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Ben2112 View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: Genesis question:
    Posted: March 18 2005 at 21:12

OK I have looked in every dictionary I can find, including on-line ones, and I have had no luck. So please, if anyone knows:

 

What the heck is a "unifaun"?

Is it a misspelling? English colloquialism? Something Peter Gabriel made up just to confuse us?

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 18 2005 at 21:17

Faun

n. Roman Mythology

Any of a group of rural deities represented as having the body of a man and the horns, ears, tail, and sometimes legs of a goat.

In this case only one horn I suppose
I'm always almost unlucky _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Id5ZcnjXSZaSMFMC Id5LM2q2jfqz3YxT
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 18 2005 at 21:18
I'm guessing Gabriel combined "unicorn" with "Faun" himself- but I could be wrong. Anyone else?
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 18 2005 at 21:19

Ah, thank you. Been wondering about that for years, though the answer really doesn't make it any less mysterious.

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 19 2005 at 03:01

Someone in Genesis must have owned a copy of Jorge Luis Borge's Imaginary Beings book.The Unifaun dosen't make an appearence in it but The Squonk and The Lamia do.

Do 'The Stanley' otherwise I'll thrash you with some rhubarb.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 19 2005 at 04:29
Squonk and Lamia - came about from Genesis's pyblic schooling - they would have studied mythology especially Greek/Roman Mythology - Thus the music was inspired by their education and exposure to the classics..Thats what sets them apart somewhat......
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 19 2005 at 11:06

Quote Someone in Genesis must have owned a copy of Jorge Luis Borge's Imaginary Beings book.The Unifaun dosen't make an appearence in it but The Squonk and The Lamia do.

Even though Borges is my all time favorite writter (Love The Aleph and Ficciones read both severall times) I don't believe he has relation with Genesis.

Borges is well known for using mythological creatures from different cultures in hois books, he's one of the strongest representatives from the "Real Wonderful Latin American Genre), he clearly took both characters from different countries mythology:

The Squonk is a legendary creature from the Hemlock forests of north-central and north-western Pennsylvania.

The Lamia was according to the ancient greeks a vampire who stole little children to drink their blood.

Unifaun is a word game constantly used by Peter Gabriel (butterflies, flutterbyes, gutterflies), in this case the song is inspired in the epic poem by T.S. Elliot, "Wasteland, who used resources from Greek Mythology, so Peter tried to represent the fantastic and real from the British story or culture, mixing the words Uniform - Unicorn - Unifaun.

He even used a Roman - Greek uniform (The two have similarities) to represent Brittania when he sang this track.

Iván



Edited by ivan_2068
            
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 19 2005 at 11:16
The genesisologist has spoken... Ivan, i really admire the deep kwnoledge you have about Genesis!
Please forgive me for my crappy english!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 20 2005 at 02:03
Originally posted by ivan_2068 ivan_2068 wrote:

[quote]Someone in Genesis must have owned a copy of Jorge Luis Borge's Imaginary Beings book.The Unifaun dosen't make an appearence in it but The Squonk and The Lamia do. <!-- Signature -->


Even though Borges is my all time favorite writter (Love The Aleph and Ficciones read both severall times) I don't believe he has relation with Genesis.



'Listen to the old one speak,Of all he has lived through...'
For him there is no mystery...'

No.I don't belive that Borges had a relationship with Genesis either.I didn't do classics at school but have read Borges' book,Imaginary Beings, and that's where my knowledge came from.

Do 'The Stanley' otherwise I'll thrash you with some rhubarb.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 20 2005 at 18:13

Quote 'Listen to the old one speak,Of all he has lived through...'
For him there is no mystery...'

Ehem, Man Erg, I believe you're 4 years olderthan me

Back to Borges, if you like Imaginary Beings, try The Aleph, it will blow your mind.

A real genius, thanks God that because of politics he never won the Nobel Prize even when he was a nominee for almost 30 years.

His work is so great that winning any prize that lets politics decide who deserves it  would be an insult for him.

Iván

            
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 21 2005 at 03:30
Originally posted by ivan_2068 ivan_2068 wrote:

Back to Borges, if you like Imaginary Beings, try The Aleph, it will blow your mind.


A real genius, thanks God that because of politics he never won the Nobel Prize even when he was a nominee for almost 30 years.


His work is so great that winning any prize that lets politics decide who deserves it  would be an insult for him.


Iván



Cheers Ivan

I shall look out for it

Do 'The Stanley' otherwise I'll thrash you with some rhubarb.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 21 2005 at 06:10
Originally posted by ivan_2068 ivan_2068 wrote:


Even though Borges is my all time favorite writter (Love The Aleph and Ficciones read both severall times) I don't believe he has relation with Genesis.

Borges is well known for using mythological creatures from different cultures in hois books, he's one of the strongest representatives from the "Real Wonderful Latin American Genre), he clearly took both characters from different countries mythology:

The Squonk is a legendary creature from the Hemlock forests of north-central and north-western Pennsylvania.

The Lamia was according to the ancient greeks a vampire who stole little children to drink their blood.

Unifaun is a word game constantly used by Peter Gabriel (butterflies, flutterbyes, gutterflies), in this case the song is inspired in the epic poem by T.S. Elliot, "Wasteland, who used resources from Greek Mythology, so Peter tried to represent the fantastic and real from the British story or culture, mixing the words Uniform - Unicorn - Unifaun.

He even used a Roman - Greek uniform (The two have similarities) to represent Brittania when he sang this track.

Iván

Hi Ivan,

Thank you for the Unifaun bit because you actually confirmed what I thought for years. We had all asked ourselves what that meant and my guess was as close as can be to your explanation.

Did not know for the Squonk bit. I thought it was that sort of rat that is related to the cover and stands by the lyrics of that song.

Hugues

let's just stay above the moral melee
prefer the sink to the gutter
keep our sand-castle virtues
content to be a doer
as well as a thinker,
prefer lifting our pen
rather than un-sheath our sword
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 21 2005 at 09:46
The "Squonk" - Is it not described in the album notes - I think it is !!!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 21 2005 at 10:06
Originally posted by ivan_2068 ivan_2068 wrote:

Unifaun is a word game constantly used by Peter Gabriel (butterflies, flutterbyes, gutterflies), in this case the song is inspired in the epic poem by T.S. Elliot, "Wasteland, who used resources from Greek Mythology, so Peter tried to represent the fantastic and real from the British story or culture, mixing the words Uniform - Unicorn - Unifaun.

 

And as you write it Ivan, now clearly directly derived from the common writing styles of Victorian writers/poets, Lewis Carroll  and Edward Lear, for instance The Hunting of The Snark, The Owl & The Pussycat - which in turn goes back to another Oxbridge don Dr Spooner ('Friar Tuck' and all that), and then further to the 18th century Anglo-Irish playwright Sheradan's character, Mrs Malaprop. Similarly the love of strange and obscure words, is clearly found in the writings of Mervin Peake (e.g. Titus Groan trilogy), which was almost as popular read as Lord of The Rings in the late 60's/early 70's - Peake died about 40 years ago.

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 21 2005 at 10:41
Originally posted by ivan_2068 ivan_2068 wrote:

The Squonk is a legendary creature
from the Hemlock forests of north-central and north-western
Pennsylvania.




I live in eastern pennsylvania, and we don't have any squonks 'round here.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 21 2005 at 10:47
Sqonk is from "Native American" (Indian) legend I think..........
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