The "'...Almighty Roidhun...'" (pp. 281-282) of Merseia is elected from the landless Vach Urdiolch by the Hands of the Vachs and by the heads of other Merseian states, e.g., by any Presidents of Republics etc. Thus, the Roidhun stands for planetary and racial unity. When Ydwyr discloses that the reigning Roidhun is his uncle, Flandry, who had been sitting on the floor with his back against the wall, leaps up, pulls Djana up beside him and instructs her how to salute. Following Poul Anderson's texts, film-makers would have to visualize many salutes, rituals, deferences, gestures, words and steppings aside that the Merseians practice:
"...with the smoothness of centuried tradition." (CHAPTER ELEVEN, p. 268)
Flandry thanks the broch in Eriau with salute of gratitude. (ibid.)
Filming the Technic History accurately looks harder and harder.
5 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
Strictly speaking, not all of those Merseian states not organized as Vachs need to be republics. Anderson did not specify what political forms they had, except in one case: the Republic of Lafdigu. And we know from "Day of Burning" that Lafdigu was an aggressive militaristic despotism.
Good filmed versions of "A Circus of Hells" will need to invent at least a few of these Merseian gestures, rituals, salutes, etc. I was reminded of how, when Lord Hauksberg was a little late to meeting crucial members of the Policy Board in Chapter 1 of ENSIGN FLANDRY, he apologized and added the "humility salute" (hands folded in front of his face with a bow?). So humans of the Empire also had such gestures, rituals, and salutes.
Merry Christmas! Sean
Paul: it should be possible.
Eg., see the latest remake of "Shogun".
The -extremely- ritualized social interactions of samurai-class Japanese in the 16th century aren't instantly comprehensible to modern Western audiences, but the fact that they -are- highly ritualized is.
So is the fact that it's combined with a very, very intense degree of self-control.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
Before the 1960's Western nations had some degree of a roughly similar kind of ritualized formality. That is, people did not immediately go to first name, back slapping familiarity at their first meeting. Till bona fides were established a certain degree of formality was desired. And that's not such a bad idea!
Merry Christmas! Sean
Sean: yes, but the way upper-class Japanese interacted in the 1590's makes the stiffest Edwardian English person look like a drunken 2023 gladhander. A whole paragraph could be packed into the way a fan was folded.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
And you gave us some of that Japanese ceremoniousness with the Japanese who visited Montival in your later Emberverse books. Including how fans were used.
Happy New Year! Sean
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