Flora and Fauna

Marc's continued insistence on the importance of flora and fauna has me thinking. I don't doubt he is right. It's funny how we have the Vironese naming convention for males and females on a whorl which does not have much in the way of natural animals and plants. In the past I've been reasonably content for it as a nod to Wolfe and his wife Rosemary. But perhaps there are more levels to it than that. For now I'll leave alone the Neighbor- inhumi, trees-vines, Pan-Dionysus, animal-plant connections though perhaps they hover in the background. I wonder if a focus on flora and fauna is meant to force us to take a closer look at Fauna in BotNS (and, by association, Faunus-Inire). The Roman mythology behind this has been discussed previously but not the goddess Flora, whose presence might be implied by Fauna. Flora was a former prostitute who ended up as a lover of Hercules and wife of wind god Zephyrus/Favionus. She is associated with Acca Laurentia who was wet nurse/foster mother to Romulus and Remus. She is associated with Harpocrates, God of Silence and together they made the rose a symbol of secrecy in regard to lovers. Perhaps this is the significance behind the mention of "Laurentia of the house of the Harp" in BotNS. Acca Laurentia was also known as "Lupa" or "she-wolf, perhaps begatting the wolf- suckling portion of the Romulus and Remus tale. Wolves, roses, wind, Romulus and Remus, Hercules and even sexual secrecy might all have significance and intended connection of Flora to the story of BotNS. (fwiw: Marx brother Harpo's feigned silence and name may have been partially derived from Harpocrates as well as his musical instrument of choice)

According to his autobiography (Harpo Speaks), his silence came from realizing that he couldn't keep up verbally with Groucho and Chico. Since Zeppo was already the straight man, that left him out, so he developed a character that didn't need to keep up with their patter.

And for valid reproduction to continue, its always got to be an animal or animal product with a plant or plant product under that naming system, with the plant being the fecund operator. I think this plant/animal hybridism/mating is written into the text so deeply it is difficult to get around. By Empires of Foliage and Flower you had the sages, sentient vegetation with power over time, or at least, that is the power Father Thyme displayed, a city which translated means Green, etc. Just been trying to see if there was any sign of this sentient vegetation in New Sun, since nobody likes the quote where Sev in the very first chapter or two thinks about how the new sun will make leaves spring to life and make a brush run up a tree. Once I got in a debate over whether that was a hairbrush or like, you know, vegetative brush. Don't care to repeat that one. Better to look for other examples.

Careful, you could come down with tennis elbow that way. Now it can be told: http://preview.tinyurl.com/4hq6ln7