The Apu-Punchau Eclipse

b sharp · 10 Jun 2008, 15:05 · from 2008-June.txt.gz

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From: bsharporflat at hotmail.com (b sharp)
Date: Tue, 10 Jun 2008 11:05:14 -0400
Subject: (urth) The Apu-Punchau Eclipse
Message-ID: <BAY103-W235DE8A4A198A572382335D7B30 at phx.gbl>

I've seen the arguments about the eclipse before. The timing of a black hole or hiero-ship caused 
eclipse seems too coincidental. Quite a double duty for that event....trans-universal stellar events 
also stopping a primitive ritual sacrifice among savages on Urth? Yes, it is our hero, but we already 
know Severian can't be killed, as his resurrection from having his head bashed in by the savages 
later shows. Why would the hieros time the crucial event to rescue Severian when he doesn't need 
rescuing and would be killed again fairly soon?

I've always been partial to Dave Tallman's interpretation.  The scene SO echoes the Connecticut
Yankee scene and Wolfe makes numerous other literary allusions through this series. Moreover, as 
Conciliator, Severian's emotions during crisis situations cause natural, urthly upheavals...storms, 
earthquakes. An eclipse seems like a reasonable next upheaval. Though magnitudes more energy 
might be required than the other events I think the pleasure in alluding to Twain overcame any 
reservations Wolfe might have had.

-bsharp
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