Michael Andre-Driussi <mantis at sirius.com> writes:
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Hey there, raster.
Salutations....
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Raster write:
Is the fight rigged? Foila's story obviously reflects her situation and tells us a great deal about her character. But I think it's noteworthy that the maid in Foila's tale does not "choose to keep herself for herself."
Right. I didn't mean to suggest that she was going to chose this option. My money is on bachelor number three.
Whoops. I completely misunderstood your comment, that you felt she had
won the contest by telling the best story. Quit confusing me with sports metaphors!
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Putting these odd pieces together, it almost seems as if Foila is blaming her first two suitors/fellow soldiers for her own real wounding--not necessarily "friendly fire," but just their own ineptness as soldiers! After all, one is a seal hunter, the other is a farmer boy--whereas she! She is an armigette (she is at least a cavalry officer)!
This sounds reasonable, if we assume that Foila knew Hallvard and Melito before she was injured. I have the sense that she didn't, that she was in some different formation from the PBI types until they all washed up together in the Pelerines' MASH unit; but either way is possible. Or are you suggesting that she blames the inept infantry in general -- they may be volunteers, but they're not professionals?
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My sense: Foila is not some ditzy "Private Benjamin" type of female who just fell into the cavalry by accident and now has to chose between two really swell footsoldiers; she is a warrior princess. She gets what she wants, and she wants a war trophy/trophy husband/war bridegroom!
In part, no doubt, because such an object defines her class (armiger or armiger-wannabe) and profession (hussar); it proves her virility, her martial puissance, etc. Of course, hopeless romantics, we continue to hope that she is genuinely =fond= of the object . . .
This is a reasonable and well-thought out possibility. I don't think it's the only possibility, perhaps because I liked Loyal's tale the least. But it does make sense.
raster at highfiber.com
(Foila's virility?) :-/