Cloud Atlas Ch. 1

[jbor at bigpond.com]

Mitchell seems to use these really obscure pieces of history in  
precisely the same way that Pynchon does. I wasn't sure about the  
accuracy of the Moriori story until I looked it up, but it definitely  
seems to be grounded in fact. But there is also a level of uncertainty  
about the story (i.e. the question of the origin of the Moriori; the  
counter-story told to Ewing by the "drunken Maori mulatto" on p. 16)  
which also has a basis in the historical record (and similarities with  
Pynchon). I agree with you about the Herero parallel but it also  
resonates with some of the indigenous and Native American lore Pynchon  
uses in _M&D_ and in _Vineland_, and there's a touch of Vheissu in  
there as well.

And it's not only the brain parasite which suggests that Ewing's  
narrative might be partially or wholly unreliable, it's also the cure  
which Goose gives to him which I suspect contains some sort of narcotic  
or potentially hallucinogenic properties. It might be worthwhile  
investigating what urussium alkali, orinoco manganese and laphrydictic  
myrrh actually are (p. 37: they sound made-up but I suspect they're  
not). Same with the *Gusano Coco Cervello* worm, which sounds like  
something you'd find in a the bottom of a tequila bottle. But I'd lay  
money that it's real.

best

On 13/07/2005, at 5:43 AM, Ghetta Life wrote:

> http://www.zealand.org.nz/history.htm
>
> They established a careful working relationship with the environment,  
> taking enough for food and clothing, and never any more.
>
> For example, they maintained their seal populations largely intact, by  
> limiting the extent to which rookeries could be exploited. At the time  
> of the first sealers, Moriori still had a rookery within 400m of  
> occupations, and a seal population estimated at 20,000, by killing  
> only older male seals, and removing all carcasses which would  
> otherwise deter further breeding.
>
> It worked - they survived half a millenia, at least, until the  
> Europeans discovered them.
>
> The Island population, 7 tribal groups, stabilised into around 40  
> small villages, each with up to 50 people, and the central Waihora.
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 
> ---------
>
> In any hunter/gatherer society, life can be very tenuous, and  
> inter-tribal war can threaten extinction. In fact, such wars are a  
> luxury that can be tolerated by settled/farming societies only because  
> new members can be raised and fed with some degree of assurance that  
> the tribe as a whole will survive.
>
> The Moriori, lacking that assurance, had abandoned warfare.
>
> The chief Nukunuku Whenua established a precept, that disputes would  
> be settled by duel using a stick called tupurari, which was a thumb's  
> thickness and an arm's length - the winner would be the first to draw  
> blood, and the fight would then stop -
> "only fight til you draw blood, then stop".
>
>
>
>> From: "Ghetta Life" <ghetta_outta at hotmail.com>
>> They are described as true "noble savages" by their literal and   
>> total application of a prohibition against killing other humans.  I  
>> wonder about the historical truth of this description.
>
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