While Flandry is on Dennitza, citizens respond to the arrest of their Gospodar by detaining Imperials while four hundred armed ychani/zmayi, Dennitazans of Merseian descent, led by Ywod, march to and into a joint session of the Parliament. Dennitzans have institutionalized ways to participate in public affairs other than just voting in Parliamentary elections every few years.
"Through the officer he met on the way, Ywod had explained his band's intent. Word had quickly reached the Chief Justice. Four hundred zmays would not lightly descend on Zorkagrad, claiming to represent the whole Obala; they could be trusted to be mannerly and not take an unreasonable time to make their points; urged on by Kyrwhedin, a majority in the third house of the Shkoptsina endorsed their demand."
-A Knight of Ghosts and Shadows, XVII, pp. 558-559.
Their demand is just that their representative be allowed to address the Shkoptsina. Zmayi can be trusted to be mannerly and succinct? Human beings cannot! There was a very noisy public intervention in a Lancaster City Council meeting yesterday evening. Two speakers from the public gallery were mannerly, another less so, and others spoke out of turn but everyone left feeling that arguments and feelings had been expressed. Our institutions come under strain but can take some punishment.
Poul Anderson's fiction parallels experience. I would like to live on Dennitza.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
Problem is, humans are all too often unmannerly, violent, riotous! That is why we have things like ROBERT'S RULES OF ORDER, protocols, etiquette, customs insisting that certain things can only be done in this, not that way, etc. That is why it is usually agreed that actions or agreements made under duress were not binding.
Ad astra! Sean
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