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<p>
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<b>Contents:</b>
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<a href="#hist">Historical</a> -
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<a href="#classic">Classical</a> -
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<a href="#modern">Modern</a> -
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<a href="#jmsworks">JMS</a>
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<p>
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<hr>
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<p>
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Scattered throughout the series are references, both explicit and subtle,
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to historical events and literature. The following are some of them (this
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list is incomplete;
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<a href="mailto:koreth+lgfeedback@midwinter.com">send me mail</a>
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if you've seen others.)
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<h2><a name="hist">Historical references</a></h2>
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<ul>
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<li>
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The most obvious reference is historical; the very name of the series
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implies a link to
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<a href="/lurk/ftp/History.Babylonia.html">Babylonian history</a>.
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JMS has hinted that the long-term storyline bears much resemblance
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to the history of ancient Babylon. Babylon, of course, is frequently
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mentioned in the Bible; some of those mentions have been
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<a href="/lurk/ftp/biblical-references">collected</a>
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for easy reference. Also available are introductions to the
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<a href="http://pubpages.unh.edu/~cbsiren/assyrbabyl-faq.html">Assyrian/Babylonian</a>
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and
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<a href="http://pubpages.unh.edu/~cbsiren/sumer-faq.html">Sumerian</a>
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mythologies.
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<p>
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<li>
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There are also several parallels to World War II, especially in the show's
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second and third seasons. Sometimes this is acknowledged explicitly; witness
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Sheridan's talk about Churchill in
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<a href="/lurk/guide/038.html">"In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum"</a>
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or Lantz's line about "peace in our time" in
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<a href="/lurk/guide/044.html">"The Fall of Night,"</a>
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which echoes a speech by British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain after
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Britain signed a treaty with Nazi Germany.
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<p>
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<li>
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Garibaldi is named for Giuseppe Garibaldi, a figure from Italian history.
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According to "The Columbia History of the World":
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<blockquote>
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<img alt="" width=80 height=100 align=right src="/lurk/gif/chars/giuseppe.gif">
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The time was ripe for the whole Italian structure to topple. While
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north central Italy was in ferment, clamoring for annexation to
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Sardinia, Giuseppe Garibaldi, the romantic knight of liberty,
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launched from Genoa the picturesque adventure of his Thousand
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Red Shirts; he landed in Sicily in May, 1860. His filibustering
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expedition may fairly be described as a joyous war. Sicily
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overrun, Garibaldi crossed the straits to the mainland; he
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entered Naples in September. Garibaldi was a colorful, romantic
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enthusiast, an appropriate symbol of Italian nationalist feeling,
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but he was no diplomat.
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</blockquote>
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<p>
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The additional reference here is to the original Star Trek; Trek fandom
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uses the term "red shirts" to refer to the (often disposable) security
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personnel on the Enterprise, who wear red uniforms. Naming a security
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chief after the head of the real Thousand Red Shirts is thus simultaneously
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a historical reference and an inside joke for SF fans.
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<p>
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<li>
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The transport <cite>Marie Celeste</cite>, mentioned in the background
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dialogue in several episodes, is a reference to a sailing ship
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found adrift on the sea in 1872 by the crew of the ship <cite>Dei
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Gratia</cite>. The <cite>Celeste</cite>'s crew was missing, as was her
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single lifeboat, but there were half-eaten
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meals in the mess hall and other evidence the crew had left suddenly.
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Investigators found that Captain Morehouse of the <cite>Dei Gratia</cite> had
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dined with Captain Briggs of the <cite>Celeste</cite> the night before
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departure, and Morehouse and his crew were tried for murder. There was no
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hard evidence, and they were acquitted. The missing crewmen were never found.
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<p>
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<li>
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Sheridan's Starfury is emblazoned with the logo of the Flying Tigers (used
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with the permission of the real-life group, in fact.)
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<p>
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<li>
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The liner <cite>Asimov</cite> is, of course, named after Isaac Asimov.
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<p>
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<li>
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|
The Rush Act in
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<a href="/lurk/guide/012.html">"By Any Means Necessary"</a>
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was named after conservative political commentator and talk-show host
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<a href="http://www.eskimo.com/~jeremyps/rush/">Rush Limbaugh.</a>
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<p>
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<li>
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Bill Mitchell, Sinclair's wingman in
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<a href="/lurk/guide/008.html">"And the Sky Full of Stars"</a>,
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was named after U.S. General Billy Mitchell, who predicted the
|
|
rise of air power. A vocal critic of the military hierarchy,
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he was court-martialed for insubordination in 1925.
