FTL = Faster Than Light;
STL = Slower Than Light;
ERB = Edgar Rice Burroughs.
When the Schothan Prince Cerdic leaves Flandry's cell:
"His guards followed, except for the sentry. The latter whipped forth his dirk and held it straight up, an obvious gesture of salute."
-"Tiger By The Tail," p. 247.
Despite their high tech, including guns and rifles firing radium projectiles, ERB's Martians mainly fight with swords. Maybe ammunition is scarce on a dying planet? The Martians salute by raising their swords and shouting "Kaor," meaning both "Hail" and "Aye."
Poul Anderson could have written a better John Carter of Mars book than ERB and would also have been able to rationalize ERB's many scientific absurdities. Carter could have put in an appearance, alongside the Lensman and others, in the Old Phoenix.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
I think, or hope, most SF fans would immediately recognize the abbreviations you listed. And I can think of others too, like "BEM" ("Bug Eyed Monsters"). And we see a lot about pre-2000 fans and the jargon they coined in FALLEN ANGELS (by Jerry Pournelle, Larry Niven, and Michael Flynn).
Yes, ERB fans have puzzled over why Barsoomians preferred to fight with such antiquated weapons as swords when higher tech forms were available. It seems to be generally agreed that was because of both cultural reasons and the high cost of metals.
I have seen a painting of Wilhelm I of Prussia being acclaimed German Emperor at the palace of Versailles by the German princes with raised swords. So that kind of gesture or salute is not seen only in SF.
Ditto, what you said about how Anderson could have rationalized the absurdities seen in ERB's Barsoom stories. But I still read and reread them with pleasure. I picked up my own use of "Kaor" because of that!
Ad astra! Sean
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