Rusty Burke wrote:
>
> Well, of course he doesn't admit to self-plagiarism. It's quite possible that he
>didn't even
> recognize what he was doing. But when I read "Xuthal of the Dusk" and then read
>"Red Nails," I
> find it striking that the basic plot is pretty much identical, with Conan and a
>female companion
> stumbling upon an ancient city lost to the knowledge of man out in the desert, a
>city in which
> super-science features prominently, a city which, once entered, appears to be an
>entirely enclosed
> maze of rooms and passages, through which roam supernatural menaces, a city in which
>they
> encounter a dark-featured, beautiful woman who turns out to be a princess of Stygian
>origin who
> figured in a rebellion and was brought to this city many years before, who attempts
>to kill
> Conan's companion --
This sounds very similar to something I just said on Friday in replying to Jason re
Red Nails
"otherness":
"If you look at the devices, they are known: the lustful pursuit, the ritual fight,
the forest, the
monsters (dragons), the flight for life, the desert, the enclosed city, the lost city,
the lost
race, the feud, the catacombs, the vampire, the lustful king, the avenging outcast,
and the
whipping. Damn, I think ol' Two Gun managed to fit just about every plot device in
there..."
In general, it is my opinion that an author damn well knows everything he has written
and is indeed
influenced by it and seeks it when bereft of ideas. ERB is well noted for his
self-plagarism. I was
quite surprised at this when I got into reading the Tarzan tales 30+ years ago. In
fact, in some
instances copied wholesale sections to another book. Certainly a bit more severe than
anything
Howard did. As rightly pointed out there is no "direct" evidence that he did so, just
the
circumstantial. Still, that remains highly suspect since they came from the same
author, an author
we have noted as having excellent recall. It is a natural progression for all
individuals to call
upon their past experience and knowledge when doing some current job. It is not easy
for someone to
break the barriers of their knowledge and experience and approach something from a
"new"
perspective. A drug induced state or catastrophic event might help, but other than
that, it's not
going to happen.
I don't know if anyone has ever done a study of plot elements but I'm not sure that
they are
important in themselves. Countless books by countless authors use the same plot
devices yet remain
convincingly different and fresh. Howard does this with skill.
Scotty Henderson
