Neil Gaiman www.NeilgaimanBoard.com www.NeilgaimanBoard.com Neil's Other Works Fragile Things Neil's Instructions
www.NeilgaimanBoard.com www.NeilgaimanBoard.com Neil's Other Works Fragile Things Neil's Instructions|
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Member |
I teach 6th grade, and as part of our Fairy Tale unit, we read Neil's Instructions. Most of the fairy tale references are traceable, but I have been trying to trace one of the last lines... "There is a worm at the heart of the tower; that is why it will not stand." Any idea which fairy tale this is from?
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Administrator Member  |
that is from TH White's Once and Future King
~ You are an Accomptant. You keep track of the King's accounts, which is a fairly simplish job: his current holdings is always A LOT, and his expected revenue is always MORE. 'Sgood ta be da King. As long as there isn't a peasant uprising, you're likely to keep your head. Also, you're the only one in the office who knows how to use an abbacus. (Or multiply.) (Or add.) I prefer to live in a country that's small, and old, and where no one would ever have the NERVE to wear a cape in public, whether they could leap tall buildings in a single bound or not. |
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Wild horses did drag her away, once - long story Member  |
Cool! Can you be a little more specific as to what part? (I have the book at home but it's been some years since I read it . . . ) Thanks, g ********-------******** "this whole blonde doctor situation has me mortified" --- and I don't normally advocate music I love, but go see www.myspace.com/umbrellatree and thank me later! |
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*95 gold stars* Member  |
If it were two worms then I'd say it was Vortiger's tower from the early life of Merlin (The Prose Merlin of Robert de Boron is the earliest source), where as a kid he reveals that the tyrants tower collapses because in a pool beneath it are a red dragon and a white dragon fighting. All very emblematic.
But I'm struggling to remember where a worm in the heart of a tower appears alone in any of the Arthurian retellings. Hermits have no peer pressure |
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Archus dracomagii Member  |
Mary Stewart's The Crystal Cave includes the incident of the young Merlin's vision of red and white dragons ("worms"), and the fact that one of them was gnawing at the roots of Vortigern's tower at Segontium. I think it's in the mid-late section of the book, after Merlin returns to Wales from Brittany.
Stewart's notes at the end of the book quote & credit the original source (whatever it was). - Cho _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ You are a Confectioner. Who can take a sunrise and sprinkle it with dew? Actually, that's Bob The Enchanter, two doors down on the left. But you make delectable treats, which is no simple feat considering Oompa Loompas won't be invented for three centuries. Not only do you delight with your sweets, but you've paved the way for a new profession: dentistry! _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ the blog thing: From an Ayewards World ... |
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Member |
As soon as I read that line I knew that's what it had to be. My guess is the "heart of the towser" is just the foundation of the building itself.
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Neil Gaiman www.NeilgaimanBoard.com www.NeilgaimanBoard.com Neil's Other Works Fragile Things Neil's Instructions
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