Official Discussion Forum for the works of Stephen R. Donaldson
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Do we have ANY evidence that normal reflections even exist in Mordant? All mirrors are magical and it might be simply that normal mirrors do not exist as we know them in Mordant.danlo wrote:I'll have to really research that--but possibly the same properties in Mordant's sand that allow for mirror imaging do not allow for window glass to reflect...
Very true, the very antithesis of Terisa's apartment, isn't it?Ryzel wrote:Do we have ANY evidence that normal reflections even exist in Mordant? All mirrors are magical and it might be simply that normal mirrors do not exist as we know them in Mordant.
True...SRD evades this subject (brilliantly)...But there is a difference between normal reflections and flat glass right...flat glass shows you a place in the world you live in right, and if you had a flat mirror in you room at Orison and you would look at yourself, (If you had the time without going insansane) and raise your right arm it wouldn't mirror your gesture as we know it, you would see yourself raising the wrong arm...that means the right arm, ahrm, you know what I mean, like looking at a picture... But if you look into a river from a bridge or into a big silverbowl and raised your right arm? Wouldn't it really reflect as it does in our world?...Myste wrote:Terisa asks the same question, and the answer is, for all practical purposes, no. Terisa asks both Saddith and Geraden (at different times) how they see themselves. Saddith tells Terisa that the point of having a maid is to have someone to tell you when you look like crap or your buttons are done up wrong. Geraden explains that in general, people in Mordant are so afraid of being accidentally translated (or ending up) that they avoid their reflections even in mud puddles.Spoiler
like Eremis
At one point, Terisa even tries moving the lamps around in her room in Orison to see if she can't get a reflection of herself from the windows, but it doesn't work well enough for her needs. It's not that normal reflections aren't there--it's just that everyone avoids them. It also appears that making mirrors is pretty much a hit-or-miss operation (with the exception of Vagel, who can pretty much make any mirror he wants), so the chances of an Imager accidentally creating a flat glass that just happens to show the exact spot he's standing in are pretty slim.
At least, that's my understanding.
Feels good to be back...what a great book TMOHD is! It's been some years since I last read it and it's a killer...again. It really sweeps you in with it's imignative storytelling and it's characters...