Small World Part Four

I’m sure we could all discuss the outcomes of each characters ends for pages but I’ll be brief. I enjoyed the ending of Arthur Kingfisher’s story. He regains his creative thinking and therefore sheds his impotency in the same way the Fisher King would have if Perceval asked those questions; Persse asked the question, the original thought Kingfisher yearned for to inspire his mind and restore his role as “king” of academia. I guess I don’t really have a question but rather would just like to have a discussion, a traditional blog post.

The whole ending, for most, as a reaction to Persse’s question was brilliant and excellent filled that gap left by Chrétien’s story; at least in my mind. The way the rejuvenated breeze blowing through New York City brought peace and ease to the mind of the “knights” we have read about and Arthur Kingfisher looked out over this new “kingdom” and simply states “Hey, how d’you like this? The air is like wine. Come over here and breath” to Song-Mi; these talented breezes sweep away the “knights” and it liberates them.

Another fascinating quality of Kingfisher’s end is the way Lodge introduces more of this theme of connected bloodlines. The way relatives seem to be spontaneously rejoined. We saw it in the maternal side of Perceval’s family and we see it here with Kingfisher and Mrs. Maiden being the biological parents of Lily and Angelica.