From: "Don Doggett" 
Subject: Re: (urth) Blushas
Date: Tue, 26 Nov 2002 20:35:30 -0800

" I challenge the supporters of the "Blue = Ushas" theory to
come up with a good and reasonable explanation of why they
wind up in Severian's time.

I offer extra credit if it does not include any lame
invocations of relativity. ("Oh, see, well, 1000 years have
passed for the cargo of the Starcrosser, so they project
to 1000 years after when the Duko left...")

--Blattid"

I'll take that bet, mister.  If the person in the pit who revives Horn is
Severian as a Vanished Person then there was a comingling of the two.
Whether you accept that it was Severian or not, at least grant me that there
was a mingling of "whatevers".  Therefore the narrator is also part Severian
in addition to being part Silk and part Horn, and could thus travel to
Severian's time.  The only invocation of relativity I will offer is that
Silk is either Severian's half brother or his genetic father, but pretend I
didn't say that as it has no bearing on this discussion.  As for the inhumi
travelling from Lune to Urth, they simply would have flown, like they do
from Green to Blue.  And there are plenty of instances where the inhumi
could be on Urth simply through the connotations of Urth being Earth.
Vampires, goatsuckers, etc.  In one sense that's what they are - demonic
bloodsucking shapeshifters.  I'd argue it's only natural for them to be on
Urth.

Blattid, your subject heading leads me to something that has been preying on
my mind for the last several days.  This Blushas argument has been going on
and off for quite some time and no one is really willing to give ground, nor
should they.  But what if what Wolfe has done is write a dual text, one that
is ambiguous enough that you can read it either way and still not lose its
basic meaning.  I don't think that is beyond him at all.  I'm not proposing
some insipid "We're both right!" solution.  I'm just saying that no one here
is stupid or terribly careless and yet no one can seem to deliver the goods
for either argument.

Don










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