Date: Sun, 6 Jul 2003 13:32:43 -0700
Subject: Re: (urth) stealing apu punchau
From: Lisa Schaffer-Doggett 


On Saturday, July 5, 2003, at 08:19 PM, Michael Andre-Driussi wrote:

>
> Because I have a hard time envisioning the Claw as either a dumb 
> object or
> as a mere "focus" for Severian's current/latent power, I tend to think
> (insist) that the Claw is the (hologramic, fragmentary; blood magic)
> presence of the "first Severian" that Severian is referring to in the
> passage: that is, the first Severian who, I believe we are told, did 
> =not=
> possess the Claw.
>
> In this manner, by granting/denying miraculous powers at various 
> junctures
> (revive this dead, fail to revive that one; cast a light now; etc.), 
> the
> first Severian becomes, in part, author of the Severian we see.  Or
> semi-puppetmaster.
>
> =mantis=
>

Don repies, and then replies,

I agree with this in general.  Regardless of whether Ymar is the first 
Severian (and I am unshakeable in my own belief in this) the original 
"Severian" and his timeline were not eradicated by the coming of the 
second Severian (or umpteenth "Severian" imho).  His tomb exists and 
he's in it.  He lived and he died in the same universe as our Severian 
who has his own separate memorial and who doesn't "die" in the sense 
that someone finds his body and puts it in a tomb.  He dies and becomes 
an eidolon of the New Sun but it's still essentially our Severian.  I 
think that Wolfe intentionally (and brilliantly) confused this issue by 
having Severian (ours) say "I am not the first Severian."  There is no 
reason at all that the first "Severian" need go by that name any more 
than the Second Coming of the Messiah be named Jesus, Joseph, Joshua or 
whatever.  "A rose by any other name. . ."  Which leads me to wonder if 
the rose on the Mausoleum is a bit of a pun.  Probably not.  As I've 
said before, I think there are a lot of "Severians" out there, little 
Severian, the Mandragora, Palaemon, Ouen, and who knows how many others.


--