Feet of Clay Discussion **Spoilers**

[Tonyblack]

You have two weeks to read or reread Eric for the discussion starting on Monday 4th July.

[ChristianBecker]

Ohhh.... I'm looking forward to that one.

@Tony:

The wallpaper thing in FoC is a double reference (or at least I think so and the Annotated Pratchett File agrees on that).
One is to "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, which I have never read (but my girlfriend had to and she told me the plot.)
The other reference is to the GREEN colour on the wall:

Copper acetoarsenite was used as a green pigment known under many names, including 'Paris Green' and 'Emerald Green'. It caused numerous arsenic poisonings. Scheele's Green, a copper arsenate, was used in the 19th century as a colouring agent in sweets.[

[poohcarrot]

It'll be pretty short, I reckon.

[pip]

Can start reading it five mins before the discussion then

[Tonyblack]

Ohhh.... I'm looking forward to that one.

@Tony:

The wallpaper thing in FoC is a double reference (or at least I think so and the Annotated Pratchett File agrees on that).
One is to "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, which I have never read (but my girlfriend had to and she told me the plot.)
The other reference is to the GREEN colour on the wall:

Copper acetoarsenite was used as a green pigment known under many names, including 'Paris Green' and 'Emerald Green'. It caused numerous arsenic poisonings. Scheele's Green, a copper arsenate, was used in the 19th century as a colouring agent in sweets.[

The dumb waiter plot rings a bell with me as well. I'm not a great reader of mysteries, but I have the feeling that there are certainly a few referenced in this book.

I loved the bit about not being able to find clues because of all the fingerprints.

[The Mad Collector]

Ohhh.... I'm looking forward to that one.

@Tony:

The wallpaper thing in FoC is a double reference (or at least I think so and the Annotated Pratchett File agrees on that).
One is to "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, which I have never read (but my girlfriend had to and she told me the plot.)
The other reference is to the GREEN colour on the wall:

Copper acetoarsenite was used as a green pigment known under many names, including 'Paris Green' and 'Emerald Green'. It caused numerous arsenic poisonings. Scheele's Green, a copper arsenate, was used in the 19th century as a colouring agent in sweets.[

Napolean is supposed to have been poisoned by the green wallpaper in his bedroom on St Helena

[Tonyblack]

Now you mention it - I think I may have heard of that.

[raisindot]

Did anyone find the 'gotcha' moment when Vimes claimed to prove that Dragon had poisoned the candles to be a little bit lame?

After all, Vimes had been accusing him of poisoning the candles all along, and Dragon had been providing a rather strong alibi to prove he had nothing do with it.

Then, when Dragon starts weakening, he looks at the candles in his study and accuses Vimes of poisoning them. Vimes says that Dragon's glance proves his guilt. How does it, though? If Vimes hadn't mentioned the poisoned candles at all during their conversation and Dragon had glanced at the holy water candles, there might have a been a case to make (the old "I never told you how Colonel Mustard was murdered. How did you know that someone bludgeoned him with a candlestick in the library?" gambit.) But Vimes had already told him how the poisoning occurred.

I also found it quite a bit stretching that Dragon wouldn't have immediately known that Vimes was in his study when he returned. Or that he didn't immediately turn into a swarm of bats when Dorfl grabbed him. (How the Watch would have been able to even keep him inside a cell is a challenge in itself).

[ChristianBecker]

Can't remember the scene exactly, since I'm not that far, yet. But if it is like you say, then it is really a bit lame.

On the other hand Dragon DID come up with the motto Art brought forth the candle/ Ars enixa est candelam - that nearly is a confession in itself.

A bit off topic: Pterry often uses Latin-ish phrases and most of the time they're not correct (for humourous reasons or for the readers the better to understand them.) But I always wondered about Ars enixa est candelam. Who thought this one up for Pterry (who, if I remember correctly, does not know Latin)? Not only is it correct latin, "eniti" is also quite an uncommon word (I had never before seen it and I studied Latin).
I really marvelled at that motto.

[Tonyblack]

What exactly does Ars enixa est candelam translate as? Vimes seems to know - eventually, but I don't think Terry explains it.

[The Mad Collector]

"Art Brought Forth the Candle.", Vimes starts off with that and translates it into latin himself

[ChristianBecker]

As The Mad Collector said.
Here in more detail:

Ars, artis feminine = Art (as in a work of art)
eniti, enitor, enixus sum = to bring forth (enixa because ars is feminine, est because it's thrid person singular); enixus sum/ enixa est is (roughly) present perfect.
candela, ae, f.`= candle (candelam because it is accusative case and eniti is a transitive verb)

[Tonyblack]

Yes, I realised that it was Art Brought Forth the Candle, it's just that Vimes seems to make such a point about the translation that I thought I was missing something.

Oh well.

[ChristianBecker]

I think the point Vimes is making is that it was quite nasty of Dragon to put the solution to to the riddle how the patrician was poisoned right there in front of him in the first place. But it was so well hidden (in a way) that he didn't spot it.

Arsenix(a) est candel(am) - The arsenic is the candle. Add to that the poisonous lamp (lamp au poisson) on top of the crest.

[Tonyblack]

I think the point Vimes is making is that it was quite nasty of Dragon to put the solution to to the riddle how the patrician was poisoned right there in front of him in the first place. But it was so well hidden (in a way) that he didn't spot it.

Arsenix(a) est candel(am) - The arsenic is the candle. Add to that the poisonous lamp (lamp au poisson) on top of the crest.

Ah! Yes, now I can see it. I thought the must be more to it than that.

You'd never think that I enjoyed doing cryptic crosswords, would you?