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From: heahd@tellab1.UUCP (Dan Wood)
Newsgroups: net.books
Subject: Re: Clan of The Cave Bear
Message-ID: <290@tellab1.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 5-Jul-84 16:40:29 EDT
Article-I.D.: tellab1.290
Posted: Thu Jul  5 16:40:29 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 6-Jul-84 01:07:24 EDT
Organization: Tellabs, Inc., Lisle, Ill.
Lines: 45


    I enjoyed Clan of The Cave Bear enough to buy The Valley of Horses as soon
as it hit the stands. I'm also anxious for the third book in the series 
(which, by the way, is called The Earth's Children Series). The next book
should be out soon since it's been over two years since TVoH came out.

    I agree with Mr. Benson's review of TVoH as far as the rapid pace of
Ayla's inventions (she was a regular paleolithic Tom Edison) and the romantic
aspects of the plot. I also found it hard to swallow Ayla's ability to
befriend wild animals. I mean a pet cave lion that leaves it's prey to a human
on command? give me a break.  

    As far as Neanderthal religion is concerned, I think Ms. Auel (sp?) has 
done her home work rather well. The hints we do have about Neanderthal religion
involve burials that have been discovered through out Europe and the remains of
cave bears found in various shelters and sanctuarys that were apparently 
arranged in a ritualistic manner. Ms. Auel describes both of these in perfect 
detail. What she has done (and I think this is the main value of a well 
researched historical [or in this case, prehistorical] novel) is used her
imagination to fill in the blanks left by archeology and anthropology. While I 
admit that her ideas are only speculation that can never be verified, I think 
they're very plausible speculations.

   I feel that there is something to the idea of racial memory. For one thing,
I don't believe you have to call on the ghost of M. Lamarck to explain it
because we're not talking about learned behavior.  Racial memory does not 
imply that the memory that I wore a blue shirt to work last Tuesday is somehow
programmed into my DNA and then passed on to my offspring; it works on a more 
mythological and symbolic level. I think that racial memory goes a long way
towards explaining why mankind has worshiped some sort of power outside of
himself ever since Neanderthal man stared to bury his dead. As evidence of a
racial memory I offer the striking parallels between the mythologies of
cultures scattered all over the world and throughout time. Many of these
parallels can not be explained by accidents of history or geography. Our very
consciousness is programmed into our DNA and I see no reason why a collective 
unconsciousness could not have been programmed into the DNA at the same point 
on the evolutionary tree of mankind. 

Yrs. in Fear and Loathing,        
DW @ ...!ihnp4!tellab1!heahd
-- 


Yrs. in Fear and Loathing,        
DW @ ...!ihnp4!tellab1!heahd