Posted by Jock on September 03, 2006 at 13:16:55 from 87.105.81.146 user Jock.
In Reply to: Re: The S&A Films posted by Jenny Berki on September 03, 2006 at 12:01:07:
How can I find the old thread about the Mastodon's Dilemma? The search facility seems to lead to 41 zipped archive files - do I have to search each one?
There's no short cut that I know of. The archived posts are very interesting in themselves and include posts by Brigit Sanders, the model for the Ship's Baby, and the first president of TARS.
You could try appealing to Ian E-N, our webfooted webmaster, who has been known to be very helpful.
A brief summary of the Mastadon's Dilemma goes like this. If you enjoy the exploring and map-making of SW and the way that every day's timetable was shaped by the tides, you will almost certainly enjoy Erskine Childers's Riddle of the Sands, sometimes referred to as the first 'spy novel'. Childer's wrote Riddle as a wake up call for Britain's Navy to prepare for a German attack along the east coast. It is an extremly patriotic book. Childer's was also a prominent advocate of Irish independence, and was eventually tried and shot by the Irish Free State.
The Mastadon's Dilemma thesis goes like this: Ransome knew Riddle. It is one of the books that Dorothea picks up and puts down when she looks at the bookshelves of the Fram.
At one level we can regard Riddke as a place holder for the adventures of SW. The marshes and Islands of the Walton Backwaters taken the place of the Freisian Islands, the (at first) unknown Eels taking the place of the unknown danger which nearly cost Davies his life.
At the next level we experience Don's split loyalties when the edict comes from Daisy to drive out the Explorers at all costs. A tribute, perhaps to the split loyalties endured by Childers himself.
On the third level. Is there an autobiographical element in any of this? Did AR draw on his own experiences when Britain intervened in Russia against his revolutionary friends. AR acted as a conduit of communication between the new Russian government and the British Government at a time when the latter did not recognize the former. This was a real life role similar to that played by Bridget when the Swallows and the Eels were in the middle of a war.
BTW, a word of warning Riddle builds the tension incredibly slowly, the beginning of the book is so laid back that you find yourself falling asleep after the first few pages. PERSERVERE, it become a 'page-turner' that you will be unable to put down.