interview questions

Gerry Quinn · 08 Jan 2011, 01:11 · from 2011-January.txt.gz

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From: gerryq at indigo.ie (Gerry Quinn)
Date: Sat, 8 Jan 2011 01:11:39 -0000
Subject: (urth) interview questions
References: <SNT123-W6333D18E1427183B4136F9CF0B0 at phx.gbl>
Message-ID: <58EE8E58A5F74463AABE158348CD19E2@jill>

From: "Lee Berman" <severiansola at hotmail.com>
>
>>Gerry Quinn- And, for the record, their hand gesture is described as 
>>showing that they were
>>carrying no weapons, not an invation to shake hands.
>
> Gerry, if you re-read the section I think you will realize it says the 
> spacemen extended their
> hands in a greeting *even they did not know* (but Wolfe tells us) 
> originated as a sign of being
> unarmed. That is the origin of a handshake. Wolfe explains that Sandwalker 
> doesn't understand
> even the origin of the gesture because he doesn't know what a weapon is.
>
> Are you willing to correct yourself on this?

I was going to, but I looked it up just to be sure - and lo and behold, 
unless there are multiple editions with different text, nowhere does it say 
what you say above!

"When he came close to them, they extended their hands, open, and smiled; 
but he did not understand that open hands meant (or had meant once) that 
they held no weapons.  His people had never known weapons."

It was Sandwalker who did not understand that the gesture meant they held no 
weapons.  There is no indication at all that the spacemen did not understand 
this.  To my mind, it seems apparent that they held both hands out empty 
rather than extending their right hands for a handshake.  They would have 
expected a humanoid alien to understand about weapons; they would not expect 
him to understand the convention of a handshake.

Had you been correct, I would have been perfectly happy to admit it.  (Not 
that it would make any difference to the issue of whether they were French.)

- Gerry Quinn

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