/lit/ - Literature

>>14151941
Youa re right. Wolfe is dense and his work does reward repeated readings but while some things are not outright stated they are pretty heavily implied.
Take your Wh40k remark. Although we don't know about it at the beginning we are reading about a culture that has been going on for so long the damn Sun is growing cold.
How is it implied?
When Severian talks about the construction of the citadel he lives in, namely that is was built in one piece instead of using the old building method (which if I remember correctly, he describes as a metal skeleton covered in building material). We have that horrific little thing that killed Tekla. The projectile weaponry, all those weird species in the botanical garden, etc.
And it's not just material things.
How about his thoughts on the current political system and it's encouragement of dueling? Compared to older democracies. That was going on before he went to the botanical gardens.
After a while you do get the feeling you ain't in Kansas any more.
You could also go in the other direction and think that every little thing has to have some consequence on the overall story.
Why wouldn't a fairly sheltered young man profess his love to every girl he meets along the way in hope of getting his dick went? Why should it be something deeper?
Fuck now I have to reread those books again. It's worse than VtMB.