Subject: (whorl) Hyacinth/Silk relationship questions

From: Endymion9 <endymion9 at mindspring.com>
Date: Mon, 05 Feb 2001 14:30:49 +0000

I'm currently at page 172 or RTTW.  I saw a reference to Hyacinth and Kypris
that stirred these thoughts to the surface but no spoilers for RTTW in this
posting.  There SPOILERS for OBW and IGJ.

I've had this question on the tip of my tongue or the back of my brain off
and on since I finished the last Long Sun book a few years back.

Silk and Hyacinth.

I can understand Silk's attraction to Hy.  She is the beautiful (movie
star/pin up girl/prostitute) that many a young man develops a crush on.  She
is his "Picture of Lily."  But as the father says to the son in that Who
song, "Son now don't be silly."

You do not try to obtain someone like that for many reasons.  First
obtaining them is very difficult for the average man.  But Silk is way above
average so he does manage to obtain her for a time.  But once obtained even
for men "on their level" you can not keep them.  Look at movie star divorce
rates, etc.

On Hy's part.  I can see her being attracted to Silk for many reasons.
-His unnatural leadership charisma (genetically modified embryo)
-His ability to help her escape a situation she has grown tired of
-Kypris manipulation of her

What I can not see (without Kypris modifying Hy's will) is her staying with
Silk for many years.  I believe that when she ran away from Silk instead of
boarding the lander, that she was not just afraid of a hard life on
Green/Blue, but that the newness of Silk had expired and she was looking for
an excuse to ditch him.  I did not expect him to find her again.  Or at
least not to be able to convince her to stay with him.

I see Silk and Hy after the end of Exile as the relationship of Hosea and
Gomer of the Old Testament Bible.   Hosea constantly had to go to the
marketplace and drag Gomer back home to keep her from sleeping with other
men.

What are your theories on their relationship, since Silk and Hy seem to have
been together when Horn enters Silk's body in IGJ.
Did Kypris put a compulsion on Hy to stay with Silk?  Or have I misjudged
her?

Dennis/Endy
http://home.mindspring.com/~endymion9/index.htm

*This is WHORL, for discussion of Gene Wolfe's Book of the Long Sun.
*More Wolfe info & archive of this list at http://www.moonmilk.com/whorl/
*To leave the list, send "unsubscribe" to whorl-request at lists.best.com
*If it's Wolfe but not Long Sun, please use the URTH list: urth at lists.best.com