"Van Rijn made himself flush turkey red." (p. 162)
He made himself... This is a dramatic performance like so many other van Rijnisms.
"Van Rijn's face lit up." (p. 163)
This is spontaneous. He is about to offer a business deal which he will not get now but will get later when the Borthudians have been put in their place and incorporated into Technic civilization.
When dealing with van Rijn, it would be helpful to be able to recognize frequent fakery and occasional reality. For example, when:
"Van Rijn avalanched upward to his own feet."
-Poul Anderson, "Esau" IN Anderson, The Van Rijn Method (Riverdale, NY, 2009), pp. 517-553 AT p. 551 -
- this is an entirely spontaneous response. He wants to invest in Emil Dalmady and must hasten to prevent that aggrieved employee from walking out in disgust.
At the end of "Lodestar," all the acting is over when van Rijn accepts Falkayn's ultimatum.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
And that "avalanched upward" was meant to remind readers both of how physically massive and fast Old Nick could be!
And that story "Esau" has become permanently associated in my mind with Velazquez's painting "Don Baltasar Carlos and his Dwarf" and my discussion of the old custom of having court dwarfs, which we also see in that story.
Ad astra! Sean
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