[Ansteorra] Re: the Attack of the "Authenticity Police" (Scott Barrett)

[Joel Schumacher]

> Scott Barrett <barrett1 at cox.net> wrote:
> I have a question. Who are they? Where are they?

I've run into a few who seem to want to let you know that they don't
think this or that is period.  Do they believe it to be their function?
No.  That's just a label we give them for their griping.

But in general, I think it's all of us.  Who hasn't looked out over a
field of tents and wished they were all period looking, without brightly
colored dome tents and such?

I think we'd all like to see more attempt at period dress and camps to
help with our step back in time, but we can't and don't want that for
various other reasons.


> Scott Barrett <barrett1 at cox.net> wrote:
> I do see people not wanting to even discuss history. In fact, I see
> people threatened by discussing history or anything medieval, usually
> while standing in tunics and wearing daggers on their belts.
> If you think folks who dress as Klingons and go to cons are odd, 
> imagine meeting one who has no interest in Star Trek and is offended
> if you try and discuss it with him.

The SCA isn't only filled with history buffs.  It's also filled with
people who grew up reading Tolkien, watching Excalibur, and playing
Dungeons and Dragons.

The SCA is a mixture of various fantasy-types, those who are history
buffs, and/or those who enjoy the historical accuracy.  It gives the
fantasy fans a chance to live out their fictional interests and the
history buffs a chance to recreate history.

I don't think the Klingon/Star Trek comparison is the same thing
because Klingons only exist in the Star Trek world.  Knights, medieval
style dress, and other aspects of the SCA exist in various forms of
fantasy and fiction, not just in history.

Couldn't some of those who enjoy discussing history also be threatened
by discussing Hobbits, a Dungeons and Dragons character, or Monty
Python's Holy Grail movie?

>From what I've heard of the original founders of the SCA, it was more
or less a costume party.  Didn't they wear buckets for helmets and
use trash can lids for shields and fight with broomsticks?  Sounds
kind of like they took the whole historical aspect lightly and just
had fun pretending.

______________________________________________________________________
Joel Schumacher                    JCPenney Co. - UNIX Network Systems
jschumac at jcpenney.com              6501 Legacy Drive   M/S 6108
(972) 431-4044                     Plano, TX  75024
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