But Why

[Coin]

@somasatori said in But Why:

Oh, come on. Even if the story of Robin Hood could be boiled down to “nobles fighting,” there is clearly a depiction of class conflict within the narrative. It’s not “medieval Elon Musk vs. Jeff Bezos” because of the structural differences between the Loxley family and the stratification of medieval English society in terms of the ruling class’s power in serfdom.

I’m certainly not going to say that Robin Hood wasn’t a member of the bourgeoisie – he held many privileges that his outlaw companions never had and could likely send himself back into upholding western imperialism in the crusades if he wanted, but he achieved an understanding of class consciousness within the context of the story.

Even if he hadn’t stolen from the rich and given to the poor – and indeed, he does not in some versions – a guerrilla force standing against the monopoly on power that the state (in this case, the sheriff of Nottingham) held over the proletariat would serve as an appropriate propaganda of the deed which, in many ways, can be its own reward. Robin Hood even wholly being a selfish hero (e.g., get back my stuff so I can do a feudalism on the locals, save my girlfriend), does not detract from the material symbolism involved which is why it became an enduring myth in the West.

Though you can make a case, especially for the versions of the story including Prince John, that the taxes levied on the people by Prince John (and enforced by Nottingham) are actually a consequence of King Richard the Lionheart’s frivolous and obsessive overspending on the Crusades. Did Prince John overtax, or was he --within the limited moral understand he had as a nobleman and not a serf-- trying to recoup the losses that England (and Robin’s) “beloved and just” King Richard was tossing overboard every day he spent trying to advance Christendom?

You can’t tell that story. Prince John has to be the bad guy who is overtaxing and living in luxury using the poor’s money, so that Robin can steal it back and give it to the people again. Otherwise, how is King Richard supposed to be the good guy who comes back and chastises and punishes his wicked wicked brother who was doing this BAD THING that King Richard would NEVER DO, lolololololol.

[somasatori]

@Coin said in But Why:

You can’t tell that story. Prince John has to be the bad guy who is overtaxing and living in luxury using the poor’s money, so that Robin can steal it back and give it to the people again. Otherwise, how is King Richard supposed to be the good guy who comes back and chastises and punishes his wicked wicked brother who was doing this BAD THING that King Richard would NEVER DO, lolololololol.

Damn tho, I wish we’d tell that story.

[Evilgrayson]

@somasatori To be fair, when you have a single-roomed hovel you share with the livestock, and some bloke who isn’t covered in shit rides past with a whole retinue, it’s going to look like he’s living in luxury using the poor’s money.

[Tez]

@somasatori omg same.

Just thinking about what a great move that would be on a L&L game. Who wants to be the John to my Richard. I won’t kill you, just exile you into vacay until players forget. You can have a nice percent of the extra tax income to spend on cool gear.

[Pavel]

@Tez said in But Why:

Who wants to be the John to my Richard

[somasatori]

@Evilgrayson said in But Why:

@somasatori To be fair, when you have a single-roomed hovel you share with the livestock, and some bloke who isn’t covered in shit rides past with a whole retinue, it’s going to look like he’s living in luxury using the poor’s money.

[mietze]

@De-Villefort were you aware that James Corey is the pen name of two authors writing together. One was more known as a fantasy author, the other was an assistant to a famous fantasy author.

If you’re never read any of William Gibson or Octavia Butler I’d recommend them highly. Gibson especially given he’s a (arguably the( titan of cyberpunk. And is still writing.

[Pavel]

@Coin said in But Why:

are actually a consequence of King Richard the Lionheart’s frivolous and obsessive overspending on the Crusades

I think the main driver would’ve been his ransom rather than the Crusades themselves. But both together would make for a very unhappy populace.

[BloodAngel]

@mietze I second this, Gibson is amazing. If you want a good new cyberpunk book, The Body Scout by Lincoln Michel. So great about sports, and cybernetics at start with, than gets all sorts of amazing!

