Osfour's City - Part I

While S. is being rowed ashore in Chapter 6 of the Ship of Theseus we get a description of the city he's going to:

"The city up ahead looks larger than either of the ones S. has visited thus far, sprawling out into the flatlands beyond, with minarets spiking the sky throughout. It is less brightly lit than S. would have imagined, considering the size. The city looks sleepy, tucked in on itself."

Clearly, the author is emphasizing that this is a large(r) city. The reference to minarets (hence mosques) indicates this is an Arabic / Muslim city. The city also has a lit harbor as is indicated on page 222.

As Osfour is waiting for S. to get dressed, he says:

" Vevoda has not needed the browncoats for years. Now he has a network of Agents who can blend in anyplace. You do not know when they are there, when they are not. Your neighbor, whose children play with your children, might be- "

While any battleground is filled with people of various allegiances, the capitalization of "Agents" as well as the insistence of Straka, according to footnote 8, gives me pause. I have done some preliminary digging but nothing has turned up so far.

A little later:

"I'm taking you to the resistance. They'll give you what you need."

Interesting to note that there is a resistance already in place.

Another item of interest is the specification that there are twelve Vevoda factories:

"His tightly guarded factories--twelve of them now, according to Osfour's sources--"

Then things get specific. Sort of.

"Of course," Osfour says. "The invasion of El-H---- is coming. Armies are crossing the desert as we speak."

Let's start with the obvious. "Armies are crossing the desert" means there is a desert to be crossed. This is another strong hint, in conjunction with the clothes being worn by our protagonist, that North Africa is where S. is in Chapter 6.

Now where exactly is El-H----? I'm going to leave that till later as there still might be clues further along in the chapter that help us find the answer.

To be continued...

Osfour's Clothing

Alright, now for my first contribution to the S. mystery! The word Osfour, in Arabic means bird. While not referring to a specific type, it is often used to describe little birds.

Osfour is also the name given to the character in Chapter 6 of SOT that guides S. through what seems to be an old middle eastern city. Osfour's appearance is described as follows:

"The stoop-shouldered man in the trees introduces himself as Osfour. Tobacco smoke wreathes his haggard face and the black checheya he wears low on his forehead. He wears a matching kaftan and trousers of loose-fitting grey linen, and flat, thin sandals on his feet."
SOT, Pages 222-223

Let's start with "black checheya" or chechia as it's sometimes spelled. The Chechia is the Tunisian and Libyan Arabic word used to describe a specific type of Fez, a traditional felt hat worn by inhabitants of the middle east. The Tunisian version is usually red and the Libyan version is usually black. Both do not have a tassel. So, the specification of a "black checheya" would indicate that Osfour and S. are at the very least somewhere in North Africa if not in Libya.


Next we need to understand what a kaftan is. As per Wikipedia:

"A kaftan or caftan ( قفطان qaftân) is a front-buttoned coat or overdress, usually reaching to the ankles, with long sleeves. It can be made of wool,cashmere, silk, or cotton, and may be worn with a sash. The caftan is of ancient Mesopotamian origin."

The kaftan comes in various colors with grey being a .winter color. The kaftan is also a traditional garment worn by both men and women in North Africa. Here is a picture of a man wearing a chechia and kaftan with trousers astride a horse as part of a Libyan festival. (Original Link)

I chose an image of a Libyan kaftan because we started with the very specific Libyan black chechia. I hope this leads somewhere!

Right after Osfour gives S. the clothes, he " pauses, waits for S. to start buttoning up". While chapter six could be describing the traditional clothes of most of North Africa, this appears to be confirmation that the type of kaftan is a buttoned down one and that we're on the right track.

Banner Image Relevance

I thought I would start by explaining what the Arabic script in the blog's banner image means. It's a very famous verse from a poem by Al-Mutanabbi. Al-Mutanabbi is widely regarded  as the greatest Arab poet of all time. In fact, his poetic skills were so strong, he believed he was destined to be a prophet. This is why people starting calling him Al-Mutanabbi or "The Would Be Prophet". His poetry often uses allegory and symbolism to convey complex pieces of wisdom.

As with most Arabic poetry much is lost in translation but the verse roughly translates to:



" A man does not attain everything he desires, winds can blow where ships would not go"

One of the themes in The Ship of Theseus is the helplessness S feels while he is aboard the ship. He does not know where he is nor where he is headed. Many of the literary images in the Ship of Theseus describe howling winds, storms, crashing waves, etc... Throughout the book, S. is searching for his identity but never finds it. At least not beyond what he can remember.

I hope this sheds some light on why I chose this verse for the blog's banner.

Introduction

I recently finished reading Abrams & Dorst's "S.". This blog is my humble attempt to, in addition to the already impressive work done by our fellow readers, contribute to the ongoing saga. Please feel free to post your comments and questions and I will do my best to reply as soon as possible.