(urth) Ascians' Thematic Purppose

[mournings glory]

>Whether the Commonwealth is actually in South America has
>been the subject of semi-heated  discussion. While I favor the
>preponderance of evidence that suggests it is, Alga has made
>a very plausible case that -- presumably after considerable
>continental drift (which has since stopped as the centre of the
>Urth solidified) -- Nessus stands on the former site of Byzantium.

"Insofar as I was trying to create any parallels with an actual historical 
period here on Earth--and obviously I wasn't aiming at developing an exact 
analogy--I was thinking of Byzantium. Incidentally, I also got into troiuble 
with some reviewers over my presentation of the Ascians, who were my 
equivalent of the Turks. If you read the book carefully, it's clear that the 
action takes place in South America and that the invading Ascians are 
actually North Americans."

>From the Gene Wolfe interview in "Across the Wounded Galaxies."