Date: Tue, 9 Sep 2003 11:30:18 -0700
Subject: (urth) Women; Incomprehensible Three
From: Sikozu Johnson 

On Mardi, sept 9, 2003, at 11:00 US/Pacific, Dan'l Danehy-Oakes wrote: 
[Interrupting: As someone once added, "The whole damn thing 
incomprehensible."]

'The Incomprehensible Three' sounds like a jazz group.

Incidentally, to those who comment that Buddhism is confusing and 
mystical, I usually reply by asking them questions about the Trinity 
until such time as I am able to throw my hands in the air and say, "You 
think BUDDHISM is incomprehensible?!?" I figure they asked for it.

On a third note, there was some discussion before about women in Wolfe. 
Well, I must say that while I adore Wolfe, I find his 
Crypto-Catholicism and anti-feminism irritating. I have never met the 
man and can only stand in awe of his brilliant writing, but no one is 
perfect and sometimes he is boring or annoying: "Dorpspraak like Yoda 
annoying for hundreds of pages is" - or just angrymaking.

On women, he is angrymaking to me, if I may half-Dorp. His narrators so 
consistently paint a world in which women are either divine or divine 
bitches, and always incomprehensible, is very very aggravating. Long 
Sun and Short Sun beg for a half-decent female character who isn't 
crap. General Mint doesn't count, she is the virgin Joan of Arc, beyond 
humanity in person.

That's my opinion, held after rereading the books a few times. The 
women are stomach-churningly idolised or jammed in the mud, and the 
'good men' casually rape, murder and kill.

Anyway, I'm sure many will disagree, but as a woman that's what I got 
out of them. Not to say I don't adore them but Wolfe is clearly tied in 
knots about women somewhere and it comes out plain and clear to me.

Of course, my idea of a fun time is reading "Hothead Paisan", so take 
it with a grain of salt. ;-)

Sikozu
http://sikozu.blogspot.com/
http://members.cox.net/sikozujohnson/
******
"I sit for world revolution"
Alan Ginsberg, 19 July 1981


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