[somasatori]

@mietze said in But Why:

@De-Villefort were you aware that James Corey is the pen name of two authors writing together. One was more known as a fantasy author, the other was an assistant to a famous fantasy author.

If you’re never read any of William Gibson or Octavia Butler I’d recommend them highly. Gibson especially given he’s a (arguably the( titan of cyberpunk. And is still writing.

Seconding Octavia Butler (and William Gibson)! Her Earthseed books are very salient these days.

I also want to plug Ursula K. Leguin, and everyone should read the book This Is How You Lose The Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone.

If you want good industrial revolution fantasy (or science fiction in the case of City & the City) check out China Miéville.

N. K. Jemisin’s recent-ish Broken Earth trilogy is a solid choice for science fantasy series.

One really interesting (and deeply sad and challenging) take on the generation ship story was Rivers Solomon’s An Unkindness of Ghosts

[Coin]

Incidentally, is anyone else amused by someone using the username “De Villefort” going on about how the only good fiction is the one that isn’t about selfish characters?

I can’t seem to remember what the novel that the name “De Villefort” comes from is about.

[snaps fingers]

It can’t have as one of its themes the obsessive descent of a man driven solely by vengeance for crimes committed against his person…

[Duke Whisky]

So umm…

What’s the anime from the first post? Asking for a friend.

[Gashlycrumb]

But why would anybody want to play Star Trek, where so few people in the Federation setting are ever at risk of anything, and the pain of a stubbed toe can be erased in seconds?

But why does anybody like cake when I prefer pie?

Non-rhetorical question: But why did somebody fork a thread without a link to the thread it was forked from at the top?

[Third Eye]

People Sometimes Play Stuff I’m Not Into. I sometimes play stuff other people aren’t into. The people who aren’t into stuff impact games about that stuff very little (unless they get weird about it, but that seems like a waste of their energy).

[Aria]

@Evilgrayson said in But Why:

You can’t rely on Disney for anything. If you’ve ever read Victor Hugo’s Hunchback of Notre Dame, you’ll know exactly what I mean.

Wait, you mean the farting gargoyles weren’t real?!

[Gashlycrumb]

@Third-Eye Well, there was that business a couple years ago in MSB where it was “But WHYYY should I ever run a game if it’s not possible to completely avoid criticism?” Though that was more in response to me saying that you’re always going to have people playing who don’t like every single thing about the game and say so, not that you’ll have people playing who dislike the core premise of the game.

[Third Eye]

@Gashlycrumb
Oh yeah, doing pretty much anything sometimes feels like it’s setting you up to get shit on for…daring to do a thing in not precisely the way some rando wants. This is just the first time I’ve seen ‘Fantasy, why?’ and idk it was a hell of a ride.

[Gashlycrumb]

@Third-Eye

Fact: If somebody throws shit at you, you don’t have to catch it.

I am pretty unsurprised “fantasy, why?” and yeah, I think it’s pretty reasonable to expect that just about anything will draw some critical remark from somewhere. I am kinda puzzled that people take it so very to heart so very often.

I like opera, sardines, and licorice. (not necessarily all at the same time, but hey) Many people, annoyingly, seem to think I give a fuck that they don’t like those things and that I am interested in hearing them expound upon their dislike at length. I’ve liked opera, sardines and licorice since childhood and it now occurs to me that this may have been excellent training for side-stepping that particular brand of shit-slinging.

ETA: I’m on about randos. My ex commenting about his dislike of sardines and Doctor Who every fucking time I tried to enjoy either of those things is another matter. People who are close to you who insist on yukking your yum all the damn time are up to no good and need a kick.

[catzilla]

[somasatori]

@Aria said in But Why:

@Evilgrayson said in But Why:

You can’t rely on Disney for anything. If you’ve ever read Victor Hugo’s Hunchback of Notre Dame, you’ll know exactly what I mean.

Wait, you mean the farting gargoyles weren’t real?!

I’m losin’ to a bird!