(urth) fifth head owlet- wolf

[David Stockhoff]

You have to wonder how far to take Dollo's Law. The focus of the 
discussion naturally is on hands and thumbs. But what if it is sexual 
reproduction itself that is lost and re-evolved?

On 3/29/2013 10:51 PM, Marc Aramini wrote:
> Also don't forget the little quote in a story that says children are engendered by the trees of Sandwalker's home but not the orange tree he sees at the source of the stream " he spoke to the tree when he reached it, but it did not reply and he felt that whatever power dwelt in the lonely oasis trees of his own land was absent here ... That this tree spoke to the unseen no more than him, engendering no babes in women." I just feel like that is not metaphorical.
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On Mar 29, 2013, at 7:43 PM, "Gerry Quinn" <gerry at bindweed.com> wrote:
>
>>
>> From: Gerry Quinn
>>
>>> I don't think we know that VRT is half-human.  It is a wise child that knows his father.
>> 'A Story' (written by VRT), indicates that the abos recognise only the female genetic line:
>>
>> ***********************************
>>
>> "[You] resemble BloodyFinger"
>>
>> "His mother's mother and my mother's were probably sisters or something"
>>
>> **********************************
>>
>> One interpretation, perhaps a tad postmodern for SF, is that this relates to Victor's childhood - his 'father' may have traded his mother as a whore, so even if human he would not know his genetic father, and this is reflected in the gloss he puts on abo sexual theory.   However, I think this is the wrong sort of fifty pound theory to be hanging on anything.
>>
>> It is not unreasonable to assume that the abos (I mean Hillmen and Marshmen) reproduce as we do and either wilfully or ignorantly ignore the male genetic strand.  One could also speculate that their reproductive system is otherwise, though I still don't really find a direct influence of trees very plausible.  Still, there are a few other lines that might point that way - "mostly we were long and lived between the roots of trees" is one, and another is the mysterious "old wood" phrase of Monsieur Culot's deceased father.  Has anyone figured out what exact French phrase could be being referenced here?
>>
>> All in all, I tend to think of these issues as unknown and not really important.  The genetic heritage of a shapeshifter is less significant than that of a human [of course this can be tied to the resonances with Earthly colonisation].  Essentially, I don't like to make the machine too complicated.  The book is not a puzzle with a precise solution. Certain parts of the picture are precise; others would require further research, in a parallel universe in which the book were continued.
>>
>> - Gerry Quinn
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Urth Mailing List
>> To post, write urth at urth.net
>> Subscription/information: http://www.urth.net
> _______________________________________________
> Urth Mailing List
> To post, write urth at urth.net
> Subscription/information: http://www.urth.net
>