(urth) Another (Possibly Weak) Theory

[Lee Berman]

>Dan'l Danehy-Oakes:But roughly I am thinking of Wolfe's claim to believe that many "mythological" beings are 
>real.So let's look at a Very Very Long Time Ago, in a place that has no name in English but which we might call
>Atlantis, Mu, or Gondwanaland. There was a race, which was not precisely what we would call _human_,
>that developed, among other things, the ability to travel to the stars, not necessarily with the aid of 
>"starcrosser" technology. (See, for example, Peter Hamilton's "Silfen.")  We might have called them elves, 
>or faerie. A Very Very Long Time Ago, their culture was completely(?) wiped out, possibly by a massive
>tectonic event. But some of them were left on Ste. Anne.
 
A very good theory, in my opinion. I think David S. must agree since he suggested something similar
recently. I like it especially because it relates both to WOlfe's professed beliefs and to his other works.
 
My contribution to plump it out would be this: Many have noted the similarities between Shadow Children and
Inhumi. In the earlier days of vampire myths, the lamia (deriveed from Lillith/Jahi myths). were associated
as much with child-stealing as with blood sucking. Faeries (and kelpies and other Wolfe references) are also
known for child-stealing. For me this takes a thread of connection between 5HoC and Short Sun and plumps it
out to a nice fat piece of string. :- ).
 
(the faerie-child stealing stuff may well relate to anthropology..ancient memories of H. habilus and 
H. erectus interactions, perhaps. Differences in tool using ability surely come into play also, a fact
Wolfe had to be aware of).