stealing apu punchau

Lisa Schaffer-Doggett · 05 Jul 2003, 08:16 · from urth-v0307.mbox · original

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From: Lisa Schaffer-Doggett <harlekin at earthlink.net>
Subject: Re: (urth) stealing apu punchau
Date: Sat, 5 Jul 2003 01:16:02 -0700
Message-ID: <urth-v0307-3564 at digest.urth.net>
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On Saturday, July 5, 2003, at 12:02 AM, maa32 wrote:

> In response to Don's comments, I have a brief question about=20
> synchronicity.
> So you don't think Severian is really the original Apu-Punchau?  See,=20
> I always
> saw him as both the original conciliator and the original Apu-Punchau=20
> (ie - if
> he didn't go back in time, those guys would never have lived).

Don replies,

	When I first read UotNS, before I read BotNS the second time and=20
before delving much into Graves I did think that Severian was the=20
original Conciliator and the original Apu-Punchau.  And in a sense he=20
is but I think also that he isn't because as he said himself he isn't=20
the first "Severian" (I put this in quotation marks because I think the=20
original Severian is in fact Ymar, the name meaning ox, which also=20
means Aleph, which can also mean the first or the origin but that's a=20
separate argument.  One I can't resist bringing up, sort of my own=20
little "Carthage must be destroyed!").  I think the original=20
Conciliator and the original Apu-Punchau is the failed "Severian"=20
(whoever he may be. Ymar. Ymar.) whereas our Severian is the one who=20
has been modified by the Hieros to be the New Sun.  Personally, I'm=20
beginning to think that It was altogether unnecessary for our Severian=20
to go back in time to fulfill a role as either of these two past=20
figures.  I think it may have been a fulfillment of some dark ambition=20
to assume these roles, maybe to salvage something good for himself=20
since his destiny seemed to be that of a tyrant and destroyer.  Even=20
this doesn't seem to work out so well for him though.  But I'm slipping=20
away from my point which is simply that no, I don't strictly believe=20
that Severian is the original Apu-Punchau or the original Conciliator. =20
I would rather say that he contains them both and then some.


--=20

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