Coy

[David Morris]

There might be some value to the Orpheus-Persephone myth in IV, but so
far it's not been convincingly developed.  Coy as Orpheus?  More like
Persephone, the one who disappeared underground.  And the pursuer here
is Doc, not much in common w/ Orpheus.  And anyway Doc's Persephone
would be Shasta, and she isn't found.  She returns of her own free
will.

And speaking of Shasta, what a dud of a development was her part in
this story.  She just essentially gets dumped, and returns to her old
haunt.  Penny was more interesting, and that's not saying much.

But, despite the above, I did enjoy IV...

David Morris.

On Mon, Oct 19, 2009 at 12:50 PM,  <kelber at mindspring.com> wrote:
> Great thought-provoking post, Joseph (as usual).  Some provoked thoughts:  Coy-Orpheus playing Brazilian music ties in with the Brazilian movie Black Orpheus.  Might Shasta be Persephone, also returning from the Underworld,though probably not on a permanent basis where Doc's concerned?  And Doc, then, is Odysseus, also returning from his quest into the Underworld?  A case could also be made for Coy as Odysseus, in that he descends into the Underworld on his own while his wife waits for him at home.  Like Odysseus, Coy returns home.  Doc is lost in fog at the end, much as Slothrop disintegrates.  Not all journeys have a conventionally happy ending, but unhappy or indeterminate endings are a lot more interesting.