Horns abilities

Daniel Petersen · 26 Oct 2011, 17:29 · from 2011-October.txt.gz

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From: danielottojackpetersen at gmail.com (Daniel Petersen)
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 2011 18:29:33 +0100
Subject: (urth) Horns abilities
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*I too am an adult convert to Catholicism, among
other things*

You've converted as an adult to other religions as well?  Heh, heh, just
jokin'.

*the wor(l)d was spoken -- is in itself a kind of text.
The Word of God was made flesh, and indeed has its point-of-origin in
some sense in the flesh; it is always already _incarnate_ (i.e., not
merely spoken but written). The spoken word of God is the Act of
Creation*

Well, I admit I didn't expect you to go there, but, yeah, if we're talking
about a Logos-cosmos when we say things like 'the world is text' or what
have you, then I'm right there with you.  That's the metaphysics I think
Wolfe brings to his craft - and the craft is richer for it in my opinion.

(Incidentally, I accept such a worldview as well, though not myself RC - a
lowly Proddy I'm afraid - we can't seem to make any great authors of our own
so we are ever the barnacles on the great RC writers - though I'm proud to
steal a ride from such legendary vessels as Chesterton, Wolfe, O'Connor,
Percy, Lafferty, etc.)

*I think that to understand what
Wolfe is doing here we must understand not only the textuality of the
text but the _radical_ textuality of the "internal" reality of his
stories.*

Don't think I understand this bit.

*What _is_ there
for us to interpret, but the text and its intertextuality?*

I'm not sure Wolfe ever gets so far down inside a narratological rat's nest
that he or we can never emerge.  From interviews I'd say he definitely
envisions us going all the way through the labyrinth and out again,
bewildered and humbled, yes, but also wiser and nobler.  We readers have a
hard time trusting him about this and even wonder if it's just one more lie,
I think.  But I have to say, without any thought as to whether I ever
understand even a small percent of the intertextual mysteries he delivers, I
do trust his face-value claim that he's not just trying to irretrievably
confuse his readers.  (I'm not saying this because I think you, Dan'l,
mistrust Wolfe's claim - I don't know one way or the other.  It just occurs
to me in thinking of being potentially locked only into his 'internal'
text.)

I guess I mean that I don't think unreliability is the last word in Wolfe,
even though he has made such extensive use of it.

-DOJP
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