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3 votes
2 answers
553 views

Why specify Mr. Berry looked into the brass like Snow White's queen in Ellison's "The Black Ball"?

My literature class assigned "The Black Ball" by Ralph Ellison. The strange white man offering a card for a union meeting has just left, and John's boss Mr. Berry has come to check on his ...
bobble's user avatar
  • 9,864
4 votes
1 answer
76 views

Why is Happy Buddha playing the "Titanic" theme in "How to Be Chinese"?

This is some description of the restaurant Happy Buddha from the short story "How to Be Chinese". Bolding is mine. Look around to see what it’s like in a real Chinese restaurant. The ...
bobble's user avatar
  • 9,864
5 votes
0 answers
105 views

Who are these historical people alluded to by R.A. Lafferty?

In "The Six Fingers of Time", by R. A. Lafferty, available for free here on Project Gutenberg, there is a claim that having an extra finger or toe is associated with genius. The text gives ...
Peter Shor's user avatar
9 votes
1 answer
182 views

What's with the reference to "Alice in Wonderland" in Nalo Hopkinson's "The Reverse Cheshire Cat"?

Nalo Hopkinson's "The Reverse Cheshire Cat" is obviously making a reference to Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, with the Cheshire Cat. The two protagonists enter a shop named "The Reverse Cheshire ...
Mithical's user avatar
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