Wednesday 31 August 2016

The History Of The Carolingian Universe

Poul Anderson, Three Hearts And Three Lions (London, 1977), Chapter Three.

There is a perpetual struggle between two primeval forces or modes of existence, Law and Chaos. (Maybe Creation was the imposition of Law on Chaos but we are not told that.) There was a Fall and, after that, "'...everything were Chaos...'" (p. 28) but, since then, Chaos has been driven back. When the Savior was on Earth, darkness could not stand and Pan died. Thus, Chaos and darkness are linked. Now Chaos rallies and prepares to strike back.

In CS Lewis' That Hideous Strength, Hell has waited for the convergence of Atlantean magic with modern science. However, when the magician Merlin is revived, he joins forces with those who work against demonic science. In James Blish's Black Easter, Hell has waited for the meeting between Baines, who will commission the release of all the major demons, and Ware, who will be powerful enough to fulfill Baines' commission. Thus, the demons win Armageddon. In Three Hearts..., Chaos, which includes demons, prepares to strike but Holger is "...the Defender..." and it is "...as if dawn rode with him." (Chapter Twenty-Four, p. 154)

Holger speculates about the connection between the Carolingian Earth and the one he left:

"Had fleeting contact been made from time to time, castaways like himself who had returned with stories that became the stuff of legend? Had the creatures of myth a real existence here?" (Chapter Three, pp. 28-29) See here.

1 comment:

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

And this struggle between Law and Chaos, Light and Darkness, Good and Evil, etc., obviously ties in with the two OPERATION books.

And at one point the Faerie Duke Alfric makes some speculations about Emperor Napoleon similar to Holger's own thoughts!

Sean