(urth) Agia's Weapons

[Jerry Friedman]

> From: Lee Berman <severiansola at hotmail.com
>> Jerry Friedman:
>> Okay, I suppose it's time to ask this question--not just of you, Lee.  
> As I recall 
>> (I'm AWB), the aquastor of Malrubius tells Severian that "powers 
> above the stage" 
>> are managing his life.  When do we know who does that and why?  For 
> instance, is the 
>> resurrection of Dorcas an example?  If so, who is or are responsible, and 
> how do they 
>> manage it, and how does it serve their purposes to have him resurrect his 
> grandmother 
>> or to have a relationship with her?  The same questions apply to the 
> examples above 
>> and every other incident that Father Inire or any other manipulator is 
> supposed to be 
>> responsible for.
...
 
> I think that is certainly a great mystery with no obvious answers provides. 
> Peter Wright
> (in Attending Daedalus) suggests that Severian's life is all a big, 
> deceptive manipulation
> by the Hiero-types- an alien race who are simply trying to propagate themselves.

Does he ever get specific about any examples of manipulation, beside the obvious ones (direct appearances of BF&O, the aquastors, and the Yesodim)?  I looked at his chapter on "The toy Theater" on Google Books, and didn't see anything.

> I see it in more mythological-religious terms.  The powers in the oceans (Abaia, 
> Erebus and
> the other 15) and their agents are analogs to pagan gods/fallen angels. They 
> know there are 
> higher powers in "the heavens" from whence they came, but they are 
> attempting (like mythical 
> gods/demons) to establish their own little fiefdom on Urth.
> 
> They are manipulating Severian because they know he is the "chosen 
> one" for the heavenly Hiero-
> types and they hope to wrest the secret of his divine powers (healing and 
> resurrection) before
> he becomes aware of who and what he is. So many of the adventures Severian in 
> maneuvered into
> involve resurrection of dead people, in some manner.

Yes, but can we even tell which ones he's maneuvered into and which ones he isn't?

> I think it first starts (chronologically)
> with the Concilliator and the Ceryx/Zama episode. But, of course, no matter what 
> the demonic
> types do, it all serves the Increate's Plan in ways even they don't 
> understand.

But how does it serve their plan?  They're putting corpses in Severian's way, in various circumstances, and standing by to observe somehow, whether he knows it or not?

> What is AWB? I did a search and got possibilities ranging from Average White 
> Band to Asian
> Wetland Bureau and Accupuncturists Without Borders.                         

"AFB" (away from books), presumably with the W from "away" replacing the F.  Sorry.

Jerry Friedman