Digest whorl.v010.n068

Josh Levitan · 16 Jan 2000, 20:29 · from whorl-v0010.mbox · original

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From: "Josh Levitan" <josh_levitan at hotmail.com>
Subject: (whorl) Re: Digest whorl.v010.n068
Date: Sun, 16 Jan 2000 12:29:20 PST
Message-ID: <whorl-v0010-0217 at digest.urth.net>
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David Langford wrote:

>Where does it say that Borges gives enough information? My reading of "The
>Sect of the Phoenix" (also translated as "The Cult of the Phoenix") is
>that it's a joke, practically a shaggy dog story, deliberately blurred by
>anti-information. Drop the teasing physical details about "the cork and
>the slime", or push them sideways into metaphor, and ...
>
>[Does Borges need spoiler space on this list? Oh well:]
>

Borges writes that there's enough info to figure it out in the prologue to=20
"Artifices," the second half of FICCIONES.  On page 105 of the new(er) Grov=
e=20
Press paperback -- "In the allegory of the Phoenix, I imposed upon myself=20
the problem of hinting at an ordinary fact -- the Secret -- in a [sic]=20
irresolute and gradual manner, which in the end, would prove to be=20
unequivocal;  I do not know how fortunate I have been."

Because every other story in this collection is at least staggeringly=20
well-written, and some of them among the best I've ever read (like "Tlon,=20
Uqbar, Orbis Tertius"), I'm going to give Borges the benefit of the doubt=20
here and place the blame on my weak intellect.

>
>... it does seem very much as though the Mystery Rite, which is despised,
>trivial, not talked about, abstained from by the very virtuous, yet
>somehow never dies out and may indeed have become instinctive, is
>ordinary human sexual intercourse.

Actually, looking over the story again, that fits really nicely.  See, it I=
S=20
my own stupidity, not Borges' fault.  I just got thrown off by mentions of=20
the rite being performed with "cork, wax, or gum arabic," or silt.  I don't=20
really see how cork, wax, gum arabic, and silt are metaphoric=20
representations of the sexual organs or the act.  Maybe I'm reading a crumm=
y=20
translation.  Is there any way that those things can be used in intercourse=20
-- perhaps as primitive birth control or lubrication or something?  Or is=20
Borges just throwing in red herrings?

Josh, who still needs a Vironese name...
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