I'm sorry I don't know, but I do know he writes cross-cultural works. I'll see if I can find anything, but so far I haven't come across any info.
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The one thing I recognize is that this is meant to be religious. Does that help at all? (Sorry, I can usually figure this stuff out.)
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Okay, after seeing nobody able to help, I decided to read the essay myself. VERY INTERESTING. Did you notice that the green bananas WORKED? It's obviously NOT a story about mechanics, though .
I keep thinking about the center of the earth rock and how it played into the whole thing.
I got a different answer than you. I don't see it as lies. It worked, so how could it be a lie?
Learning moment: He did not know that it would work, right? But it DID. It was a learning moment.
It seemed more about the fact that the green banana represented a couple of things: One, its time had not yet come, why? Because usually we wait and eat it when it's ripe. In his case, though, its time came when it was needed - for the radiator. The second thing I noticed was what he said: "the special potential of the green banana." Remember I said that he writes cross-cultural, religious-based essays? Well, think about it. You never know what your potential will be. Sometimes we leave "seeds of learning" along our way. We may play to be, say, an accountant, but some gal's car breaks down in front of you, you stop and help, and you get her home safely. Maybe you never become an accountant. Were you never successful? In the eyes of that gal, you were very successful!
If you pay attention, he actually explains about the banana and its special potentials. He also explains about the rock. No, the rock is not literally the center of the universe, but it was the center of THEIR universe, as it had special meaning to them. A Christian would think of his/her own church as their rock, the center of their lives. A Jew would think his/her synagogue the same way, and so on.
I hope this helps. They did not lie. They told the truth, and the banana got him where he was going - even if HE did not think that was the "green" banana's purpose in life. (He thought it was just a fruit!)
I truly hope this helps.