Re: OT: White Goddess

On Sun, 8 Apr 2001, Aidan Grey wrote:

>    As dar as mathematical, philosophical, historical
> truth, yes, there are big gaping holes. Graves
> explains in the introduction that the work should be
> taken as mythopoetic fact, that is, fact in the same
It should not be taken as fact at all.  It should be taken as what it
is--a para-novel.  If it is true to its internal vision, then it meets
the necessary criteria.  Using the word "fact" implies consonance with
external referents, which do not apply to (and indeed are not necessary
for) Graves's work in this case.

_The Long Weekend_, on the other hand, should be checked against internal
referents.

> historical "inconsistencies", but the ideas do hold up
> in a mythical sense, regardless of the historical or
This is a dodge.  _White Goddess_ is a work in the genre of "mythological
fiction", something that wasn't accepted to have existed in Graves's day,
and today tends to get lumped into the category of "fantasy fiction".

Graves, himself, probably would have had a hissy over the work being
classified as mythological fiction, but he desperately needed the burr up
his backside agitated more than it was.

If you will excuse me, I have a pumpkin to pay obeisance to.