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Scatterstone - Part 9
Jun. 8th, 2013 07:48 pmYou want an index? Oh, I'll GIVE you an index!
The Fyan system of pollution avoidance here is loosely based on a number of similar systems you find in real-world cultures: Hawaiian kapu, Romani marime, Hua nu, and of course good old American cooties. Hell, even germ avoidance takes on a less scientific and more ritualistic aspect at times. (And I might argue that we have another one in America--"testosterone" vs. "estrogen." Sure they're real hormones, but quite a bit of the assumptions surrounding their functions get pretty fanciful. They're often useful shorthand for longer concepts.)
I'm always intrigued by the systems' internal consistency. If you know the premise--even if you don't accept it--of one of these systems, then somebody abiding by it may seem perfectly rational. If you don't know the premise, their actions make no sense.
I'm also intrigued by how gosh darn often these systems suggest a weird sort of male anxiety. Whichever men came up with the rules seemed to live in constant terror of somehow getting LADYNESS all over their manhoods. And not in a fun way. No, it's in a way that makes it clear that the most horrible fate these rule-makers could imagine was to BECOME MORE LIKE A GIRL. Darlin, I'm living the horror and it's not really that big a deal.
Any rumors that I spent the entire day wandering around humming "Caravanserai" to the tune of "Qué Será, Será" are completely unfounded.
---
( Part 9: Meanwhile, Back At The Caravan ... )
#
Tune in for Part 10!
The Fyan system of pollution avoidance here is loosely based on a number of similar systems you find in real-world cultures: Hawaiian kapu, Romani marime, Hua nu, and of course good old American cooties. Hell, even germ avoidance takes on a less scientific and more ritualistic aspect at times. (And I might argue that we have another one in America--"testosterone" vs. "estrogen." Sure they're real hormones, but quite a bit of the assumptions surrounding their functions get pretty fanciful. They're often useful shorthand for longer concepts.)
I'm always intrigued by the systems' internal consistency. If you know the premise--even if you don't accept it--of one of these systems, then somebody abiding by it may seem perfectly rational. If you don't know the premise, their actions make no sense.
I'm also intrigued by how gosh darn often these systems suggest a weird sort of male anxiety. Whichever men came up with the rules seemed to live in constant terror of somehow getting LADYNESS all over their manhoods. And not in a fun way. No, it's in a way that makes it clear that the most horrible fate these rule-makers could imagine was to BECOME MORE LIKE A GIRL. Darlin, I'm living the horror and it's not really that big a deal.
Any rumors that I spent the entire day wandering around humming "Caravanserai" to the tune of "Qué Será, Será" are completely unfounded.
---
( Part 9: Meanwhile, Back At The Caravan ... )
#
Tune in for Part 10!
