Trying to Find Specific Dominic Flandry (Poul Anderson) Quote relating to Staving Off the Long Night

[amit...@isipp.com]

Hello - one of my guy's favourite quotes from science fiction is a statement by Ensign Flandry. It is where he articulates that even though he knows it's hopeless, he continues to do what he does in hopes of staving off the Long Night for his loved ones (my guy is pretty certain that it's in response to someone asking him why he does what he does).

It's alluded to in Tiger by the Tail, but he doesn't say it explicitly. I'm trying to find the actual quote, so I can make it into a gift for my guy.

Does anybody have any thoughts on where I might find Flandry saying this explicitly?

Thank you!

Annie

[Robert Woodward]

In article <3f231191-dac2-48b7...@googlegroups.com>,

Perhaps in Chapter 10 of _Circus of Hells_.

[Anne P. Mitchell, Esq.]

Robert, thank you! Is that fairly for sure? (I'll order the book if so - lots of his books are online in PDF, but not this one). Thank you again!

On Saturday, April 30, 2016 at 10:42:29 PM UTC-6, Robert Woodward wrote:
> In article <3f231191-dac2-48b7...@googlegroups.com>,

[Robert Woodward]

In article <7da161e9-a612-41a8...@googlegroups.com>,
"Anne P. Mitchell, Esq." <amit...@isipp.com> wrote:

Re: Flandry's quote about the Long Night (I found something in chapter
10 of _Circus of Hells_).

> Robert, thank you! Is that fairly for sure? (I'll order the book if so -
> lots of his books are online in PDF, but not this one). Thank you again!
>

I am not certain if that is the quote he is looking for. It does have a
young Flandry stating what on how far he would go to delay the Long
Night.

[Anne P. Mitchell, Esq.]

On Sunday, May 1, 2016 at 10:54:57 PM UTC-6, Robert Woodward wrote:
>
> I am not certain if that is the quote he is looking for. It does have a
> young Flandry stating what on how far he would go to delay the Long
> Night.

I don't know :-( And I can't ask him, because that would ruin the surprise. He just consistently says that when an inebriated Flandry is asked why he does what he does, given how futile it is, his response is that he does it to keep his loved ones safe from the long night for as long as he can.

You're an angel for trying to me out here..thank you!

Anne

[Robert Woodward]

In article <5a1eded3-c78d-42d1...@googlegroups.com>,

"Anne P. Mitchell, Esq." <amit...@isipp.com> wrote:

> On Sunday, May 1, 2016 at 10:54:57 PM UTC-6, Robert Woodward wrote:
> >
> > I am not certain if that is the quote he is looking for. It does have a
> > young Flandry stating what on how far he would go to delay the Long
> > Night.
>
> I don't know :-( And I can't ask him, because that would ruin the surprise.
> He just consistently says that when an inebriated Flandry is asked why he
> does what he does, given how futile it is, his response is that he does it to
> keep his loved ones safe from the long night for as long as he can.
>

Then what I found in _Circus of Hells_ probably isn't what you are
looking for.

[Robert Carnegie]

Google Books has at least some of the texts - but it may be
necessary to choose some exact words to search for.

I'm looking at two somewhat different explanations in a sentence
_The Last Knight of Terra_: "Was that always my real desire?
Not to chase down enemies of the Empire so I could go on
having fun in it, but to have fun chasing them down?"

Well - I've decided that having fun is our purpose in
this world, but having loved ones not having their share
of the fun spoils it for us.

I'm not clear if I'm looking at an early point in
Flandry's career here; as far as I remember, he tends
to accumulate at least temporary loved ones along the way
just as Captain Kirk does. I'm not sure whether their
collective welfare then becomes less or more of a concern.

[ba...@dontspam.silent.com]

His short story "Hunters of the Sky Cave" has this text:


"Eh, for sure. I suppose it's inevitable and so forth. Terra has been
too rich for too long: we've grown old and content, no more high
hazards for us. Whereas the Merseian Empire is fresh, vigorous,
disciplined, dedicated, et tedious cetera. Personally, I enjoy
decadence; but somebody has to hold off the Long Night for my own
lifetime, and it looks as if I'm elected."

and later...

"And yet, when the bombs finally roared out of space, when the
barbarians howled among smashed buildings and the smoke of burning
books hid dead men in tattered bright uniforms—when the Long Night
came, as it would, a century or a millennium hence, what
difference?—something of beauty and gallantry would have departed the
universe."

[Anne P. Mitchell, Esq.]

Thank you, guys, for trying to help me! I'm so sorry for the late response, I was out of town for what turned out to be all of last week. :-(

Anne

[Dan Swartzendruber]

In article <3f231191-dac2-48b7...@googlegroups.com>,
amit...@isipp.com says...

>
> Hello - one of my guy's favourite quotes from science fiction is a statement by Ensign Flandry. It is where he articulates that even though he knows it's hopeless, he continues to do what he does in hopes of staving off the Long Night for his loved ones (my guy is pretty certain that it's in response to someone asking him why he does what he does).
>
> It's alluded to in Tiger by the Tail, but he doesn't say it explicitly. I'm trying to find the actual quote, so I can make it into a gift for my guy.
>
> Does anybody have any thoughts on where I might find Flandry saying this explicitly?

