Urth-Earth links

Lee Berman · 19 Oct 2011, 14:56 · from 2011-October.txt.gz

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From: severiansola at hotmail.com (Lee Berman)
Date: Wed, 19 Oct 2011 10:56:43 -0400
Subject: (urth) Urth-Earth links
Message-ID: <SNT123-W39A06A381B1477469DF382CFEA0 at phx.gbl>

>Gerry Quinn: There is certainly one analogical element, as in the autarchial process, 
>the memory donor voluntarily offers himself as a sacrifice, which is not the case in 
>the ?diabolical Eucharist? of Vodalus and his followers.

The process with the old Autarch does, superficially, seem more benign than the Vodalus
banquet and the voluntary aspect is probably part of it. But in my view, the old Autarch
is a somewhat ineffectual figurehead in front of the true power of of his vizier and he
is a sacrificial lamb for the hiero-types. He seems like a very sad and unfulfilled
human being. The alzabo-like potion did him no favors (nor Severian, really). Without it
he (Apian?) would have remained a honey steward and probably ended up like the rather 
happier character of Odilo.

>That also seems in accord with the other works of Wolfe, who does not, I think, consider 
>any form of technology intrinsically evil, but only the uses of it.

Given a purely literary reading of the text this might be so. But I am not only interested 
in the text but also the mental processes in the individual who created the text. I suppose
Biology is an inherently "ickier" science than physics but I am just saying I detect an
extra "ewww" factor in Wolfe's thinking about biology which goes back to 5HoC. (just had a 
thoughtflash of Jonas being disgusted with his meat parts; Sidero also. Perhaps WOlfe does
sympathize with them a bit).

>> Yes, but I think the question is whether these aliens are entirely a product
>> of evolution on other planets or whether they are humans who left Urth in
>> earlier waves, mutated, evolved and are now returned.

>You suggested earlier that Wolfe indicated this somewhere in _Urth_.  Have you a link to this?

I find it inherent in the story. We are first introduced to cacogens as weird, ugly aliens. Later 
the text reveals that some of them (hierodules) are of human origin. Why not all of them?

>in many of his stories (certainly including the Urth cycle) he indicates that robots and androids 
>as pretty much equivalent to people. A robot Jesus is not part of the Solar Cycle, obviously, but the 
>concept would sit better with it than with most SF novels.

Perhaps. But it still doesn't happen. I think Long Sun would have been the perfect place for Wolfe to
create a non-human savior. Could have been a chem or a god in the mainframe. But nope. Once again,
a human gets the role.

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