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Old 06-25-2006, 11:09 PM   #53
Formendacil
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Quote:
Originally Posted by littlemanpoet
There is a rather simple, if slightly artificial way, to get around the issue of the Translator Conceit: Roy Edwards, a character I created long before there was a Tapestry of Dreams rpg, is a 21st century Christian young man. He is currently dreaming Tapestry, in which he is dreaming himself as Imrazor. I shall call it the Dream Conceit. Roy aka Raefindan aka Imrazor is all three men at once, and this - ah - ahem - miracle of dreaming a reality, allows for the - ahem - transliteration of language according to the plan of those Powers that have concerned themselves with the goings on of Amroth, Nimrodel, and all those characters who have attached themselves thereto. As Roy/Raefindan has discovered finally on page 18, there is a Purpose for him to be dreaming what is apparently real, in which he apparently is indeed Roy, Raefindan, and Imrazor all at the same time, incarnated in some form of (dare I say it) trans(p)neumation, if you take my meaning. It is, in essence, a mystery, and language connections are transliterated just as Roy is himself trans(p)neumated. Like it or not, it's at least plausible ... especially to a Roman Rite Follower, don't you know.

EDIT: Okay, not simple.
Well, if it works the way it is... don't change it on my account.

As far as I am concerned, the transliteration from Westron to English (or vice versa) is fully believable (well, within the context of the story). What I'm mainly taking issue with is that, as Raefindan, when Roy is hearing Rohirric, he is hearing not Anglo-Saxon- but Rohirric. Consequently, it shouldn't be possible for him to draw connections between Rohirric words and English ones. Really, it was the whole making a correlation between Edgar and Ędegard that drew my "ire" here.

Mind you, also... I'm not really a big fan of the whole "Raefindan is dreaming this" idea. For me it smacks too much of the film Wizard of Oz, in which the whole fantasy is explained away as having been "Dreamt". I think that I'm echoing the Professor in this rather queasy distaste. And, for the same reason: it upsets the idea that what is happening is REAL and FACT (of course it is neither, but it ought to FEIGN that). Even if it doesn't toy around with the reality of the Legendarium, I find it... disconcerting.... shall we say, to think that the whole reunion of Nimrodel and Amroth, the whole sibling relationship of Mellonin and Raefindan, the whole relationship of Roy and "Jorge", for that matter, becomes merely a "dream". And if Raefindan is merely dreaming it... it's almost as if it never happened.

I don't know... the queasiness I've got doesn't seem to translate well into words. I hope I'm not causing unwitting offence here.

Now, I don't have either Lost Road or The Notion Club papers at hand to compare with, so I tread into the realm of complete memory/speculation here, but I seem to recall the premise of Tolkien's timetravel being that they are PREFIGURED by dreaming of being people in the past, with the story to move on to them ACTUALLY being there.

Anyway, my whole issue here is merely a matter of personal taste, and if the consensus is that the situation, as it stands, is too embedded in the story to be ignored/amended in future meaning/ to be changed, then I can and will go along with the flow. I shall do as Bergil, and ignore any suggestion that was is happening is merely dream.
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