Ensign Dominic Flandry works for the Terrestrial Imperial Space Navy, with headquarters in Archopolis in the Northern Hemisphere of Earth, and we first meet Flandry when he has crash landed on the extra-Solar planet, Starkad, named from Terrestrial mythology.
Ensign Alexander Jones works for the Terrestrial Interstellar Survey Service, with headquarters in League City, New Zealand, and we first meet Jones when he has crash landed on the extra-Solar planet, Toka, named from a native word for "earth."
How is it that Jones experiences no language problem when he meets his first Tokans? There was one previous expedition from Earth and the natives are extremely imitative, even down to exactly mimicking, in this case, English as supposedly spoken in the American Old West...
Maybe I can hold onto my sanity by continually remembering parallels with Anderson's other fictitious futures?
Addendum: Another similarity - both heroes must trek across part of the planet to rejoin their comrades who are based elsewhere and must get involved in local conflicts en route.
9 comments:
Hi, Paul!
Apologies for being nit picky, but "Saxo" was the name given by the Grand Survey to the STAR, and Starkadh was the fifth planet of that system. The star was named after the medieval Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus and the planet for a figure taken from Scandinavian legends.
And, while I'm sure there were Admiralty offices in Archopolis, the HQ of the Imperial Navy was situated at Admiralty Center, in or near the Rocky Mountains of western North America. Perhaps in the former US state of Colorado?
And try to relax and have fun reading the Hoka stories! (Smiles)
Sean
Hi, Paul!
Or were you speculating Admiralty Center was a part of Archopolis? Were you thinking the Imperial capital was placed in western North America? Possible, I suppose, but not the impression I got from other works, such as A STONE IN HEAVEN.
Sean
Sean,
You are right about Saxo and Starkadh but I had spotted and corrected the mistake before I got your comment! - although I may have mis-spelt "Starkadh."
And I am not clear what I thought about Admiralty Centre and Archopolis. Those passages need to be reread.
Paul.
Sean (or anyone),
There are 2 other titles: HOKA! HOKA! HOKA! and HOKAS POKAS. I think that the 1st is simply EARTHMAN'S BURDEN + HOKA but what is the 2nd?
Thanks in advance,
Paul.
I think that Jones experiences no language problems because the Hokas speak English, having learned it and their pseudo-Wild West culture, from the previous expedition. There's a scene where one of the male Hokas -- who go by names like "Slick" and "The Lone Rider" -- point out a couple of females, who have old-fashioned Hoka names. When Jone asks why, his interlocutor says that it wouldn't do for every female to be named "Jane."
Best Regards, Nicholas
Hi, Paul!
Thanks for your replies. Oops! Understood re my unnecessary correction of the mistake you made. The fullest descriptions I've seen of Admiralty Center can be found in Chapter II of THE REBEL WORLDS and Chapter VI of WE CLAIM THESE STARS. I rather like the idea I've long had that Archopolis was simply centered at a renamed and rebuilt Constantinople.
I checked and "Starkad" is used for the planet and "Starkadians" for the Tigeries and Sea People. With "Starkadh" being used for the figure from Scandinavian legends.
And, unless you are a completist, I don't think you need to get HOKA! HOKA! HOKA! and HOKAS POKAS. All the shorter works in those books can be found in EARTHMAN'S BURDEN or HOKA! (with STAR PRINCE CHARLIE to be found in HOKAS POKAS).
Sean
Nicholas,
You are right. Hokas got English from the first expedition.
Paul.
So HOKA! HOKA! HOKA! collects EARTHMAN'S BURDEN and HOKA and HOKAS POKAS collects HOKA! HOKA! HOKA! and STAR PRINCE CHARLIE? Appropriately confusing.
Hi, Paul!
An indication, perhaps, of how the "...demon teddy bears" confuse non Hokas? (Smiles)
Sean
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