Zany Outsider theory

David Wells · 14 Apr 1997, 09:14 · from whorl-v0004.mbox · original

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From: David Wells <adw at ovum.com>
Subject: (whorl) Zany Outsider theory
Date: Mon, 14 Apr 1997 9:14:00 +0000
Message-ID: <whorl-v0004-0053 at digest.urth.net>
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[Posted from WHORL, the mailing list for Gene Wolfe's Book of the Long Sun]


While we were waiting for Exodus to be published, one of my colleagues=20
suggested an idea about the identity of the Outsider which is very differen=
t=20
from the "conventional" one most often discussed here. His argument went=20
like this:
     1) What is the most salient feature of the Outsider? That he is=20
"outside" Mainframe.
     2) What does the Outsider _do_? He enlightens Silk, which leads him on=20
a path towards fulfilling the Plan of... Hmmm...
     3) Which of the Gods is "outside" mainframe and, presumably, trying hi=
s=20
best to get back in and fulfil his Plan..?
This idea also adds another level to Silk's disillusionment with the false=20
religion he has hitherto followed. He abandons Pas' satirical idolotary to=20
worship the True God, the Outsider, only to later discover... Oops! Testing=20
times for any would-be messiah figure!
You could argue that it's said that the Outsider pre-dates the Whorl and=20
created Mankind. But this is just a rumour, and just the sort of rumour you=20
might expect that old monomaniac Typhon to put about...
Finally, I think it's amusing that this extremely bleak reading was=20
suggested to me, an atheist, by a keen amateur Catholic theologian.

David W

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