From: Charles Dye <raster@highfiber.com>
Subject: (urth) Re: Curses, Foila'd again!
Date: Thu, 11 Nov 1999 20:40:49

Michael Andre-Driussi <mantis@sirius.com> writes:

>Hey there, raster.

Salutations....

>Raster write:
>>Is the fight rigged?  Foila's story obviously reflects her situation and
>>tells us a great deal about her character.  But I think it's noteworthy
>>that the maid in Foila's tale does not "choose to keep herself for herself."
>
>Right.  I didn't mean to suggest that she was going to chose this option.
>My money is on bachelor number three.

Whoops.  I completely misunderstood your comment, that you felt she had
*won* the contest by telling the best story.  Quit confusing me with
sports metaphors!

>Putting these odd pieces together, it almost seems as if Foila is blaming
>her first two suitors/fellow soldiers for her own real wounding--not
>necessarily "friendly fire," but just their own ineptness as soldiers!
>After all, one is a seal hunter, the other is a farmer boy--whereas she!
>She is an armigette (she is at least a cavalry officer)!

This sounds reasonable, if we assume that Foila knew Hallvard and Melito
before she was injured.  I have the sense that she didn't, that she was in
some different formation from the PBI types until they all washed up
together in the Pelerines' MASH unit; but either way is possible.  Or are
you suggesting that she blames the inept infantry in general -- they may
be volunteers, but they're not professionals?

>My sense: Foila is not some ditzy "Private Benjamin" type of female who
>just fell into the cavalry by accident and now has to chose between two
>really swell footsoldiers; she is a warrior princess.  She gets what she
>wants, and she wants a war trophy/trophy husband/war bridegroom!
>
>In part, no doubt, because such an object defines her class (armiger or
>armiger-wannabe) and profession (hussar); it proves her virility, her
>martial puissance, etc.  Of course, hopeless romantics, we continue to hope
>that she is genuinely =fond= of the object . . .

This is a reasonable and well-thought out possibility.  I don't think it's
the only possibility, perhaps because I liked Loyal's tale the least.  But
it does make sense.

raster@highfiber.com

(Foila's virility?)  :-/



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