We know that the Terran Emperor is the most powerful person in the Terran Empire but who is his opposite number in the Domain? There is no equivalent but the attacking Terran Admiral must speak with High Wyvan Trauvy. A Wyvan is a presiding officer entrusted with the explication of customs, precedents and Khruath decisions and with trying cases. Admiral Cajal understands that "Wyvan" translates as "Judge" or "Lawspeaker."
Ythrian families join together in self-organizing choths. Each choth has a Wyvan. Also, free adults in a territory periodically meet as a regional Khruath which has judicial and some legislative but no administrative powers. Winners of a vote in a Khruath rely on willingness to comply or on their strength to enforce.
Regional Khruaths elect delegates to Year-Khruaths which cover wider territories and which also send representatives to the planetary High Khruath. Wyvans are chosen for each Khruath and any free adult can also attend Khruaths at any level. This works for Ythrians, who are less garrulous than human beings. Avalonian human beings retain a Parliament of Man with a President but many human beings join choths, thus accepting Ythrians laws and customs with the right to attend Khruaths.
High Wyvan Trauvy presides in the High Khruath of Ythri and thus is the opposite number, although not the equivalent, of the Terran Emperor.
2 comments:
The Khruaths correspond exactly to the Russian system of soviets (the Russian word for "council") first showing up in Petrograd in 1905, and then again after the Russian Revolution before the system was perverted by the Bolsheviks. The feature that anyone could attend any level of soviet was exactly matched. The same system appeared, apparently spontaneously, in 1956 Hungary and 1968 Czechoslovakia, until the tanks rolled in. See the last chapter of Hannah Arendt's On Revolution for details.
In The Star Fox, Anderson foresaw the erection of a statue in Budapest to Imre Nagy, the hero of 1956, who was hanged by the hard-line Communists. He didn't foresee its removal by the fascists just last year.
Dear Mr. Cowan,
But Poul Anderson did mention the Russian "Soviet" example or precedent in THE PEOPLE OF THE WIND. And mentioned that it failed BLOODILY.
Sean
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