NPPF Commentary Line 238, P. 168, Part III

[Vince & Shelly Maeder]

III. Cicada Life Cycle and Emergence from Exoskeleton:
 
1) This is a literal allusion to the cicada
<http://members.fortunecity.com/cicadaman1999/id46.htm> .  "Homoptera:
Cicadidae  Magicicada sp.  Other Common names Periodical cicadas are
also commonly called the 17-year cicada, 13-year cicada, or locusts. The
name "locust" is misleading because it applies to migratory
grasshoppers.  Immature periodical cicadas (nymphs) develop underground
and feed on sap from plant roots. After 13 or 17 years below ground,
mature nymphs construct a mud turret called a cicada hut and emerge from
the soil and climb onto nearby vegetation or any vertical surface. They
then molt to the winged adult stage. Their shed outer skins or
"exoskeletons" are frequently found attached to tree trunks and twigs.
The emergence is often tightly synchronized, with most adults appearing
within a few nights. Adult cicadas live for only two to four weeks.
During this short time, they feed relatively little and do not cause any
severe damage as they feed. Male cicadas sing by vibrating membranes on
the sides of the first abdominal segment. Male courtship songs attract
females for mating. Females are silent. After mating, females lay their
small eggs in twigs 1/4 to 1/2 inch in diameter. The female's ovipositor
slices into the wood and deposits the eggs. One to several dozen eggs
can be laid in one branch, with up to 400 eggs being laid by each female
in 40 to 50 sites."
http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/entomology/444-276/444-276.html
 
2) This is an allusion to the death of Hazel Shade
<http://www.ssees.ac.uk/meyer.htm> .  
 
3) This is further discussion as to the nature of life after death
<http://www.near-death.com/> .  
 
4) This is also an allusion to the issue of the actual author of the
canto and the commentary.  Is it Messrs.
<http://webster.commnet.edu/grammar/abbreviations.htm>  Shade
<http://www.libraries.psu.edu/nabokov/boydpf1.htm> , Kinbote
<http://www.livejournal.com/users/kinbote/> , Botkin
<http://www.unl.edu/libr/libs/spec/botkin.html>  or some fourth person
<http://www.uta.edu/HyperNews/get/delgua/2/2.html> ? As well as a nice
metaphor of the study of the text to assess the true author of the work.
 
5) This also serves as an allusion to the Commentary developing out of
the canto's text.
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