The Two Coins...

Gerry Quinn · 14 Aug 2010, 13:53 · from 2010-August.txt.gz

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From: gerryq at indigo.ie (Gerry Quinn)
Date: Sat, 14 Aug 2010 14:53:39 +0100
Subject: (urth) The Two Coins...
References: <95B8CC4B-7E48-47AB-8464-E72EE1E93F2D at liftingfaces.com><006801cb3af8$13886f40$34cd4a0c@rclackey><66A987F9-F025-46ED-807E-9FA6721C929D at liftingfaces.com><009601cb3b05$7b35f4c0$34cd4a0c@rclackey><259C629E-C440-44E9-A6F1-F33E826BA414 at liftingfaces.com><648BBDEB5683489C939F59DE30CE2198@jill>
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Message-ID: <5E4C32B6FAE94239A9AC3F1786083FF0@jill>

From: "Ryan Dunn" <ryan at liftingfaces.com>
> On Aug 14, 2010, at 7:24 AM, Gerry Quinn wrote:
>
>> No, there was positive ID from Ouen's locket, and lots of supporting 
>> evidence.  Also the narrator plays detective and finds this out with no 
>> particular reason for us to doubt it, which IMO is a literary signal that 
>> this is canon.
>>
>> The hypothesis that Dorcas is Severian's grandmother has distinctive 
>> characteristics that many such hypotheses lack...

> No, the positive ID was that Dorcas was Ouen's mother, if I recall. The ID 
> that Severian was their grandson was based on Ouen's profile, based on a 
> comment by the Innkeep off-handedly (right?).
>
> I happen to agree with you, I'm just saying, if we can draw such a 
> conclusion based on such an ID, then we can do it elsewhere. Severian, at 
> many points in the story, seems to be nudging to reader without speaking, 
> as if to say "look at this".
>
> He does it with those stinking coins, that's why I begged the question, 
> "what's going on here? anything?"

Fair enough about the locket, but there was certainly some explicit 
detective work on Severian's part afterwards.  I don't think anything 
similar occurs in most cases, so I think the Dorcas thing has a particular 
authenticity that most such ideas lack.

- Gerry Quinn

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