Vodalus & the Old Autarch

Jeff Wilson · 10 Aug 2010, 15:33 · from 2010-August.txt.gz

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From: jwilson at io.com (Jeff Wilson)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 2010 10:33:52 -0500
Subject: (urth) Vodalus & the Old Autarch
In-Reply-To: <AANLkTimWoMWEWfJAVxOaeHo1xmSorYc3_B+JNPzuM88w at mail.gmail.com>
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	<AANLkTimWoMWEWfJAVxOaeHo1xmSorYc3_B+JNPzuM88w at mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <4C617160.8010901 at io.com>

On 8/10/2010 8:00 AM, Mr Thalassocrat wrote:
>
>
> On Tue, Aug 10, 2010 at 7:05 PM, Jeff Wilson <jwilson at io.com
> <mailto:jwilson at io.com>> wrote:
>
>     On 8/10/2010 3:21 AM, 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?
>
>
>     In both real and fictional espionage, it's not unusual for turncoats
>     to remain unmet by the other side's leader, especially if he is not
>     his own spymaster.
>
> I guess Vodalus may never before have met the old Autarch, but he
> certainly doesn't seem to have any trouble accepting him as his agent
> when they do meet, after Agia et al pluck Sev and the old Autarch from
> the Ascians. I suppose Vodalus might have regarded a password or
> something, as sufficient to establish bona fides.

Being at the exact location given, and in the flyer helps.  Severian's 
too young to have been a long-term informant, so the other guy must be 
him. And perhaps the Autarch has a very large court, with Vodalus being 
presented once in decades past, before the trial and the snippage, so 
that he genuinely doesn't recognize the changed man. (I personally think 
the change in appearance for emasculation in adulthood is exaggerated.)

> But note how eager Vodalus is to get a description of the Autarch from
> Sev (which Sev makes up, based on the appearance of Talos in the Autarch
> role in his play). Don't you have to assume that he must have been
> similarly anxious to get descriptions from others who had met the old
> Autarch in the past? Eg, from Thecla, if not from Thea herself (who has
> certainly spent time at court during the old Autarch's reign).
> Given that, Vodalus seems to have been simply dense, not to have at
> least suspected his agent of being the Autarch, after Agia delivers Sev
> and the agent to him. This happens in response to the message sent by
> the old Autarch after he and Sev crash, saying that the Autarch is with
> him (to induce Vodalus to come and rescue them from the Ascians). The
> message is enough to make Vodalus suspect Sev of being the Autarch, but
> he appears to have no such thoughts about his agent.

That's what I meant earlier about Vodalus being unable to accept certain 
inconvenient facts.

> Not a big deal, probably, and you can easily make up explanations, but
> still odd, IMO.

It's less odd if you consider it part of the author's concealment of the 
Autach's name. If Vodalus was acquainted his agent before, he would have 
been referring to him by name, and Wolfe would feel bound to give even a 
pseudonym some special meaning.

-- 
Jeff Wilson - jwilson at io.com
IEEE Student Chapter Blog at
< http://ieeetamut.org >

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