Honor

Andy Robertson · 26 Oct 2005, 19:21 · from 2005-October.txt.gz

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From: andywrobertson at clara.co.uk (Andy Robertson)
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 2005 20:21:52 +0100
Subject: (urth) Honor
In-Reply-To: <BAY103-F2771FA3D445824EB1E170388690 at phx.gbl>
References: <BAY103-F2771FA3D445824EB1E170388690 at phx.gbl>
Message-ID: <E1EUqqP-000H21-0M at oceanus.uk.clara.net>

Bob Miller writes: 

>>I think your post is beautiful, Chris.  I also think I have had to 
>>coalesce? codify? some of my own thoughts because of what I perceived were >>inconsequential criticisms others have made.(Able was a punk, Idnn was >>selfishly selfserving)  There was a knight like Ravd, or like I think Able is on the path to becoming.y. [...]

>>I think Idnn was as admirable a 16 year old as we'll ever see.  And so did Able.  "And then I wished I were not mounted that I might kneel to her"

Fine information, Bob. 

I think the real problem some suffer in understanding Abel and Idunn and 
other imperfect people is that we have no modern analog of what a Knight is 
supposed to be.   What function do Knights serve?  How do their rights and 
duties interact with those of ordinary people??? 

Some seem to believe that a Knight is simply a high status individual with 
the right to push other individuals around. 

As I have posted before, a Knight is really better understood as something 
like  white blood cell in a body, fighting off attacks on the nation in a 
very selfless way and rewarded for this by a complex of rights and honors 
that (taken alone) seem reasonless. 

Hence the strong prohibitions and severe tests put in the way of any one who 
would attempt to gain the honor and rewards of a Knight without earning 
them. 

A Knight's values are not those of an ordinary person: but then reputation 
and manners are the means by which human beings enforce behavioural 
standards on each other, and a leucocyte's program of behaviour is not that 
of an ordinary body cell. 

The Giantesses' hatred for their menfolk has its root in Norse legend, but I 
can't easily speculate on any deeper meaning.

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