From: Peter Stephenson <pws@ibmth.df.unipi.it>
Subject: Re: (urth) The Green Man and Agia
Date: Wed, 02 Jun 1999 09:46:29 +0200

Nicholas Gevers wrote:
> I was a little surprised to read of people stumped by the precise (or
> deeper) meaning of the green man's prophecy of Severian finding Agia
> above ground. I've thought all along that there is a typical Wolfean
> ambiguity here: soon after the scene in the showman's tent, Severian
> searches for Thecla underground; as a genuine prophet, the green man
> is ...

I don't want to drag this out into a pointless argument over points of view
(viewless argument over views of points?) [I was arguing the green man,
although he comes from the future, is a fraud when it comes to `predicting'
people's personal histories], but... are there really genuine prophets in
the Book?  There are people who've seen the future, and can report on their
own experience there; there are even beings who live backward in time;
there are people with magic mirrors who can see things which may or not be
there.  But it doesn't seem to me there is anyone with supernatural sight.
It would seem to violate the `no magic' rule.  I'd be fascinated to hear a
counterexample.

corncrake

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