tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post5197762040874162672..comments2024-03-27T16:48:21.039-05:00Comments on Wuthering <br>Expectations: through the very fact of his existence - one of Flaubert's saintsAmateur Reader (Tom)http://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-15680798645642413822016-08-03T10:23:45.785-05:002016-08-03T10:23:45.785-05:00Oh, real expertise, that's great. Flaubert re...Oh, real expertise, that's great. Flaubert really plays up the Celtic side of the story, as does Eça. His Saint Christopher is something of a Green Man.<br /><br />The Flaubert story is only 20 pages! And what choice did I have, as I was reading the Eça novel and thinking, again and again, "wait, where have I read this before?"Amateur Reader (Tom)https://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-42004960731379441982016-08-03T04:15:27.156-05:002016-08-03T04:15:27.156-05:00I started to comment on this here, but it became t...I started to comment on this here, but it became too long; I might have to post something on my blog to reply fully. I used to research medieval hagiography, and the trope of the hermit st was my field. It's a fascinating area: Giles, Blaise, Hubert, Eustace are the central figures in the 'hunter and hermit' stories, possibly arising from folktales of the Wild Man, the Green Man, and then the 'hairy anchorite'. Julian's legend is descended from these - and of course includes the Oedipus myth of the prediction (by yet another hunted deer, which miraculously turns to address hunter Julian) that he'll murder his own parents...Flaubert and EdeQ are perhaps attracted by the perverse psychology and polarity of themes (sacred v secular, holy v pagan, etc) that they deal with elsewhere in their fiction. I don't know how you find the time to range over such diverse material by so many authors so quickly, tom. And you probe them with an unerringly perceptiveness. Simon at Tredynas Dayshttp://tredynasdays.co.uknoreply@blogger.com