Anastasia
Cousin
Liberating the oppressed of the Houses and toppling regimes.
Posts: 154
Preferred Pronouns: She/They
|
Post by Anastasia on Nov 10, 2022 17:52:01 GMT
Recently I read Grass (short story) and other than the mention of George the III’s Mammoth and the name of one of the main Characters, Lucia Cailloux, I could find very little links to the rest of the universe, I may be missing something but I want to explore this story. It seems interesting, why did one of the expedition members kill himself? what was in the mammoth ivory box. And who is Lucia Cailloux? Also dose this tell us the true end of the last of the Original Mammoths? Did Lucia Cailloux kill the Mammoths on the subconscious orders of Cernunnos. And what overall is the underlying message of the story itself?
|
|
quad
Little Sibling
Posts: 47
Preferred Pronouns: he/him
|
Post by quad on Nov 15, 2022 14:28:47 GMT
Bit late to this discussion but here's my read of the story: At one point Lucia mentions the idea of the grass being greener on the other side, in other words something seems more valuable when you don't have it. So in this story the French only realize the value of the mammoths once they've given the land to the Americans. Meanwhile on the American side of things, Jefferson sees the mammoths as a symbol of the Age of Reason, as they go against the widespread Christian beliefs of the time (being the evolutionary ancestor of elephants and all that) and would help him to establish the "New World" as a place of science and reason. So of course the French destroy the mammoths in order to uphold the eurocentric and catholic status quo. As mentioned in the text, the mammoths are political animals, their function is purely symbolic and the same can be said for their deaths. As for what's in the mammoth ivory box, you've sort of answered your own question there haha, the box is what's important, not its contents. It's all that remains of Jefferson's symbol of the Age of Reason, cut up and turned into a fashionable European accessory. The French are using it as a symbol to tell him where he can stick his science and reason. The link to FP is pretty tenuous honestly, (and muddled in hindsight with the future mentions of mammoths in other books) it mostly just has to do with LM's idea about the power of symbols. That's my read of it at least.
|
|
Anastasia
Cousin
Liberating the oppressed of the Houses and toppling regimes.
Posts: 154
Preferred Pronouns: She/They
|
Post by Anastasia on Nov 15, 2022 18:04:07 GMT
Bit late to this discussion. be as late as you like and thank you for your incite on this story. |
|
|
|
Post by Aristide Twain on Nov 15, 2022 18:18:07 GMT
And who is Lucia Cailloux? (…) Did Lucia Cailloux kill the Mammoths on the subconscious orders of Cernunnos? I don't want to lay it on too thick because Two Sabbaths, red herrings, etc. etc. etc. But… well, as far as there being more to Lucia Cailloux than meets the eye… you do know what “House Lucia” is code for in the Book of the War, yes? |
|
Anastasia
Cousin
Liberating the oppressed of the Houses and toppling regimes.
Posts: 154
Preferred Pronouns: She/They
|
Post by Anastasia on Nov 15, 2022 19:02:30 GMT
And who is Lucia Cailloux? (…) Did Lucia Cailloux kill the Mammoths on the subconscious orders of Cernunnos? I don't want to lay it on too thick because Two Sabbaths, red herrings, etc. etc. etc. But… well, as far as there being more to Lucia Cailloux than meets the eye… you do know what “House Lucia” is code for in the Book of the War, yes? You are implying a link to Lolita or that she is Lolita, I myself considered this Originally then we went back to her childhood but now perhaps the childhood was a metaphor for something? And her surname in relation to “Christmas on a Rational Planet” the link grows stronger. so now I ask the Question if this is true is Lolita linked to Cernunnos? And if so to what degree. Are they fighting each other? Allies? Aware of each other but not linked beyond this? Is Toy Story important with this Narrative? and finally beyond what does this mean for the comics. |
|
quad
Little Sibling
Posts: 47
Preferred Pronouns: he/him
|
Post by quad on Nov 17, 2022 15:28:51 GMT
I'm gonna be boring here and say that I think the short isn't really part of the WiH haha. It's counted as part of the series due to it being the point of origin for the mammoths which LM would elaborate on in future works and also because of the importance of symbols. Though I admit I hadn't noticed the Lolita connection so maybe there is more here than meets the eye!
|
|
