Thursday 10 May 2018

Elven Towers


Arriving by cab on the roof of the Winged Cross, Emil Dalmady sees and experiences:

a fragrant garden;
"...a warm deep-blue summer's dusk..." (The Van Rijn Method, p. 519);
the sounds of Chicago Integrate like the murmur of a distant ocean;
"...an elven forest..." (ibid.) of towers and skyways;
flitting aircars;
"...a fantastic galaxy of many-colored lights...," (ibid.) stretching beyond sight;
the bulk of van Rijn's penthouse ahead of him.

See "A Godland."

Chicago Integrate is elven towers in a godland and Ys, where there are Elven Gardens, is a fitting dwelling for elves or Gods. We can trace the past and future history of cities through Poul Anderson's works and across the timelines, e.g.,:

Ys;
Quimper;
York;
New York;
the Integrates;
Archopolis;
a darkening city in a further future here.

Isaac Asimov has large enclosed Cities on a future Earth and the planetary city of Trantor near the galactic center. Cities become subterranean "Shelters" in James Blish's A Case Of Conscience and fly into space in his Cities In Flight. Damon Knight edited Cities Of Wonder. There is much to be learned about cities.

1 comment:

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

The descriptions of Chicago Integrate also reminded me of what we are told about Admiralty Center hundreds of years later in THE REBEL WORLDS and WE CLAIM THESE STARS. Plus, the "night mare beauty" of Archopolis in A STONE IN HEAVEN which so awed and intimidated Miriam Abrams.

Sean