(urth) Short Story 14: Paul's Treehouse

[Marc Aramini]

I don't like Bunyan style exegesis in general for Wolfe, but every once in a while I think perhaps that is what a shorter piece is doing (much like Avram Davidson's story about a man who wants to be the ultimate hunter and is given the power to start the great war by assassinating Ferdinand).

In Paul's Treehouse there are a few features that lead me to believe in some way there is a connection between the neighbor Russell and the alliance with Russia in the second world war.  Russell means red, and at his house they serve "Moscow Mules" (which would be consistent with the popularity of vodka in the 1950's in America, too).  However, there is also the action of the American Nazi Party and the fact that Russell "used to be an engineer" but gave it up for some reason.   (Could engineers be involved with these riots somehow?)  As if he has changed.

Morris has a few stereotypical "Jewish" features - but I am not at all prepared to claim that he is in fact Jewish.  Morris is waiting for the "big" announcement. Is this a type of pogrom?  there was a pogrom in Russia that occurred over the Orthodox Easter. 

Paul throwing stones does invoke the scene where the martyr Stephen is stoned and the people leave their coats with Saul, but Saul does not actually participate (Saul is a TENTMAKER - is this anything like a treehouse?  I doubt it).  

Just trying to rationalize the implications of this tale, but I normally don't like these kinds of readings of Wolfe, where we claim something like "Paul's Treehouse" is the church or something - I prefer to look at Wolfe for objective plot explanations that can be discerned with internal and external consistency rather than for Bunyanesque type one to one symbolic correspondences.