA46FFBBABA7F13C39D87C@eMachinePC>", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "More questions:\n\nWho is the \"evil guest\"?\n\nGideon Chase is referred to as \"the guest\" on the first page. He is even characterized in ways that imply he is evil. At least the President thinks so.\n\n[page 230] Cassie calls herself a guest on the island. She asks Hanga whether he is a guest at the island and he says \"no\".\n\n[page 217] When Scott Zeitz's death by werewolf was reported in the newspaper, he is referred to as a \"guest\" at an unnamed hotel.\n\nAny other references?\n\nWolfe has repeatedly referred to Bill Reis (and only Bill Reis to my knowledge) as a villain.\n\nI'll bet the title \"An Evil Guest\" is a reference to ghost story writer J. Sheridan Le Fanu's \"The Evil Guest\". But I've never read the story. I've only read his \"The Green Monkey\". Does anyone else have any knowledge of this story or more extensive knowledge of Fanu?\n\nJ." } ] }, { "message_id": "<20090914213004.0E67B4800C@diego.dreamhost.com>", "from": { "name": "Mo Holkar / UKG", "address": "lists at ukg.co.uk" }, "date": "2009-09-14T21:30:04+00:00", "subject": "(urth) Tree Is My Hat & AEG", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "At 18:04 14/09/2009, James wrote:\nWho is the \"evil guest\"?\n\nGideon Chase is referred to as \"the guest\" on the first page. He is \neven characterized in ways that imply he is evil. At least the \nPresident thinks so.\n\n[page 230] Cassie calls herself a guest on the island. She asks \nHanga whether he is a guest at the island and he says \"no\".\n\n[page 217] When Scott Zeitz's death by werewolf was reported in the \nnewspaper, he is referred to as a \"guest\" at an unnamed hotel.\n\nAny other references?\n\nWolfe has repeatedly referred to Bill Reis (and only Bill Reis to my \nknowledge) as a villain." }, { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "The book's epigraph suggests that the 'evil guest' is gold.\n\nbest,\n\nMo" } ] }, { "message_id": "<7BFE101195694256BCBE31EB4CD2D4C0@eMachinePC>", "from": { "name": "James Wynn", "address": "crushtv at gmail.com" }, "date": "2009-09-15T12:05:41+00:00", "subject": "(urth) Tree Is My Hat & AEG", "in_reply_to": "<20090914213004.0E67B4800C@diego.dreamhost.com>", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "The book's epigraph suggests that the 'evil guest' is gold." }, { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "Yeah, but almost all Wolfe's novels have epigraphs. It's not typical for him \nto hang the entire title on one.\n\nThat still doesn't necessarily mean that the title means anything strongly \nrelated to the character and plot of the book. He has Lovecraftian aliens in \na story centered around a Lovecraft town. Perhaps he said \"I'll just stick \non a title reminiscent of a story by another gothic horror writer. Who cares \nthat this isn't gothic horror?\" On the other hand, \"The Tree Is My Hat\" \nmight qualify as gothic horror.\n\nJ. " } ] } ] }