Whorl Wikied Wolfe

JWillard · 24 Jun 2006, 21:56 · from 2006-June.txt.gz

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From: aldenweer at charter.net (JWillard)
Date: Sat, 24 Jun 2006 16:56:35 -0500
Subject: (urth) Whorl Wikied Wolfe
In-Reply-To: <20060624203738.55811.qmail at web27814.mail.ukl.yahoo.com>
References: <20060624203738.55811.qmail at web27814.mail.ukl.yahoo.com>
Message-ID: <449DB513.7090303 at charter.net>

Jonathan & Rachel Laidlow wrote:

>I wonder whether a wiki is really what is needed.
>Surely a wiki purports to a level of certainty on a
>par with an encyclopedic or other authoritative
>discourses such as dictionaries. How can we be certain
>that the interpretation in the wiki is correct? It is
>only an interpretation, after all. What is to stop the
>next person who edits it from changing your
>interpretation beyond all recognition? 
>
>Furthermore - what's wrong with searching the urth
>mailing lists? I found some fantastic discussion of
>"the Tree is my Hat" here when I found myself asking
>questions earlier this month.
>
>J
>
>
>		
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>
First and foremost, I think we want a gathering place of information.  
If someone wants to know Thecla's eye color, it would be there, with a 
reference to where the quote is that says that.  I believe we all have 
copies of the book and we're all pretty anal about checking information 
we are looking at.  (Not to mention, all reading is interpretive.  If I 
do an entry on Kurtz from Heart of Darkness in Wikipedia, can I truly 
present a perfect unbiased thumbnail?)  Knowing the people on this list, 
I think everyone would be pretty quick to slam someone who presented 
something without textual evidence.  Severian cuts of Morwenna's head:  
any arguments?  Maybe someone could argue that *Thecla* cuts off 
Morwenna's head - that would have to go under a theoretical entry.

But a wiki could separate information, speculation, etc.  If someone 
wanted to read about the multiple Severian theory, that could be a 
sub-entry in the theory section, with quotes from the book defending 
that theory's advancement.

And I don't think anyone plans for this to replace the mailing list.  If 
anything, we'd like them to supplement each other.

I know I feel like a dog chasing its tail, bouncing from one place to 
the next - and the Wolfe oevre is pretty extensive now.  It would be 
nice to have a tool to start gathering so many straggling 
ideas/details.  But, obviously such a tool would not be compulsory, and 
one is always free to explore the works independently.  I don't really 
understand some of the emails against the project that seem to sound 
threatened by it.  No one here has a whip!

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