Osterlings

don doggett · 10 Dec 2005, 04:04 · from 2005-December.txt.gz

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From: kingwukong at yahoo.com (don doggett)
Date: Fri, 9 Dec 2005 20:04:58 -0800 (PST)
Subject: (urth) Osterlings
In-Reply-To: <1f7617370512080930v76f50040kbdcb9ccaf2151001 at mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <20051210040458.17255.qmail at web32415.mail.mud.yahoo.com>

--- Dan'l Danehy-Oakes <danldo at gmail.com> wrote:

> Uh, no. The Osterlings are described in the list of
> names in TK as
> "People who eat other people to become more human."
> This is
> indeed inhumu-like. This is part of a larger pattern
> in Wolfe of
> devouring someone to become him/her, which I presume
> to be
> a series of variations upon and especially
> perversions of the
> Eucharist.
> 
> --Dan'l

I agree. The Osterlings are analogs of the inhumi and,
farther back, of the Ascians in the NS books who seek
to devour the commonwealth. This is what fascinates me
about WK. I can see the Hierodules and the Neighbors
in the Overcyns. Severian in Able. Ymar in Arthur.
Erebus and Abaia in the Giants. I don't know if it's a
skeleton key, but GW certainly has his obsessions.

Don

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