Morning all. Last night the rains that threatened all weekend finally came. This morning feels freshly scrubbed. While it is very pleasant at the moment I suspect that allergens will arise shortly and make the afternoon less pleasant. So I have the allergy meds at the ready and am hoping for a productive morning. After I take them it is always like i am looking at the world through a veil. So before the veil descends, let’s get on with the morning. Timers set and off we go.
It took me a while to get into this one. At first I thought I was going to just be setting up a world and then I figured out where I could put a character. It was a bit of fumbling but I had an inkling of an idea towards the end. I may take an extra few minutes and add to this before what little story idea I had with this floats away.
Monday, August 22nd: Moralists strived to influence prevailing social attitudes.
Moralists strived to influence prevailing social attitudes. In many cases they felt as though they were making progress, even though when that progress was investigated it was found to be more surface change than substantial and based on something less high minded.
Those with lofty moral standards detested the wraps that the locals used to cover themselves. They were formless garments with no structure to them. It allowed for a freedom of bodily movement that many found quite vulgar. In addition the cloth the Franatos used had a distinct scent to it that many of the new comers found unpleasant.
As an alternative new cloth was provided, already made up in the styles that were more decorous. These were snapped up by the locals and a moral victory for social change was declared. Few, if any pointed out that the Franatos love of color had them reaching for the brighter garments that contained dyes they could not replicate, or that many modifies the garments to remove some of the internal structuring making them a cross between traditional wear and the garments of those newly arrived to their shores.
In terms of music and art, those who wished to push a more moral and upright sense of decorum failed utterly. The Franatos had a firm belief that art was a reflection of dreams and should reflect imaginative landcapes of swirling color and improbable creatures. They saw no point to the sedate landscapes completed in muted tones that the Gertaran arrivals favored.
Music too was an expression of the soul, conveying the deeper emotions when mere words failed. A franatos song could be ecstatically joyful and celebratory or it could be heart wrenching. The Gertaran’s music was designed to accompany formalized dances where each step was measured and precise. The Franatos viewed it as a sign of madness while their music made the Gertaran shrink back with often ill-disguised horror.
When I first arrived it was an odd view to the world. Neither seemed to be able to completely dominate the other and change their thinking. Most Gertaran and Franatos worked together when they needed to do so and left each other alone when it wasn’t necessary. Only the Gertaran moralists tried to bridge the divide and for the sake of peace they seemed to be tolerated by both sides even if they weren’t particularly encouraged. I was of neither group, being Kertog by birth. I read of both before and knew of the customs of each. I had in fact studied them deeply before taking this post because I was interested to see how and where the mixing of the two cultures occurred.
The Gertaran claimed that they were the same as those they left behind in their homeland and that the moralists were effecting some change, but it was easy to see that this was not entirely true. There were differences, small adaptations that were made on their part.
Ten til Midnight 