After participating in a battle here and discussing theology here, Carl creeps out of the camp:
"Looking upward, he saw the [guard] go past, a dim sheen of metal against the Milky Way. Snakelike, he writhed over the line." (p. 97)
The list of items seen against the Milky Way is shorter than the list of descriptions of the Milky Way but is growing.
Carl intends to defy taboo by learning the secrets of the ancients and using them against the otherwise invincible invaders. Hence, his creeping around in the dark.
Carl seeks knowledge only in response to an external threat. Things must get worse before they get better? People began to cultivate plants and herd animals only because climatic changes made hunting and gathering no longer viable? If threats to survival instigate progress, then the present period is potentially very progressive.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
Hard and dangerous times does encourage some people to seek solutions to problems they probably would not have thought of during peaceful times. But, not always! Think of the truly vast advances made in both science and technology during the relatively peaceful century following the Congress of Vienna.
Sean
Post a Comment