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<p>
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<li>
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Walker Smith (cf.
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<a href="/lurk/guide/014.html">"TKO"</a>)
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was the real name of boxer Sugar Ray Robinson.
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<p>
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<li>
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The swearing-in ceremony in
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<a href="/lurk/guide/022.html">"Chrysalis"</a>
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was modeled after the swearing in of Lyndon Johnson after the assassination
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of President Kennedy in 1963.
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<p>
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<li>
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The end of Sheridan's speech in
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<a href="/lurk/guide/023.html">"Points of Departure"</a>
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was from Abraham Lincoln's 1862 address to the US Congress. (The
|
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bracketed part wasn't quoted.)
|
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<blockquote>
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The fiery trial through which we pass, will light us
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down, in honor or dishonor, to the latest generation.
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[We know how to save the Union. In giving freedom
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|
to the slave, we assure freedom to the free -
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honorable alike in what we give, and what we preserve.]
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We shall nobly save, or meanly lose, the last best,
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hope of earth.
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</blockquote>
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<p>
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<li>
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Anna Sheridan's ill-fated ship, the Icarus
|
|
(<a href="/lurk/guide/024.html">"Revelations"</a>)
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is named after a figure from Greek mythology. Icarus was the son of Daedalus,
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|
who built a pair of wings from wax and feathers so Icarus could escape the
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island on which they were both imprisoned. Despite Daedalus' warnings, Icarus
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flew too close to the sun; his wings melted and he fell to his death.
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<p>
|
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<li>
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The transport Heyerdahl, on which the ISN reporter arrived in
|
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<a href="/lurk/guide/037.html">"And Now For a Word,"</a>
|
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is named for Thor Heyerdahl, a Norwegian anthropologist and explorer.
|
|
Heyerdahl is most famous for his 1947 Kon-Tiki expedition, in which he
|
|
attempted to prove that South American natives could have crossed the Pacific
|
|
by boat and populated the islands of Polynesia.
|
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|
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<p>
|
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<li>
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|
The assignment of political officers to military units (as in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/049.html">"Voices of Authority"</a>)
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was common practice in the Soviet Union, as were the purges of high-ranking
|
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officials alluded to in that episode.
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</ul>
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<h2><a name="classic">Classical literary references</a></h2>
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<p>
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|
<b>See Also:</b>
|
|
<a href="http://www.hypersven.com/poets.corner">Poets' Corner</a>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
<ul>
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|
|
|
<li>
|
|
Tennyson's
|
|
<a href="ulysses.html">"Ulysses"</a>
|
|
is quoted in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/000.html">"The Gathering"</a>
|
|
and
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<a href="/lurk/guide/005.html">"The Parliament of Dreams"</a>.
|
|
As it's one of Sinclair's (and JMS') favorite literary works, more
|
|
quotes and parallels are likely.
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<li>
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|
Sinclair's "How sharper than a serpent's tooth" comment in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/004.html">"Infection"</a>
|
|
is a reference to Shakespeare's
|
|
<A HREF="gopher://wiretap.spies.com/00/Library/Classic/Shakespeare/Tragedies/kinglear.sp">"King Lear"</a>.
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
Jason Ironheart in
|
|
<A HREF="/lurk/guide/006.html">"Mind War"</A>
|
|
says to PsiCop Kelsey, "You cannot harm one who has dreamed a dream
|
|
like mine." This is a Native American (Ojibwe) prayer of protection
|
|
against one's enemies.
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/007.html">"The War Prayer"</a>
|
|
is a reference to a
|
|
<a href="warprayer.html">Mark Twain story</a>
|
|
of the same name.
