Is there something special about Miles' affinity for drains? Other than the fact that he's so small. I wonder whether his eventual Lord Auditor status could be considered the equivalent to being a "plumber," the "fix-it man."
When I read this, I immediately thought of Peter Wimsey complaining that the Government is using him "as a plumber, to plug up diplomatic leaks".
We know Herself has read Sayers (a la the title of A Civil Campaign; maybe we're meant to catch the connexion? A bit of foreshadowing (in a way, Miles stops up the biggest potential "leak" of all when he finds the runaway Gregor; and as an Auditor he's going to be dealing with a lot of sticky political situations)?
Or at least a quiet underscoring of his relationship to the Imperium? After all, as Gregor's foster brother as well as -- now, anyway -- someone Gregor trusts, he's pretty uniquely placed for dealing with sensitive cases. He even uses this in Cetaganda as the explanation for his courier position/odd chain of command!
It's also something of a reminder that Miles can come "unplugged" -- Gregor, back in Warrior's Apprentice, distrusted Miles's motives and suspected him of treason. If he ever loses Gregor's trust/favour, his job and possibly even his life would be... "Depositatum De Latrina" (if I may borrow from another author for a moment)!
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2009-07-05 10:05 pm (UTC)When I read this, I immediately thought of Peter Wimsey complaining that the Government is using him "as a plumber, to plug up diplomatic leaks".
We know Herself has read Sayers (a la the title of A Civil Campaign; maybe we're meant to catch the connexion? A bit of foreshadowing (in a way, Miles stops up the biggest potential "leak" of all when he finds the runaway Gregor; and as an Auditor he's going to be dealing with a lot of sticky political situations)?
Or at least a quiet underscoring of his relationship to the Imperium? After all, as Gregor's foster brother as well as -- now, anyway -- someone Gregor trusts, he's pretty uniquely placed for dealing with sensitive cases. He even uses this in Cetaganda as the explanation for his courier position/odd chain of command!
It's also something of a reminder that Miles can come "unplugged" -- Gregor, back in Warrior's Apprentice, distrusted Miles's motives and suspected him of treason. If he ever loses Gregor's trust/favour, his job and possibly even his life would be... "Depositatum De Latrina" (if I may borrow from another author for a moment)!