From: Michael Straight <straight@email.unc.edu>
Subject: RE: (whorl) merging
Date: Fri, 6 Apr 2001 12:00:54 

On Fri, 6 Apr 2001, Dan'l Danehy-Oakes wrote:

> > Also, see the archives for my argument that the bit about catching the
> > ball and winning the game makes much more sense coming from Horn's persona
> > than from Silk's.  I don't see why Silk would even remember the details of
> > that game, 
> 
> Ummm. Because it was the moment when enlightenment came to him?

Look at Silk's conversations with the kids right after the game.  He's so
preoccupied with his enlightenment he's barely paying attention when they
try to talk about the game.  Horn stays behind and talks to Silk about it.  
Silk apologizes for pushing him down and Horn says "You were their best
player, it wouldn't have been fair to them if you hadn't played your
best."

This seems to be the idea the Rajan has in mind after having helped the
Gaonese win their war.  He's saying "I am proud to have won the war for
the Gaonese just as Silk won the game for the small boys."  Silk wasn't
proud of winning the game for the small boys.  At the time, Silk said the
fun of the game comes when a small boy knocks down a big boy.

We know Horn remembers the incident and his own interpretation of it, but
it seems unlikely that Silk remembers it or places the same kind of
importance on it--he was thinking about enlightenment, not lessons learned
on the ball court.

(Incanto expounds a similar idea to Mora in IGJ, telling her that the only
thing that is more "fair" to allow all to do their best than to ask the
strong/rich/talented restrain themselves out of a sense of fairness, but
since Incanto is part Silk, that doesn't count as evidence of whether this
comes from Horn or not.)

-Rostrum


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