Pym people names

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Vdredenburgh(two references in the narrative of A. Gordon Pym). Have almost certainly identified the man(later a judge)with the help of the clan web sites, but no details of their having met of why he was summarily included and killed off. Might be an undeveloped connection to the first reference to Barnard's ship's outfitting company.

-- Anonymous, April 30, 2001

Answers

About VREDENBURGH in "PYM". In Dutch, the word "VREDE" means "peace", and "BURG" (without "h") is the German for "castle", "citadel", or even "borough". Thus, the Anglicized compound mixture "Vredenburgh" (in a Dutch-German- Knickerbocker-like form of language, often exploited by others than Poe,e. g. Irving, Paulding, Willis, Marryat, Grattan, James and a lot of Stellae Minores) may signify "Peaceful Place", "Peaceful State", "Havre de Paix" (in French) -- a very suitable name, indeed, real or fictitious, for a nautical firm hoping to win anybody's trust... Poe, being sufficiently earnest and sagacious in linguistics, could jocularly choose this name in order to convey some idea of security, of stability for the Company in question. Note that the always scrupulous Baudelaire, when translating "Pym", silently deleted the "h", and gave the more exact name of "Vredenburg" for European eyes and ears. Another "VREDENBURGH" (Peter) appears in chapter XVII... and disappears at once, drowned in icy waters. If I guess right, here Poe used again the same - coined or authentic - cognomen, just as to say us that what has happened till now was but trifles in comparison with what has still to come. The departed "Peaceful State" ( Peter-Rocky Vredenburgh) may be token as an ill omen for the last part of this highly symbolic and portentous narrative. Why not? Yours sincerely, Raven's Shade (Belgium).

-- Anonymous, November 16, 2001

Right-angled writer or ghostly trust-company??

Blah, blah, blah

What is the link between the Peaceful -castle & a pun-dit Pym ? THE FIRST LETTER; no less, no more

Blabber from White-land.

Originally established in symbol font

-- Anonymous, November 24, 2001


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