[Ansteorra] Authenticity

Theron Bretz tbretz at montroseclinic.org
Fri Apr 12 12:04:19 PDT 2002


> HOWEVER, if people who are into authenticity are "doing their thing", it
is
> equally abyssmal for others to trample all over what they're trying to do
> with persona play by trotting out twinkie-fantasy language, blatant
> references to modern technology, or Star Trek.  Treat persona play as a
> species of performance art -- don't disrupt the performance.  Surely your
> discussion of the new multi-terabyte storage you got for your PC, or your
> discussion of your trip to the Shrine of St. John of the Swirling Waters,
> could wait until you moved farther away?

Thank you.

> *Both* sides of this particular ideological divide need to accomodate the
> other.

The thing is, the divide is really quite narrow.  In fact, like most
ideological conflicts, its outright nit-picking in what constitutes a hot
button.  Both sides have their liturgy of "truths".

[ENGAGING PARODY MODE - FOR PETE'S SAKE DON'T TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY PEOPLE]

"There are people out there arguing for the right to wear blue jeans and
tennis shoes - they must be stopped!"

"Those people have been in for ten years and still wear broadcloth tunics,
they're obviously worthless."

"If I have proper clothes, I must be authentic."

"There's no point in wearing authentic armour because you can't fight
effectively in it.  You shouldn't even try."

"Fun isn't period!"

"People should be able to have vampire personas if they want!"

[DISENGAGING PARODY MODE]

In reality, most people are in this organization to enjoy themselves.  Left
to their own devices, they would.  However, as a Society, we have to find
ways for everyone to enjoy themselves as much as possible.  My solution has
always been to offer activities that are entertaining and enhance period
ambiance.

It's time for another dirty little secret. When we put on the first Lyonesse
Tournament, it was initially to fill a gap in the calendar left by the
passing of the Tournament of the Lions and planned to follow a similar
model.  When I first designed the four fields concept, I asked four ladies
who I knew would be reliable to do the job. Neither I or any of my
co-conspirators gave any thought to the notion that the four ladies each
represented a different time period (Viking Age, High Middle Ages, Italian
Renaissance, and Elizabethan).  After the tournament was over, Master Robin
of Gilwell came up to me and said, "You know what was the best thing about
this?  You didn't tie it to a particular time and place, so anyone from any
period could play and not feel like they were messing up the ambiance."  Not
being raised to be a fool, I nodded sagely and said, "Oh, I'm glad you
caught that".  After which, it became one of our prime selling points.  At
the time, we were just trying to do a medieval-style (not medieval)
tournament with an Arthurian theme.  The other stuff was supplied by the
attendees, who largely brought their own fun with which the framework of the
event was decorated.

Hmmm...now that I've typed all that, I've forgotten my original point.  Oh
yeah, the gap isn't all that wide.  Really.

Luciano
Avoiding work




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