Alfavala, the natives of Vaynamo, have:
small bodies;
fine green hairs;
long ears;
flat nostrils;
feathery antennae;
very slight linguistic and mechanical abilities.
Hairs, ears, nostrils and antennae quiver as they sense their native environment. Wild Alfavala keep to the forests whereas "tame" Alfvala freely serve men like dogs. They sound like an ideal combination of elves and talking animals in juvenile fiction. A relationship that we expect to be exploitative or oppressive isn't, in this case.
The text describes the Alfavala as "...green dwarfs..." (p. 122) Vaynamoans are raised under a law which says that, because human beings share their planet, they are obliged to respect and help them. Bors Golyev from Chektoi does not understand this. Why not hunt the abos off the land that men could use? After all, they would make good game.
Different acculturations. A child taught that animals lack souls and exist only for human use unthinkingly steps on an ant whereas a child taught that all life is one and that every living being is to be respected lifts the ant to safety.
Science fiction in general and Poul Anderson in particular show us radically different cultures in the future and on other planets.
3 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
But ants don't have souls! And, moreover, if they infest your house or food, how else can you get rid of them except by "stepping" on them? Are we suppose to treat rats and mice gently even when they spread dirt and disease? No, I can't agree with the second alternative you suggested.
Sean
I hadn't noticed that Buddhists were much more inhibited than other humans about killing -people-.
And karma/dharma made traditional Hindu society more callous, not less -- you were getting what you deserved due to your actions in previous lives, so all suffering was deserved.
The 'religions of the book' made a very sharp distinction between humans and all other forms of life; this led to humans being treated better, not animals being used more cruelly.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
You made points I should have thought of as well. Yes, the Karma/Dharma of orthodox Hinduism solidified the brutalities of the caste system. An oppressed, despised, miserable "Untouchable" deserved what he got because of the evil he had allegedly done in "previous" lives.
And I recall how often the Prophets of Israel berated their fellow Jews for callousness and injustice--a tradition carried over into the New Testament. So I agree with you there as well.
Sean
Post a Comment