The Urth of the New Sun, by Gene Wolfe. 1987.
Upon reading the completed Book of the New Sun, Gene Wolfe’s editor asked him if he could add a paragraph at the end explaining that Severian later went off into space and brought back a new sun. Wolfe replied that he would need a lot more than a paragraph. The Urth of the New Sun was the result of that conversation. While the first four volumes of Severian’s story can stand alone, they contain many hints and glimpses of the messianic Conciliator and the apocalyptic coming of the New Sun. Thus Urth expands, illuminates, and completes this epic tale.
Severian has been Autarch for ten years when we meet him again on the spaceship that is bearing him to Yesod, the universe higher than his own. He goes to be examined by the Hierogrammates, those exalted beings who seek to reshape humanity. On board he encounters any number of dangers and wonders, from intelligent suits of armor to mutant mutineers. One of the most interesting characters here is the furry creature Zak.
In Yesod, Severian is judged as the representative of all Urth in a strange trial which is only the completion of the examination that has gone on all throughout his journey. Here we meet Apheta, a woman who pulses with light, and the Hierogrammate Tzadkiel, who has great wings covered with eyes. His consciousness having been joined with a White Fountain that can renew the sun, Severian is returned to Urth, but at a time unfamiliar to him. He finds the people oppressed politically and fearful about the failing sun. Almost unintentionally he begins a journey of healing, teaching, and reconciliation which leads him to confrontations with a sorcerer and a tyrant.
Learning that he has the ability to travel through time as well as space, Severian moves to the point when the White Fountain arrives and resurrects the old sun. He finds himself caught up in scenes similar to those in Dr. Talos’ play Eschatology and Genesis, reunited with his wife Valeria, as well as Baldanders, Juturna, and a prophetess whom he healed long ago. Now he witnesses the destruction and renewal of Urth, both horrifying and glorious. But even this is not the end of his journey.
Wolfe’s prose is as rich and rewarding as ever, though the plot of Urth is less tightly constructed than that of the first New Sun books. At places it might be accused of meandering. On the other hand, as the barriers of time and space break down for him, it’s understandable that Severian’s narrative would also take some odd turns.
I’ve only scratched the surface in describing the many biblical and theological concepts that appear in this book – there are beautiful scenes of creation, ransom, discipleship, resurrection, and salvation. Wolfe has said that Severian is not so much a Christ-figure as a Christian figure. Be that as it may, I’ve found that this novel opens up fresh and inspiring perspectives on the New Testament for me. In this regard, Wolfe’s luminous work is comparable with the best from Christian masters like Tolkien and Lewis.
5 out of 5
Monday, September 25, 2006
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Book Review - The Citadel of the Autarch
by Gene Wolfe. Simon & Schuster, 1982.
This is the fourth volume of The Book of the New Sun. Having passed through the mountains, Severian now encounters the war that is being fought between his own Commonwealth and the Ascians of the northern continent. The Ascians come from a rigid, totalitarian society and speak only by quoting the approved writings of their rulers, the Group of Seventeen (though ultimately they are all slaves of the monstrous Erebus.)
Succumbing to illness and his wounds, Severian finds himself being nursed in a lazaret of the Pelerines, a female monastic order. Here he converses with Pelerines, their slaves, and a number of wounded soldiers. A female patient with several suitors has them engage in a story-telling contest (in which she herself participates), and asks Severian to judge which story is best. Among these interesting digressions is a version of the Parable of the Wicked Tenants. Once he has left the lazaret, Severian enlists with a unit of mercenary cavalry. He is soon embroiled in hair-raising battles fought between bizarre varieties of troops armed with weapons both futuristic and primitive. Wolfe drew on his own experiences in the Korean War to depict the boredom, excitement and horror of a soldier’s life.
It is on the battlefield that Severian again encounters the Autarch and learns the intriguing inner nature of his rule. All of the threads of The Book of the New Sun are drawn together as old haunts are revisited, debts repaid and conflicts come to their head. Vodalus, Agia, Dorcas, and Master Palaemon all make appearances as Severian’s ascension to the throne reaches culmination. Particularly memorable is a moving mystical insight that overtakes him at the edge of the sea.
The first part of Citadel feels like a digression from the direction the previous volume took (particularly the stories of the lazaret) though all these pieces do eventually come together. While Severian is still at times proud, lustful and violent, his travels and sufferings have changed him, and we see the beginning of wisdom, particularly as he takes up the power and responsibility of the Autarch. There are some beautiful scenes of grace and forgiveness.
Citadel completes The Book of the New Sun and the first stage of Severian’s story. Several years later, Wolfe wrote The Urth of the New Sun, which in expanding Severian’s journey depicts the numinous salvation history which the first part hints at– the story of the Conciliator and the New Sun.
5 out of 5
This is the fourth volume of The Book of the New Sun. Having passed through the mountains, Severian now encounters the war that is being fought between his own Commonwealth and the Ascians of the northern continent. The Ascians come from a rigid, totalitarian society and speak only by quoting the approved writings of their rulers, the Group of Seventeen (though ultimately they are all slaves of the monstrous Erebus.)
Succumbing to illness and his wounds, Severian finds himself being nursed in a lazaret of the Pelerines, a female monastic order. Here he converses with Pelerines, their slaves, and a number of wounded soldiers. A female patient with several suitors has them engage in a story-telling contest (in which she herself participates), and asks Severian to judge which story is best. Among these interesting digressions is a version of the Parable of the Wicked Tenants. Once he has left the lazaret, Severian enlists with a unit of mercenary cavalry. He is soon embroiled in hair-raising battles fought between bizarre varieties of troops armed with weapons both futuristic and primitive. Wolfe drew on his own experiences in the Korean War to depict the boredom, excitement and horror of a soldier’s life.
It is on the battlefield that Severian again encounters the Autarch and learns the intriguing inner nature of his rule. All of the threads of The Book of the New Sun are drawn together as old haunts are revisited, debts repaid and conflicts come to their head. Vodalus, Agia, Dorcas, and Master Palaemon all make appearances as Severian’s ascension to the throne reaches culmination. Particularly memorable is a moving mystical insight that overtakes him at the edge of the sea.
The first part of Citadel feels like a digression from the direction the previous volume took (particularly the stories of the lazaret) though all these pieces do eventually come together. While Severian is still at times proud, lustful and violent, his travels and sufferings have changed him, and we see the beginning of wisdom, particularly as he takes up the power and responsibility of the Autarch. There are some beautiful scenes of grace and forgiveness.
Citadel completes The Book of the New Sun and the first stage of Severian’s story. Several years later, Wolfe wrote The Urth of the New Sun, which in expanding Severian’s journey depicts the numinous salvation history which the first part hints at– the story of the Conciliator and the New Sun.
5 out of 5
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