On the "Virgin Planet," a single man is king? No, he is not. According to Poul Anderson, the women think that Davis Bertram cannot be a mythical "Man" returning in power because they capture him easily. He can only be a dangerous "Monster" (alien), and must not be allowed to re-enter his spaceship in case he turns its technology against them. His capture by one community means war with others and our old friend, the Pathetic Fallacy, returns in force:
"The main door of the Big House crashed open. Torchlight flared, spilling on the cobbles. Minos became suddenly wan. Iron clanked, and the Greendale Macklin strode forth, tall and angry, her women bristling about her...
"'This means war!'"
-Poul Anderson, Virgin Planet (London, 1966), Chapter VI, p. 45.
Does Minos suddenly become wan in reality or only in the women's perceptions?
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
There's also the question of whether it would even be POSSIBLE for a population of blind persons to even survive, which I strongly doubt.
One of things which interested about the women only colony on Atlantis was how a society which had to depend on cloning to reproduce and survive evolved into castes. Most leaders came from the Udalls (because they were so forceful and energetic, the Whitleys and similar castes tended to be soldiers and huntresses (and not much interested in politics), the Burkes were as forceful as teh Udalls, but more Machiavellian, less intelligent castes such as the Craigs did most of the grunt work, etc.
Sean
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