Let me check. Not sure this would have been a young Flandry - back
then, he was mainly interested in wenching and partying :) Maybe when
he got older and more cynical?

[Anne P. Mitchell, Esq.]

On Monday, May 9, 2016 at 2:43:29 PM UTC-6, Dan Swartzendruber wrote:
>
> Let me check. Not sure this would have been a young Flandry - back
> then, he was mainly interested in wenching and partying :) Maybe when
> he got older and more cynical?

Hi Dan! Thank you for trying to help me! What I do know is that Flandry was, apparently, inebriated when asked, essentially, why do you do this when it's so hopeless? (And his answer was basically that he did it to stave off the long night for those he loves - apparently he wouldn't be so maudlin when not drunk?)

It's actually the part about it being an effort for his loved ones that is key to this.

Thank you!!

[Robert Carnegie]

It's a great excuse to be allowed to sit around re-reading
favourite science fiction - it's not for yourself, it's
for a friend (we're considering you a friend) and, what's
more, it's romantic! Although anyone's actual present
partner may disagree.

By the way, have you seen <https://notalwaysromantic.com/> ?
Frequent new additions to the archive. I took a break
and am currently reading backwards from page 85, gradually.
Content ranges from "sweeeet" to "only I would put up with
this person" to "so then I called the police".

[Anne P. Mitchell, Esq.]

On Wednesday, May 11, 2016 at 9:41:25 AM UTC-6, Robert Carnegie wrote:

> It's a great excuse to be allowed to sit around re-reading
> favourite science fiction - it's not for yourself, it's
> for a friend (we're considering you a friend)

Aww..thank you!

> and, what's more, it's romantic! Although anyone's actual present
> partner may disagree.
>
> By the way, have you seen <https://notalwaysromantic.com/> ?

Oh man, now *that's* a fun rabbit hole!

Anne

[Dan Swartzendruber]

In article <e432bb3c-3f3f-49cf...@googlegroups.com>,
amit...@isipp.com says...

Really bugs me, cuz I know I've seen the scene in question. Just can't
remember where :(

[Quadibloc]

On Friday, May 13, 2016 at 11:24:45 AM UTC-6, Dan Swartzendruber wrote:

> Really bugs me, cuz I know I've seen the scene in question. Just can't
> remember where :(

I remember - from one of the _earlier_ novels in the series - a comment on why he
does what he does, in relation to the Long Night, but it doesn't meet all the
parameters of the request.

John Savard

[Robert Carnegie]

Maybe we need to collect any such scenes, though, to triangulate.

I'm remembering in _Othello_ how our English teacher pointed
out that the bad guy - spoiler - Iago, has several soliloquies
in which... each time he produces a different excuse for
being the bad guy. Of course that's quite different.

And then there's Sherlock Holmes's doctor friend's war wound,
which was either imprecisely located, or mobile. _The Seven
Per Cent Solution_ (not by Doyle) placed it in his arm,
with an editor's footnote going "Huh?"

[Michael F. Stemper]

On 05/13/2016 12:24 PM, Dan Swartzendruber wrote:
> In article <e432bb3c-3f3f-49cf...@googlegroups.com>,
> amit...@isipp.com says...

Now, there's a name that I haven't seen in a lot of years.

This is just a guess, but I think it might be in _A Knight of Ghosts and
Shadows_, especially since that's the only one in which Flandry has a
"loved one", as opposed to a fling.

--
Michael F. Stemper
This post contains greater than 95% post-consumer bytes by weight.

[Brian M. Scott]

On Fri, 13 May 2016 15:37:06 -0500, "Michael F. Stemper"
<michael...@gmail.com> wrote
in<news:nh5dmt$pp6$1...@dont-email.me> in rec.arts.sf.written:

[...]

> This is just a guess, but I think it might be in _A
> Knight of Ghosts and Shadows_, especially since that's
> the only one in which Flandry has a "loved one", as
> opposed to a fling.

I think that in a quieter way Banner, at the end of _A
Stone in Heaven_, is rather more than a fling. Of course
Flandry is a lot older, too.

Brian
--
It was the neap tide, when the baga venture out of their
holes to root for sandtatties. The waves whispered
rhythmically over the packed sand: haggisss, haggisss,
haggisss.

[Anne P. Mitchell, Esq.]

>
> > This is just a guess, but I think it might be in _A
> > Knight of Ghosts and Shadows_, especially since that's
> > the only one in which Flandry has a "loved one", as
> > opposed to a fling.
>
> I think that in a quieter way Banner, at the end of _A
> Stone in Heaven_, is rather more than a fling. Of course
> Flandry is a lot older, too.

The way I've always heard it was for his loved ones (not necessarily in those words) - such as...family, not (just) romantic interest. What has been consistent in the telling is that he is..not entirely sober, and so a bit maudlin, or, at least, more..open.

Gosh guys, thanks so much for trying to figure this out for me!! You guys rock!!

Anne (Hi Michael!)