How come the West became One?

From: Erik Sieurin <BV9521_at_utb.hb.se>
Date: Thu, 1 Feb 1996 16:41:04 +0100


Joerg Baumgartner:
> The Rokari system isn't that different. Chivalry and nobility overlap, and
> any advance from peasant caste is through military service as a sergeant.
At the Risk of sounding as an Old Whiner: oh, how glorious the days when the Rokari didn't allow any caste mobility, and people "was born, lived and died within the same caste", and when that was simply the epitome of the general faith of the Malkioni and similar types. That made the Hrestoli Way a stunningly different (not "better", mind you, just different) type of religion. Nowadays anyone can move outta their caste, except the peasants of course. I furthermore strongly suppose this is not because this is More In Line With The Teachings of St Greg, or More Fun, or More Logical, but because everyone wants the West to be as similar to Western Europe Late Middle Ages as possible, for some unfathomable reason (with that I don _not_ mean standard ho hum pseudo-medieval Hollywood chivalry, mind you). Everyone knows that in that time there was a practical caste society , though not a strict one, and thus the Great Caste Crusher Conspiracy tries to change things.

By the way, could anyone tell me why the poor Westerners are the ony culture who never get the benefit of the doubt? The weird blasphemy of the Lunar's obscene empire, the bickering Theyalan barbarians, the slave-empire of Dara Happa, even the man-eating Uz monstrosities,  everyone is romaticised :"well, they keep slaves, but they are SOOO well treated", "well, they have a lot of blood feuds all the time, but they are SOOO Noble and Freedom-loving".
While the Poor Westerners All Are Bastards, Their Faith A Sham, Their Society A Disgrace.
Is this because we universally despise that period of European history it is inspired by, and that religion which dominated then? Where are the apologists of idealistic Loskalm, pragmatic and pious Sehsnela, the chivalrous Castle Coast, the wise Brithni, the mystically insightful Stygians?
Where, I ask you, where?

Erik the Why-king


Powered by hypermail