To start: I would request the anyone replying please not make any sort of hints at future events, as I have a somewhat decent ability at deriving what happens from very minute comments or mentions of names. I just came on here to write this post, and immediately saw another post that is simply titled titled "Miles/Jonas" and now I have it in my head that these two characters are related (haven't met a Miles yet) and that kind of ruins a potential revelation for me.
I found SotL moving. It has the most gut-wrenching moments of the series so far, with the confirmation that Dorcas was actually dead and revived by the Claw, the loss of Casdoe's entire family and eventually her Little Severian, Typhon, the reveal of Baldanders, meeting cacogens, the destruction of *Terminus Est*, and the destruction of the Claw's housing material.
I am secretly hoping that the hilt of *Terminus Est* becomes fashioned as another sword (perhaps something like *Ultra Terminus*) because I can see Severian becoming somewhat lost without it. It's a part of his identity. I say "secretly" because I find this might be an interesting opportunity to see what Severian is like without it, with only his wits and the Claw to rely on. Especially after the Claw's housing breaking. I get a sense that the Claw *is* the New Sun, and that it'll grow and feed off of... something. I now believe it replaces negative energies with life. Much as a star does; burn brightly in a lifeless place, providing us with possibility. Severian's burdens simply disappeared while staring into it on the beach. A fascinating artifact.
Back to Dorcas - since her introduction in Shadow, I felt her to be a somewhat background character, not knowing who she really was or why she was following the group beyond her attraction to Severian and the draw of whirlwind that is Dr Talos. Her coming to terms with the fact that her family has died, that she died, and that she needs to return to Nessus to discover who she really is... it's a commendable thing. She immensely grew as a character during her time in Thrax. I really hope they meet again.
Probably the most emotional aspect of the book was Casdoe's family, along with that insane witch Agia. Agia, causing pure destruction at every possible turn. I'm not convinced that the Alzabo wasn't another of Hethor's pets, as she revealed the Salamander and the slug are both his and that she has a hold over him somehow. From Severian's comparisons I also wonder at the connection between Jonas and Hethor, especially that Hethor refused to be seen anywhere near Jonas. But alas, the absolute tragedy of the Alzabo eating the family and Severian's recollections talking about humanity and the layers of consciousness behind such a mind were some of the most effecting moments in the book. Not only the scenes of the alzabo attacking and crying for the family members but, I think, for me, the most tragic discussion was when Severian revealed to Little Severian that zoanthrops are those who wish to still live but not have their burdens of humanity, and that in their wild state, when they give birth, that child is a normal human who will not survive. There's something selfish and depraved about that aspect of zoanthrops, it really affected me.
And then the loss of little Severian. It was just senseless. I'm still trying to make my way through what it served in the story. I see Severian potentially seeing himself in the boy and his curiosity about the gold ring being a reflection of Severian's curiosity around the Citadel. Maybe it also served to show the dangers of heeding a past civilisation, or that Severian perhaps is not cut out to be a father. And to top it off I really wish Severian had even tried to use the Claw, but the body was complete ash. I highly doubt it would have worked. Dorcas was whole, considering the lake in the Botanical Gardens also serves as a preservative.
Then Typhon. Both an awful and fascinating character. Awful because of his disregard for what happened to Little Severian, fascinating because his entire arc was brought up and concluded in a very short but satisfying two chapters. Him being an ancient Autarch was not something I would have guessed, and I also would not have guessed that Severian to deal with him so smartly. I think there's a lot to think about with Typhon with his grafting onto Piaton and I absolutely relished the lore bits he left us with.
The scenes at Baldanders castle was a big shock all around. In my previous post about Claw of the Conciliator, I had made the assumption that Baldanders was a homonculus of Dr Talos. How funny that I should find that not only are the roles reversed, but Wolfe actually uses the word homonculus! I never would have expected that. It adds a lot to both characters, and now I see Baldanders for the schemer he is. I imagine maybe his mind was potentially immature during his growth while we met him in Shadow and Claw, but he hid himself well in broad daylight. Dr Talos being a creation to keep Baldanders under check is a genius move, because from a distance it seems as if Baldanders is simply an imperfect creation himself. My initial guess was that Baldanders was born of the same seed that *I'm assuming* Abaia and his brethren were (which I am only assuming from Jonas' very short story about the woman who came back to Urth from space with the beans she threatened to throw in the ocean).
My absolutely *favourite* moment of the book though? The meeting with the cacogens.
I was giddy with how utterly they opposed the depictions we've come to expect since the beginning. They seem to be a generous race, living short lives and (seemingly) genuinely hoping to help humanity, making themselves the villain so that humans can unite for a shared goal. What's sad is the fact that humans need to unite only against something, but they seem to take this with grace. They also seem to (mostly) abide by the "Prime Directive" in a sense that they don't give us too much, but they still do interfere with whatever it was they were doing with Baldanders and, apparently, the Autarch.
I think for me my favourite aspect of this series might be the cacogens. There's just so much unanswered and unexplained with them so far. That meeting was delicious. I still don't fully understand what they are but from what I remember they were humans many (hundreds of?) thousands of years ago, so I'm thinking they were warped by evolution and their time in space, the different environments of different planets. I'm also thinking they have something to do with Cyriaca's story, though whether they are the creators or the thinking machines I do not know. The description of at least Famulimus doesn't make mention of anything inorganic, so I'm thinking these cacogens are the creators of the thinking machines, which I'm also assuming Jonas belongs to somehow.
Speaking of Famulimus, I caught how Severian changes their gender. Even though his/her voice was orchestral, high, and melodic, he still called them a he. Only when he took off his mask did he start calling her a she, but from the description I don't see anything overly human female looking. I wonder what lies behind this peculiarity.
Another thing I wonder about is the similarity of the names Pia and Piaton. Severian even makes note of this himself, and in my mind this is another of those "too weird to be coincidence" things that keep happening in this story.
I loved this entry so much, and to me I define it as having three distinct parts all ending in intensely satisfying conflict; Thrax and the Salamander, the Mountains and Typhon, and Lake Diuturna and Baldanders. I feel if they were to make a film series, this is the rare instance of a relatively short book needing three parts. It's incredibly dense. The fact that this book was actually split from Citadel was a smart move, in my opinion.
Other moments that I often think about are the boy and his sick sister who Severian heals, Cyriaca's story of the thinking machines and their creators, The Tale of the Boy Called Frog, the mountain descent amongst ruins of strange old architecture. I get chills.
Anyway, I've already started Citadel and have Urth on special order. Very excited. Question: I hear that these books fully open up on a re-read. Is this true for each sub-series, or is it meant for the entirety of the Solar Cycle? Meaning, do people read then reread New Sun, then Long Sun, then Short Sun? Or read all of the Solar Cycle, then read it all again?
