South America

Jerry Friedman · 04 Nov 2011, 03:18 · from 2011-November.txt.gz

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From: jerry_friedman at yahoo.com (Jerry Friedman)
Date: Thu, 3 Nov 2011 20:18:32 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: (urth) South America
In-Reply-To: <SNT123-W44576A7086045EDBD1F75CCFD50 at phx.gbl>
References: <SNT123-W44576A7086045EDBD1F75CCFD50 at phx.gbl>
Message-ID: <1320376712.10917.YahooMailNeo at web114712.mail.gq1.yahoo.com>

>From: Lee Berman <severiansola at hotmail.com>

>>Jerry Friedman: The Commonwealth is clearly in the southern hemisphere, 
>>and there are far more suggestions of South America than of Africa or 
>>Australasia, but I don't think we're supposed to connect it with the 
>>real present-day South America, still less connect the mountains with 
>>the Andes or Nessus with Buenos Aires.
>
>Interesting! The debate does carry on after all. I would agree with the
>assessment that there are far more S. America references than to any other
>geographic location on earth. This includes extant and fossil animals and 
>human cultural references.
>
>So I guess the question becomes: if Wolfe didn't intend us to associate the 
>Commonwealth with South America why did he use such an overwhelming volume of 
>South American references? ??? ???????? ?????? ??? ? 

Color and flavor.? These things aren't incidental--you remember that BotNS
started with a cool costume for a con, and the storyteller in "The Tale of the
Rose and that Nightingale" says that "fantasy, color, and pathos are the
chief" merits of a tale.? Writers have to give to airy nothing a local habitation
and a name.

A good source of solid details is real places and cultures.? South America worked
well--it's not overdone like medieval Europe, it's different from Byzantium, it
ties in with the character who has resemblances to Borges.

I agree with something David Stockhoff said--we can see the continent as
the result of a glance at a map of South America, not detailed study of the
map.? I put it too strongly when I said I didn't think we were supposed to
connect it with South America, but I still see no reason to connect the
mountains with the Andes or Nessus with Buenos Aires.

Jerry Friedman

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