(urth) golden Severa etc.

[Roy C. Lackey]

b sharp wrote:
>In its stead I'll hint that Borski has missed a character who is decribed
in
>unequivocally golden terms.  He has several pieces of gold jewelry and
>golden hair (and blue eyes).  Follow-up in my next post.

And in a follow-up post, b sharp wrote:

[snip]
>Well, once you have created a zygote/embryo/homunculus, you need a place
for
>it to grow.  Thus, perhaps we can determine the use of the eviscerated Pia
>look-alike in Baldander's lab.  And what homunculus did Baldanders recently
>grow there?
>
>In Baldander's bedchamber, Severian encounters a giant baby catamite (boy
>sex object of a pedophile).  If there is doubt on whether there is sexual
>intention, the baby's gold jewelry, the rich red bedding and the mirror on
>the ceiling should leave no doubt.
>
>Pedophiles are often attracted to children because of their perceived
>innocence.  Baldanders had recently been in close contact with a person
>repeatedly described as innocent looking, the only other character (along
>with the catamite) to have golden hair and blue eyes.  But perhaps just a
>bit too feminine for Baldy.
[snip]

Just for the record, Robert did not miss the giant baby in the castle. In
fact, his discussion of that child forms the concluding section of the
chapter "Swimming With Undines", in SOLAR LABYRINTH. From page 135, after
quoting the physical description in SWORD:

"Of signal importance here is the color of the child's hair -- i.e., _gold_.
As I argue in _Severa_ and _Agia and Agilus_, Wolfe very circumspectly uses
this attribute _only in conjunction with people related to Severian by
blood_. I'd therefore like to speculate that the giant child Severian finds
in Baldanders' bedchamber is _his_." [italics in original]

-Roy