Date: Wed, 13 Aug 2003 10:42:51 -0500
From: James Jordan 
Subject: (urth) Two Ships

         I don't think your Whorl = OneShip hypothesis can stand close 
inspection, as Crush has pointed out. Thematically, however, there may be 
something Wolfe intended. The One Ship is related symbolically to the 
Church: seven sided, existing throughout all of time, moving between the 
heavens and the Briah-world. The Church-as-Ship is just WAY too common 
historically for us not to consider it, and Wolfe certainly positions the 
One Ship in such a way as to point to Church-symbolism.
         But that brings up Typhon's ship as a counterfeit, of course, 
housing false pastiche religions that he established as a way to control 
the people inside of it. Given that this is indeed the case, Wolfe may have 
loaded Whorl with "counterfeit equivalents" to the features of the One 
Ship, for thematic reasons. This might be worth exploring, building on the 
parallels you have mooted.
         There has been speculation here to the effect that Typhon intended 
Whorl to make a circular journey and come back to Urth/Lune at a time after 
the Flood so he could take over the world again. (To wit: that Blue/Green 
is a later form of Urth/Lune, or vice versa.)  If that theory ever is fully 
borne out, the notion of a circular journey would be another point of 
comparison.
         You know, just for fun: Various fringe Christian sects have said 
that the Great Pyramid is a key to all of human history, and that it was 
built before the Flood and is the one human artifact to survive the Flood. 
Now, consider Typhon sleeping on the highest mountain on Urth, perhaps 
intending to awaken and take over after the coming Flood. Assuming for the 
nonce that this was Typhon's intention, perhaps Wolfe had this old Pyramid 
myth in mind....

Nutria


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