Digest whorl.v010.n101

David Wells · 10 Apr 2000, 21:48 · from whorl-v0010.mbox · original

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From: David Wells <ADW at ovum.com>
Subject: (whorl) RE: Digest whorl.v010.n101
Date: Mon, 10 Apr 2000 22:48:43 +0100
Message-ID: <whorl-v0010-0316 at digest.urth.net>
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From: "Alice Turner" <pei047 at attglobal.net>

>Adam asked:

>> Is there textual evidence from TBOTLS that Silk may be in a two-headed
>> Pas body? (It's been a while since I reread it.)

(Replying to Adam) I wasn't suggesting that Silk is two-headed. Though this
is a fascinating idea and quite in the spirit of previous Wolfe writing
("Did I forget to mention that the narrator is <unexpected adjective>? Oh,
silly me!").

Typhon was grafted onto Piaton(?) to preserve his life. His excuse to
Severian was (AFAIR, again) that his followers needed to see his face to
keep their faith in him(*).

>I don't buy young newt's clone theory: too easy, too trite.=20

I am cut to the quick. But even I wouldn't dignify my suggestion as a
"theory" - merely a speculation.

And "easy, trite"? Curious. It would seem to me to be interesting indeed if
Horn merged somehow with "Silk" and struggled with this - and the denial of
it - for a book-and-a-half, before Silk himself turns up... ("With hilarious
results", or perhaps not).

(old) newt (sadly not even remotely young anymore)

(*) Mind you, I'm not at all sure that I believe Typhon's explanation
(assuming that I recall it correctly). Because:
	a) It's not entirely rational. The idea that his followers would
cheer for him after a mysterious absence followed by his reappearance as a
two-headed monster seems a triumph of optimism over common sense.
	b) It's not entirely rational. And Typhon probably knows this.
Megalomaniacs are frequently (invariably?) extremely superstitious. But he
may well not want to admit this to Severian.
	c) Typhon seems to me to be the kind of chap who will gratuitously
lie just for kicks. I.e. the anti-Oreb. He is - after all - the Satan
analog.

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