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/015.html">"Grail"</a>
|
|
and
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/056.html">"A Late Delivery From Avalon"</a>
|
|
both make reference to
|
|
<a href="http://reality.sgi.com/employees/chris_manchester/arthur.html">
|
|
Arthurian legend.</a>
|
|
|
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<li>
|
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<a href="/lurk/guide/036.html">"There All the Honor Lies"</a>
|
|
is a quote from Alexander Pope's "An Essay on Man."
|
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|
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<li>
|
|
The title of
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/018.html">"A Voice in the Wilderness"</a>
|
|
is a Biblical reference:
|
|
<blockquote>
|
|
In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,<br>
|
|
And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.<br>
|
|
For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The
|
|
voice of one crying in the
|
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wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
|
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(<cite>Matthew 3:1-3</cite>)
|
|
</blockquote>
|
|
|
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<li>
|
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The poem quoted by G'Kar in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/024.html">"Revelations"</a>
|
|
is "The Second Coming" by Yeats. The episode's guide page contains the
|
|
complete poem.
|
|
|
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<li>
|
|
In Londo's dream in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/031.html">"The Coming of Shadows,"</a>
|
|
G'Kar appears to be missing his left eye. This may be a reference to Norse
|
|
mythology, in which the god Odin gives up his left eye for wisdom.
|
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|
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<li>
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The title of the third-season episode
|
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<a href="/lurk/guide/049.html">"Passing Through Gethsemane"</a>
|
|
is a reference to the New Testament,
|
|
<a href="http://www.gospelcom.net/bible?passage=Matthew+26:30-50">Matthew 26:30-50,</a>
|
|
in which Jesus is failed by Peter and betrayed by Judas.
|
|
Gethsemane is also referred to, not always by name, in
|
|
<a href="http://www.gospelcom.net/bible?passage=Mark+14:32-52">Mark 14:32-52,</a>
|
|
<a href="http://www.gospelcom.net/bible?passage=Luke+23:39-51">Luke 23:39-51,</a>
|
|
and
|
|
<a href="http://www.gospelcom.net/bible?passage=John+18:1-13">John 18:1-13.</a>
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
In
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/058.html">"Ship of Tears,"</a>
|
|
Bester quotes from Edgar Allan Poe's
|
|
<a href="http://www.literature.org/Works/Edgar-Allan-Poe/amontillado.html">"The
|
|
Cask of Amontillado."</a>
|
|
|
|
</ul>
|
|
|
|
<a href="ships.html"><img
|
|
align=middle width=100 height=24 alt="[More Info]" border=0
|
|
src="/lurk/nav/moreinfo.gif"></a>
|
|
<em>A list of literary references in B5's ship names.</em>
|
|
|
|
<h2><a name="modern">Modern literary references</a></h2>
|
|
|
|
<ul>
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
The cult TV series
|
|
<a href="http://itdsrv1.ul.ie/Entertainment/Prisoner/the-prisoner.html">"The
|
|
Prisoner"</a>,
|
|
another favorite work of JMS, is often referenced, such as in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/006.html#prisoner">"Mind War"</a>
|
|
and
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/013.html#prisoner">"Signs and Portents"</a>.
|
|
The bulk of
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/008.html">"And the Sky Full of Stars"</a>
|
|
also bears much resemblance to several "Prisoner" episodes.
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
There are possible parallels between some of B5's storyline and the works of
|
|
<a href="/lurk/ftp/lovecraft.txt">H. P. Lovecraft.</a>
|
|
(That file contains spoilers up to
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/049.html">"Voices of Authority."</a>)
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
The antagonist in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/006.html">"Mind War"</a>
|
|
was named after Alfred Bester, author of "The Demolished Man," a classic
|
|
SF work about telepathy. The novel also featured a telepaths' guild similar
|
|
in many ways to B5's Psi Corps. Bester's partner Kelsey was named
|
|
after a character in an Ursula K. LeGuin story.
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
The interior of the machine in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/018.html">"A Voice in the Wilderness, Part 1"</a>
|
|
looks like a visual reference to the 1956 film <cite>Forbidden Planet</cite>,
|
|
but according to JMS, it's a coincidence.
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
In
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/020.html">"Babylon Squared,"</a>
|
|
Major Krantz says, "We've become unstuck in time," a phrase used by Kurt
|
|
Vonnegut Jr. in "Slaughterhouse Five." The episode itself might also be
|
|
considered a reference to that story, to some degree.
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
Elric, the Technomage in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/025.html">"The Geometry of Shadows,"</a>
|
|
is a reference to the hero of the Michael Moorcock series of the same name.
