From: Adam Stephanides <adamsteph@earthlink.net>
Subject: Re: (whorl) RTTW spoilers, 2 Silks in one mansion
Date: Fri, 16 Feb 2001 20:10:19 

on 2/16/01 12:29 PM, Michael Andre-Driussi at mantis@sirius.com wrote:

> Ah well.
> 
> Interesting to contemplate two more-or-less identical Silks (your
> Silk-in-Pig and 100% Silk in Horn) in the same place (ruins of Blood's
> mansion) at the same time with such different reactions.

I may be missing your point completely, but it seems to me that their
reactions aren't so different.  In fact, I'd say that "Horn"'s behavior
supports my position.  He first tells Pig he wants to enter the mansion
alone, with no explanation (118, 119).  When Pig insists on coming with him,
he deceives him so as to be able to go in alone (121).  Once inside, he gets
"a sort of itch" to find Hyacinth's bedroom, although he tells himself it's
foolish.  He decides to try to return to Hound, hoping to blunder into
Hyacinth's bedroom on the way.  And he does eventually find himself, by
chance, in Hyacinth's dressing chamber; although he's never been there
before, he "knew with absolute certainty" that that's what it is (134-35).
From this evidence "Horn" is just as fixated upon Hyacinth as the
Silk-possessed Pig is, though better able to rationalize it.

(I wouldn't expect Silk-in-Pig and Silkhorn to behave identically, in any
case.  One is filtered through Pig, so to speak, the other blended with Horn
(Silk-in-Pig tells "Horn"'It was Pig who was angry'" (175)); plus Silkhorn
is engaged in denying to himself that he is Silk.)

--Adam


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