Baldanders

b sharp · 17 May 2006, 21:21 · from 2006-May.txt.gz

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From: bsharporflat at hotmail.com (b sharp)
Date: Wed, 17 May 2006 17:21:24 -0400
Subject: (urth) Baldanders
Message-ID: <BAY103-F1981A83D261B5689ABE8ED7A10 at phx.gbl>

Well, some great discussion on this guy going on.

Kudos to mournings glory for noting the surely intentioned Frankenstein 
allusion (in a golden Severa etc. post)

>Hence Baldanders (note the German name) is both Dr. Frankenstein *and* his 
>monster -- a fact alluded to by Dr. Talos in his "The castle? The monster? 
>The man of learning?" speech, found in Chapter XXXV of -Sword_.

My first clue to that allusion was the "strange scars around his neck and 
ears"  of Baldanders that Severian notes on their first meeting.  Yes, 
Baldanders is both monster and creator here.  But with respect to Talos, I 
think Wolfe had a lot of fun in making this a reverse story with a monster 
who creates his doctor.

There does seem to be some misunderstanding of Baldanders' size, however.  I 
forget which character first reveals that Baldanders' growing is for the 
purpose of keeping him long-lived not because he wants to be big. He wants 
to grow as little as possible. Growth is the only way for humans to retain 
youth (see exultants?)

As Sev himself notes on viewing the giant baby Catamite:

>"it must have been that just as he (Baldanders) held his own growth in 
>check, permitting only as >much as needed to save his mountainous body from 
>the ravages of the years, so he had >accelerated the growth of this poor 
>boy in so far as was possible to his anthroposophic >knowledge."

on that subject, how could the product of sex between Baldanders or Severian 
with dark hair and Jurturna with white hair and green eyes produce a blonde 
haired blue eyed baby?  I still think it must be a Dorcas product.

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