Questions about BNS

David Duffy · 15 Nov 2007, 04:13 · from 2007-November.txt.gz

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From: David.Duffy at qimr.edu.au (David Duffy)
Date: Thu, 15 Nov 2007 14:13:09 +1000 (EST)
Subject: (urth) Questions about BNS
In-Reply-To: <20071115022848.GA26055@localhost>
References: <4E82554550FE5149AD4B30A4FEA22492A62C8E at xchange.briercrest.ca>
	<20071115022848.GA26055@localhost>
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.64.0711151359460.11078 at orpheus.qimr.edu.au>

On Wed, 14 Nov 2007, Gwern Branwen wrote:

> On 2007.11.14 13:26:21 -0600, Eric Ortlund <eortlund at briercrest.ca> scribbled 0 lines:
>>
>>  2) When Severian and Agia are in the Jungle Garden, the apparently travel
>>  in time and space (the story about Father Inire's mirrors apparently
>>  prepares the reader for this) to a missionary couple in the jungle.  Can
>>  someone please explain to me what on earth the native is talking about on
>>  pg. 131?  The woman in the couple reads from Deuteronomy 34 - about Moses
>>  looking into the promised land but not being able to enter it - and then
>>  the native tells a story about a fish who apparently is a woman.  I'm
>>  totally at a loss here; what is the connection?  What is the naked man
>>  talking about?  How does this contribute to the story?
>
> I've thought that they didn't really travel. The naked native is named 
> Isangoma, which seems to be an African title for some sort of shaman or 
> diviner, and he refers to Agia and Severian constantly as spirits.
>
> Actually, turns out I'm not the first to think this...
>
> Yeah, so my theory is that they are there as specula themselves, which
> is how they can 'travel' such distances of time and space, and why the
> Preceptress Marie and Robert cannot see them (well). But Isangoma and
>
...
>  Understanding what's going on would be a lot easier if we knew who
> Marie and Robert are. Why is she a Preceptress? Who is Robert and why
> And if it's the deep past from Severian and
> Agia's point of view, why is the mail plane a 'thopter and not a
> fixed-wing?
> --
> gwern

As Agila says, I think they are reenactors.  They are not in our Africa:
Isangoma uses an Australian aboriginal word for fishing spear, as well
as Zulu terms, and mentions several our-now-extinct birds and animals.
Rereading the mail plane description, it is a fixed wing propeller
driven aircraft.  I don't know who Robert and Marie are, but it seems
like we *should* know them.  I think they are Preceptor and -tress
just because they are both missionaries.

Cheers, David Duffy

PS About 1/3 through _Pirate Freedom_!

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