Tuesday 30 August 2016

Guests In The Old Phoenix II

Poul Anderson, A Midsummer Tempest (London, 1975), Chapter xii.

Holger Carlsen:

"'...was born in - a universe where the Carolingian myths are true...'" (p. 102);

was cast into a timeline where magic does not work and where World War II was fought against Germany;

is trying to find his way home with a spell that takes him between universes but without any direction;

"'...barely escaped'" from "'...a clutch of Aztec gods...'" (ibid.);

from hints and clues, has found his way to the Old Phoenix.

When Rupert speaks of Hamlet and Macbeth as contemporaries of each other and of cannon in Hamlet's time and claims to have met Oberon and Titania, Valeria asks him:

Did Romeo and Juliet, King Lear, Falstaff and Othello exist?
Was there a University of Wittenberg in Hamlet's time?
Were there striking clocks in Caesar's time?
Was Richard III "'...really a hunchbacked monster?'" (p. 104)
Did Bohemia have a sea coast?
Does witchcraft work?
Does Rupert know of William Shakespeare?

Rupert knows of Shakespeare as "'...the great Historian.'" (p. 105)

Richard III was hunchbacked in our timeline. See here. (But also see Comments.)

The skeleton, which had several unusual physical features, most notably a severe curvature of the back was exhumed to allow scientific analysis. (copied) 

3 comments:

David Birr said...

Ummmm, Paul, the Wikipedia article to which you linked said, "Although it was probably visible in making his right shoulder higher than the left and reducing his apparent height, it did not preclude an active lifestyle, and would not have caused a hunchback."

Paul Shackley said...

David,
Thanks. I remember it as being reported on TV at the time that he would have been hunchbacked but thank you for reading the Wiki article carefully. I suppose having one shoulder higher than the other led to him being described as hunchbacked.
Paul.

Sean M. Brooks said...

Hi, David and Paul!

And, of course, there has been acrimonious debates for centuries on the role Richard III played in the deaths of Edward V and his brother Richard. Some insist Richard III ordered or connived at the deaths of his nephews, others insist it was the usurper Henry VII who had the princes murdered. Still others suspect the Duke of Buckingham. I doubt we will ever know for sure!

Sean