Dominic Flandry and later his daughter are young in the old Terran Empire;
in her high old age, Judith Dalmady/Lundgren draws on fresh memories and a youthful hoverpoint for her last story in Morgana;
Coya Conyon is young when the Polesotechnic League no longer is.
"At first she had revelled in adventure. Everything was an excitement; every day offered a million discoveries to be made."
-"Lodestar," p. 641.
There is a generation gap between Coya and her grandfather. His generation seldom married. Her father's did. Hers is reviving patrilineal surnames. At the very end of the story:
"...Coya saw that [van Rijn] was indeed old." (p. 680)
He personifies the great days of the League which are gone.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
But don't forget that amusing moment in MIRKHEIM when Old Nick boisterously refused to be a pitiable old man when again meeting Grand Duchess Sandra!
I agree nations, empires, civilizations can become old and weary and start declining. But revivals and dramatic resurgences have also happened. A classic example being the astonishing revival of the Eastern Roman Empire, starting around AD 780 and lasting till the death of Basil II in 1025.
Happy New Year! Sean
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