Vodalus & the Old Autarch

David Stockhoff · 10 Aug 2010, 11:47 · from 2010-August.txt.gz

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From: dstockhoff at verizon.net (David Stockhoff)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 2010 07:47:59 -0400
Subject: (urth) Vodalus & the Old Autarch
In-Reply-To: <AANLkTimH7=eNeHcti+wAWMy9Vt=-NVFNWsBoEm5NTO6- at mail.gmail.com>
References: <AANLkTimH7=eNeHcti+wAWMy9Vt=-NVFNWsBoEm5NTO6- at mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <4C613C6F.3070402 at verizon.net>

Others, such as Jolenta and the doctor, don't seem to make the 
connection either---but then, they wouldn't. Thecla certainly would have.

It is pretty odd that a ruler with his face on a coin would go about 
unannounced, letting people think he was merely a eunuch. Especially 
when he is rumored to be a eunuch.

Then again, Severian doesn't tell us that Thecla recognized Inire, either.

Mr Thalassocrat wrote:
> Recent posts about what Sev might or should have discovered about his 
> mother/sister/himself at the end of BOTNS remind me of something which 
> has bugged me for a long time: How come Vodalus didn't know that his 
> agent was actually the old Autarch?
>  
> Thecla-in-Sev recognises the old Autarch; his profile is on the 
> coinage; clearly his appearance isn't some kind of big secret.
>  
> But Vodalus doesn't make the conenction. How likely is that?
>  
> I lean towards thinking this is just a narrative glitch, because I 
> can't think up a text-based explanation for it.
>  
> Yes, it's easy enough to think up stories along the lines of Vodalus 
> never having been at court, never meeting with old-Autarch-as-agent in 
> the presence of anybody who has, not drawing the connection from the 
> coinage - and so on. But this seems very thin to me - does 
> anybody have anything better?
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