On Fri, 01 Oct 2004 11:30:55 -0600, Howard Brazee <howard at brazee.net> wrote: > Steve has started off with existing fantasies of elves and played with > them in a realistic way. It is interesting that Tolkein has elves > basically dying out as humans replace them - despite their immortality. > The elves don't really "die out," though, they go to the West in boats, when their divine purpose is completed. (Oh great, now I'm imagining Sethra as Galadriel) I'm not a huge Tolkien fan, but I recall that the elves are sort of divine assistants who planned to leave all along. It is sort of interesting that the Dragaeran elves are also "more divine" and higher status in the eyes of the gods than the humans, but I'm not really impressed by the Dragaeran gods as moral figures. > Steve has copied their willingness to fight (and die), but he has made > them sexual beings who can control their reproduction. Wait, didn't Tolkien's elves sexually reproduce? > > He also has shown us peasants who live with a lot of same-old same-old. > We all know how difficult it is to keep someone a peasant after turning > them into soldiers and letting them see the world. He can return as a > farmer, but a much more worldy farmer. > I thought in Orca there were mentions of Teckla who had gone to the city. I figured that the Orb was sort of supposed to be like the early industrial rev. All you need is some enterprising sorcerers using magic to improve agriculture, and then you'll see some change, possibly. > It appears we will be seeing more of the impacts of social changes in this > series. We have only been slightly introduced to the serfs who haven't > yet been impacted by these tremendous changes. Are they really serfs though? I thought they were peasants and just required to pay taxes. > > The real interesting thing here will be how Steve has this modernization > work within the Cycle. I believe that's what he's going to do. The > social forces of change are too big to revert, and I don't think he wants > to destroy the cycle. > Agreed, but we don't know how much of what the characters think is divinely ordained really is (it might be we have moderate reform rather than revolution), and that stuff about thirty-one tribes previously existing makes me suspicious. How can the Jhereg be divinely ordained if Dolivar made them up? BTW, regarding all of these social changes. Since Norathar, from the Paarfi books, apparently succeeds in an orderly fashion, I'm wondering if Vlad will extend his lifetime either through time-travel or by using the methods Brimford and Arra have to see it. Or would this make him too superhuman, if he isn't, already? Charmian