The Politics Of Gene Wolfe

David Stockhoff · 02 Jul 2010, 18:44 · from 2010-July.txt.gz

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From: dstockhoff at verizon.net (David Stockhoff)
Date: Fri, 02 Jul 2010 14:44:52 -0400
Subject: (urth) The Politics Of Gene Wolfe
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	<AANLkTim8ZKVCepguaT4uYM3NQ2aufFrFg3CnVtI4jv4G at mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <4C2E33A4.6020909 at verizon.net>

Absolutely. Nor any blanket condemnation of city governments who try to 
keep violent crime down by banning deadly weapons too small to use to 
any military effect even in the 18th century.

But definitely a depiction of the world as a rough, violent, chaotic 
place few would want to live in without an armed guard, where the strong 
routinely oppress the weak, without arms necessarily even appearing as a 
primary means of achieving said oppression, aside from the uhlans on the 
high road and the electric whips of the armigers.

Jack Smith wrote:
> Whatever views we readers may hold regarding the 2nd amendment, it 
> appears that our author likes to arm his characters.
>
> 1.  Severian openly carries his sword on Urth.  Dr Talos carries a 
> concealed one.
> 2.  Silk, the best man on the Whorl, uses many weapons.  
> 3.  In the ancient world, Latro and his companions are armed.
> 4.  Guns frequently appear in Wolfe's contemporary American settings, 
> like /Castleview /and F/ree Live Free./
> /
> /
> /Of course, weapons may just be used for dramatic effect.   However, 
> our author seems to believe that weapons can be used for good as well 
> as evil.   No blanket condemnation of lethal force and lethal 
> instruments./
> /
> /
> /
> /
> /
> /
> /
> /
> /\\
> /
> On Fri, Jul 2, 2010 at 1:38 PM, Lee Berman <severiansola at hotmail.com 
> <mailto:severiansola at hotmail.com>> wrote:
>
>
>
>     >>> The intent of the second amendment is to allow the citizenry
>     to more
>     >>> readily defend themselves against the government, when this
>     becomes
>     >>> necessary, as it inevitably does.
>
>     There is a classic A.E. Van Vogt story called The Weapon Shop
>     which addresses
>     this issue using that interpretation.
>     http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Weapon_Shop
>     Great pulp SF story. I loved it.
>
>     And didn't Gene Wolfe mention Van Vogt in Fifth Head of Cerberus?
>     I bet he has
>     read that story.
>
>     Anyway, the wording of the Second Amendment is-
>
>     >"A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a
>     free State,
>     >the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be
>     infringed."
>
>     To me this wording suggests an interpretation counter to the standard
>     Libertarian view which seems to focus on the word "free" and
>     ignores the other
>     26 words. Bearing arms would seem to be meant for the defense of
>     the state not
>     to attack the state or defend against it. A "well regulated
>     militia" sounds like
>     a state organized function to me not some sort of individual
>     defense against
>     the state or lawless brigands or wild animals.
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>
>
> -- 
> Best wishes,
> Jack
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