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
In
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/028.html">"A Spider in the Web,"</a>
|
|
it's stated that Amanda Carter's great-grandfather John piloted the first
|
|
colony ship to Mars. "John Carter of Mars" is a classic SF story by Edgar
|
|
Rice Burroughs; the character also appears in other Burroughs stories such as
|
|
<a href="ftp://mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu/pub/etext/etext93/pmars10.txt">
|
|
"Princess of Mars."</a>
|
|
See the
|
|
<a href="http://promo.net/pg/index.html">Project Gutenberg home page.</a>
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
In
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/038.html">"In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum,"</a>
|
|
among other episodes, the Ministry of Peace, or Minipax, is a reference
|
|
to "1984" by George Orwell.
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
Marcus quotes from Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/051.html">"Exogenesis."</a>
|
|
In the same episode, he also quotes from "Macbeth."
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
The title of the Crusade episode
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/506.html">"Ruling from the Tomb"</a>
|
|
is a reference to a quote from T.S. Eliot, "Saint and Martyr rule from
|
|
the tomb."
|
|
|
|
<li>
|
|
References to Tolkien's <cite>The Lord Of the Rings</cite> abound. For more,
|
|
see an article (not part of the Lurker's Guide) titled
|
|
<a href="http://katspace.net/b5/myth1.html">"The Mythic Well."</a>
|
|
|
|
<ul>
|
|
<li> <cite>The Lord Of the Rings</cite> takes place at the close of the
|
|
Third Age of Middle-Earth.
|
|
|
|
<li> The gathering evil is an ancient enemy, once repulsed by the White
|
|
Council, one shade removed from grey.
|
|
|
|
<li> G'Kar's parting words to Na'toth in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/022.html">"Chrysalis,"</a>
|
|
"Expect me... when you see me," are Gandalf's parting words to Frodo in
|
|
<cite>The Fellowship of the Ring.</cite>
|
|
|
|
<li> When Elric warns Vir away in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/025.html">"The Geometry of Shadows"</a>
|
|
he uses a line from <cite>The Fellowship of the Ring</cite> as well.
|
|
In the book, Gildor, an elf heading to the Uttermost West, says this to
|
|
Frodo (in reference to Gandalf):
|
|
|
|
<blockquote>
|
|
"... But it is said: Do not meddle in the affairs of wizards, for
|
|
they are subtle and quick to anger."
|
|
</blockquote>
|
|
|
|
<li> The Rangers in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/031.html">"The Coming of Shadows"</a>
|
|
and other episodes may be a reference as well. In the books,
|
|
the Rangers keep an eye on the growing darkness and report back
|
|
to the elves.
|
|
|
|
<li> The planet Z'ha'dum, on which explorers discovered an ancient evil
|
|
that had been buried for centuries
|
|
(<a href="/lurk/guide/038.html">"In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum"</a>)
|
|
bears similarity in name and in nature to Khazad Dum, the main kingdom
|
|
of the Dwarves. (Try switching the first two syllables.) In Tolkien's
|
|
story, the Dwarves uncovered an ancient beast, the Balrog, which had
|
|
been buried since the First Age. They fled Khazad Dum; many were
|
|
killed, and the place became a gathering point for other creatures
|
|
of darkness. See the guide page for
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/066.html#khazad">"Z'ha'dum"</a>
|
|
for another possible parallel (a spoiler for the episode.)
|
|
|
|
<li> The White Star is perhaps a double reference, both to the Black Star
|
|
(mentioned in
|
|
<a href="/lurk/guide/023.html">"Points of Departure"</a>)
|
|
and to the following passage from Tolkien:
|
|
|
|
<blockquote>
|
|
"There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor
|
|
high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle
|
|
for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he
|
|
looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned
|
|
to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought
|
|
pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small
|
|
and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for
|
|
ever beyond its reach."
|
|
</blockquote>
|
|
</ul>
|
|
|
|
</ul>
|
|
|
|
<h2><a name="jmsworks">Babylon 5 References in other JMS works</a></h2>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
In the Captain Power episode "Final Stand," Tank mentions that he's from the
|
|
Babylon 5 Genetic Engineering Colony.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
In the Captain Power episode "A Summoning of Thunder Part 2," when Hawk
|
|
activates the first power suit, Mentor says, "And so it begins." This has
|
|
been confirmed by JMS as a "Koshism" he threw in.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
In the JMS novel "Othersyde," Babylon 5 is mentioned as one of the characters'
|
|
favorite TV series.
|
|
|
|
|
|
<pre>
|
|
|
|
</pre>
|
|
|
|
<p nowrap>
|
|
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<h5>
|
|
Last update:
|
|
November 5, 1999
|
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|
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</h5>
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</body>
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</html>
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