In Poul Anderson's Maurai History, what we would call "World War III" is named by its survivors and their successors the "War of Judgment." This tells us, the readers of the Maurai History, first that the War has brought to an end any historical knowledge or sense of continuity with the past and secondly that subsequent generations have a partly moralistic and partly realistic understanding of the War. That conflict was a consequence of the civilization that it destroyed. In that sense it was a Judgment. Mythologically, the gods judge us. Morally, we judge ourselves. Either way, we are judged.
Now here is some historical continuity. This afternoon, we revisited Levens Hall where the Head Gardener lives in a large house in the grounds of the Hall. The present Head Gardener is only the tenth in over three hundred years. The first had worked for the King of France. Imagine a series of ten historical novels... If you have to be sf about it, then you can also imagine some time travel but it is not necessary.
9 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
Only TEN Head Gardeners in more than three hundred years at Levens Hall? And the HGs have such high status they lived/lives in a large house on the estate? That is rather impressive!
More than three hundred years ago brings us to the reign of Louis XIV of France (d. 1715). I do know French styles of formal gardening became very popular in /Great Britain in the later 17th century, which accounts for how one of King Louis's gardeners was hired by a Briton.
To be science fictional about this, why not imagine a similar series of Head Gardeners who worked for the Dukes of Hermes or the Gospodars of Dennitza? Or for the Terran Emperors at the Coral Palace?
Ad astra! Sean
Sean,
Antisenescence would make for even fewer than 10 in 300 years.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
It certainly would! Maybe only four in 300 years!
Ad astra! Sean
It's been noted that if you put ten generations of a single family next to each other at a table, each could speak comfortably to their parents and children, but the first and last would have difficulty understanding each other.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
Something like that might happen if lifespans lasting much more than a century becomes possible.
Ad astra! Sean
Sean: that would probably slow, though not stop, linguistic change.
Changes in language usually start with children and young adults; they spread among those still younger, because people acquire language from their peers and siblings and playmates as well as their parents. Then they become universal when the older generation dies off.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
That is, I agree, one of the ways languages change. As a survivor of the unlamented Sixties, it amuses me to sometimes use jargon from that time. E.g., "Hey dude, could I crash at your pad tomorrow night?"
Ad astra! Sean
Sean: some generational slang is ephemeral (outasight); but others aren't ("cool").
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
I agree. And I remember "outasight."
Ad astra! Sean
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