Sev's Silence about Catherine

b sharp · 25 Jun 2008, 03:05 · from 2008-June.txt.gz

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From: bsharporflat at hotmail.com (b sharp)
Date: Tue, 24 Jun 2008 23:05:31 -0400
Subject: (urth) Sev's Silence about Catherine
Message-ID: <BAY103-W515978F1A600665073F319D7A00 at phx.gbl>

Brunians says: 

>I don't find any of this speculation about the woman in the torturer's elevation ceremony 
>at all convincing.

I have to agree. I thought I was going out on a limb to suggest the remote possibility that
Severian had sex with Catherine and this is the reason for his silence regarding this and
other family ties.

But the text doesn't seem very ambiguous in this Elevation scene. Severian says the sword
is a wooden batten. He calls it a "false blade" as he describes the downstroke. It meets 
resistance because it hits the "ingenious mechanism" that elevates a wax head.  The wax 
head and real head coveredin fuligin cloth trick is described in detail. And Catherine would 
have to have tremendous healing powers to be able to take her severed head, place it back 
on her neck and have it instantly as good as new.  Only Severian, as Conciliator, is able to do
 anything close to that and he is limited to restoring withered arms and removing giant tumors. 
Well, I guess he cures the sick girl in the jacal also but nothing as dramatic as instantly healing 
and restoring a severed head.

-bsharp
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