When authors refer to other great works, people, and events, it’s usually not accidental. Put on your super-sleuth hat and figure out why.
Literary and Philosophical References
- Leviathan—reference to both the Bible and a book written by Thomas Hobbes (throughout the book)
- Cyklop Stormwalker (2.4 and throughout)
- Beowulf (5.55)
- Gorgon (11.12)
- Minotaur (15.56)
- Herkules (or, you know, Hercules) (17.4, 36.51)
- Wotan (or, you know, Odin) (17.2)
Historical References
- Mozart (1.31 and throughout)
- Archduke Franz Ferdinand (1.5 and throughout)
- Princess Sophie (1.7 and throughout)
- Emperor Franz Joseph (1.50 and throughout)
- Huxley (as in Thomas Henry Huxley, we think) (4.17 and throughout)
- Charles Darwin (4.12 and throughout)
- Nor Barlow (throughout the book)
- Admiral Horatio Nelson (11.18)
- Admiral John Fisher (11.18)
- Princess Isabella of Cröy (35.34)
- Winston Churchill (40.26)