Re: Nandandies Re: Real World Vingans

From: Michael Hitchens <michaelh_at_CgONFRpJyVf-E1sAmeHvFlcPEonxESDg6HIH0Cg4PxvdBr5GrzfINwh_dEP3qVTD027>
Date: Sat, 7 Apr 2007 14:29:21 +1000 (EST)


On Sat, 7 Apr 2007, donald_at_j3RNv3mGNIatnfIpTbmA7m0xexPNUkYZoJeHqXaTYhjnHpygmmT86eZlBfgA64PNV1MeqLNnJmmmifSm4rDOek70.yahoo.invalid wrote:

> In message <Pine.GSO.4.63.0704061544340.13794_at_mhR2AU4b_ucdB2-Mxc7FOzecTxoUl3Vm4rQq1VNG-Td9Owxp3qdU_3qPCjLLQemPRAPd9TwSwpmNkWVadMxk6ofMqm7k-8EcE5Ofb4LFzqpUPudKt0UCJhkXFBRDeuHvhI0.yahoo.invalid> Michael Hitchens writes:
>> On Thu, 5 Apr 2007, donald_at_j3RNv3mGNIatnfIpTbmA7m0xexPNUkYZoJeHqXaTYhjnHpygmmT86eZlBfgA64PNV1MeqLNnJmmmifSm4rDOek70.yahoo.invalid wrote:
>
>>> I'd regard Vinga as a mainstream minority deity, probably the
>>> biggest of the 15% of women who don't follow Ernalda. Only a
>>> minority of healers will follow Chalana Arroy.
>>
>> I'm not sure I agree with this. Vinga is a dedicated warrior cult (the
>> default sub-cult is Vinga *spearwoman* afterall). Dedicated Warriors
>> aren't the majority amongst men - dedicated farmers are. What about women
>> who don;t want to weave etc, but want to farm and shepherd? Vinga offers
>> nothing to them. What cult do they join?
>
> Vinga Orolmarn for herders into which I would include shepherds.
> Vinga Orlanthcarl for the few who are wealthy enough to have a
> plough and ox team. I suspect the commonest subcult being Vinga
> the spearwoman reflects the fact that as men they are required
> to turn out with the fyrd. So they are seen as warriors even
> though their main occupation is something else whereas a man
> doing the same work might follow Durev.

Fair enough - I'd been mising that refernce to Orlanthcarl etc in my re-reading of Vinga. But then I ask does the "men in women's bodies" quotes apply just to the Vingan warriors or to all Vingans?

Becuase I think that most Vingans would be farmers (like most Orlanthi men) not full time warriors.

Because I see a real problem with the prohibition of Vingans and pregnancy - it's saying that if you are a woman and want to be a *farmer* you can't get pregnant. I can't see that sense in that.

I can see it for a warrior - real slows you down in combat. But lots ofpregnant women in the real world work in the fields, so why the prohibition?

Michael



Dr. Michael Hitchens
Senior Lecturer, Department of Computing Macquarie University
michaelh_at_vkB8Bez7bS6TPybid7ykLOp-_jh_sI5-SvkXtxp9Q7y2ZwJo9kc-DXZ-dJCvxSfGk-_uGFi5sSmyeFCdKTJi6g.yahoo.invalid            

Powered by hypermail