5HC: The opera and other works

1. Opera In one sense all books and opera are linear. (beginning middle end). However Opera of all art forms probably gives most scope for the replicating the non-linear aspects of GW's 5HC. I have no particular expertise in Opera, but I think the idea is a good one. Themes, counterpoint, ambiguity of characters and events, multi-toned, multi-voiced composition these and other aspects of musical stagecraft could well serve to capture the flavour of the book. A post-modern opera with computer simulations. Three Acts to match the tripartate structure would seem appropriate. 2. Who killed who? I agree with Broceliande that GW constructed the death scene(s) in such a way as to potentially support a variety of interpretations. Nevertheless I think GW is not such a torturer as to write a whodunnit without an unambiguous solution. And like the best of that genre the solution is obvious once understood and resolves all ambiguity. I don't say I have the solution, but I feel I am closing in on it. So far I have two main suspects; I am looking for corroborative evidence in other early GW texts: Seven American Nights has some intriguing parallels with 5HC. 3. An unstructured synthetic approach? 1. What is the evidence for and against the existence of the Annese, 2. Is Veil’s hypothesis correct? 3. Did Victor become Marsch, or did Marsch become Victor, or is the prisoner I would say if you could answer ONE of these questions you could answer them all. I have just received copies of Younge Wolfe (stories written between 1951(!) and 1966) and Operation Ares(1970). If I don't find clues there I will eat my hat. I also need to track down some of the stuff in the Orbit anthologies. I am simultaneously reading a book about 'Constants' by John D Barrow. http://www.damtp.cam.ac.uk/user/jdb34/ Jabez is an interesting character, have you read Ogden Nash's poem? http://jrago.com/Ogden_Nash.htm#THE%20BOY%20WHO%20LAUGHED%20AT%20SANTA%20CLAUS The biblical references to Jabez are also relevant I feel. I found a reference to disease as a 'genocidal' agent in VRT. The prisoner is showered, de-loused and given a blanket, but Jabez then says he is risking typhus talking to the prisoner (who asks for another blanket). Provisional, unless I find more evidence. I have benefitted from Broceliande's insights and wish her well in her research, I feel our investigations are complementary 4. Miscellany The longhouse association with Native American culture is so obvious I had to take my boots off before kicking myself! Regarding Wagner and Puss-In-Boots. Again Broceliande spotted an important association here, one that accords with Levi-Strauss' hypothesis! Odd things that happen! My bhodran, after 10 happy years of silence has just leapt off my wall, landing loudly, but undamaged on the green carpet. I guess the message is: Ask who the Celts are, where they came from originally and what happened to them. One more clue I almost missed: GW Of course, I did do the rather tricky thing, which I suppose is New Wave, of having one of the characters in one of the other stories as the purported author of, a, aggh...I'm sorry, I've lost the titles of my own stories. LP: "'A Story,' by John V. Marsch." 'one of the characters in one of the other stories' I am gonna consider characters that could purport to be JVM in one BUT NOT BOTH the other two stories. This favours one of my two suspects over the other, namely the 'she-wolf' - not strictly a character in the first story.