Stranger in a strange land

From: Michael Raaterova <michael.raaterova.7033_at_student.uu.se>
Date: Tue, 5 Dec 1995 15:13:46 +0100


John:

>Its a cultural truism: All foreigners are crazy - Romans, Lunars, Noo
>Yawkers, Melbournians, whatever. :-)

I agree with John. Most Gloranthans suffer from inbred xenophobia. Nobody trusts a stranger, unless said stranger has proved himself worthy of trust. He is still a furriner though, and thus socially awkward.

He might become more or less assimilated, but for a long time he'd still be one of Them, not one of Us (not Uz).

The categories of Us and Them are incredibly important for individuals and societies - it is a way of ordering a disorderly world into easily classified bits of didactic lego, with which to understand the world.

The distinction of Us and Them is of course in itself a piece of didactic lego - the degree of the sense of separation and otherness between people is of course relative. A Vantaros tribesman feels that a Princeros tribesman belong to Them when he is raiding their herds, but belongs to Us when they together are fighting against Kerofini robbers.

I'd posit two [highly related] types of identity-creating phenomena (and thus two ways of dividing people into Us or Them):

  1. Home Social environment is very important for the individual's sense of identity and belonging. Clothing, prejudices, mores, appearance, language/dialect and local ceremonies will be inbred in a person that don't travel outside his home land extensively. Historical enemies are of course part of Them.

I guess looks and language are most important when it comes to accepting outsiders - if they look and talk like you they're OK, even if they wash themselves in a rather special way and keeps mispronouncing Ernalda's name.

2) Cult
Belief system, strictures, myths (didactic and iconic) and magic also shape most of what the person is, or sees herself as. You want to be and act like your eidolon. The myths of the cult give a sense of what other cults are with or against your own.

Some cults are local and is thus part of the Home. But more widespread cults like Seven Mothers and Stormbull can create a sense of Us if the cultists are from different Homes.

What does it all mean? Well, it can be a handy tool for labelling people and thus making them known and predictable entities. If you don't have a clue about a specific individual you won't be able to relate to them or predict if they are friend or foe, which is a very annoying situation.

But if you know he is a Tovtaros Hunter you know what to reasonably expect in dealing with him.

If we take my and, to a certain degree, John's, Far Point as an example, there are at least 5 labels to name the degree of separation (differences in cult can aggravate or mollify the sense of estrangement) loosely based on the myth of "the First Hospitality":

  1. [Exotics] [Exotics] are treated with extreme caution - you don't understand what they say, you can't read their expressions or body language, you don't understand the significance of their symbols, you don't know their magics, and they are ugly and smelly. For no apparent reason they can get angry and try to kill you when you try to be nice and accomodating. Avoid them as often as possible.

Usually this is for the various non-human tribes and magical people like dryads and serpent women. Individual non-humans can of course be more accepted.

2) OUTLANDERS
At least they look like you, so you can be a bit more relaxed in delaing with them. Still, they dress, talk and smell wrong and follow strange gods. You can probably tell their emotional state, but you still don't know what magic they have and can zap you with, or what might provoke them, so avoid them if possible.

Lunars, Esrolians, Hsunchen and Praxians are all Outlanders.

3) STRANGERS
Strangers can be expected to be weird and do strange things, but usually you can reason with them as you've heard the traders and skalds talk a bit about them. Still they dress, talk and smell funny, and they have weird ideas about gods, even if you recognize some of them. They don't even have a Spring Festival. You'll better be prepared for irrational behaviour and magical surprises. They can't be trusted, even if they speak your tongue.

Kerofini, Sartarites, Tarshites and Praxians are all strangers

4) [From other tribe in Far Point]
>From a Vantaros perspective, the smelly lot of the Tovtaros and Princeros
dress and talk a bit weird, but at least you know what to expect from these thieves and bandits. They don't know the proper ceremonies for the gods and celebrate the Spring Festival all wrong. At least you understand what they say. They won't speak the truth, of course.

5) TRIBESMEN
The other clans in the tribe are OK, at least they're better than the thieving Princeros clans. Mind you, they don't know the proper way of greeting the Lady of the Wild, but you know they'll back you up in a fight against the Tovtaros.
The other clans will try to trade you the cattle they raided from the Apple Stead, but that's nothing to be surprised of - you can't trust someone who don't know Vinga's daughter is Silver Tongue and not Honey Words.

Of course there are lots of other things that you can use for labelling people into Us or Them - urban/rural, various taboos, weaponry, favored animals, beard fashion, straight or curved swords, preferred diet, traditional greetings and so on. But it is difficult to make general categories of people.

If share my view that most gloranthans are suspicious of strangers, my advise is that you should your own mind up about what things are relevant for labelling different categories of Them and Us.

I know this article isn't brilliantly written, but i think it contains a few good ideas. Use, abuse or ignore as you will.

Powered by hypermail