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Continued from yesterday, when I wrote:
"You can CALL yourself anything you want, you just may not be able to register it with the College of Heralds. You can even call yourself by any title you want - as long as you are willing to accept the attendant aggravating consequences: offending or alienating people who have titles in this game and place value upon them for sentimental reasons (generally because someone higher up the food change said, "Poof! You have a title!"). And having to explain yourself constantly, that sort of thing."
Why? Why can't you just show up and say "I'm Contessa Twinky SparkleDust?" without someone saying, "Pardon me, but I don't think so?" Or at least giving you the old stinkeye? Why is such importance placed on titles in the SCA?
Gaius put it very well once. " Because we can't pay people to do what they do."
The SCA is an interactive amusement. We are not acting a role for paying customers, or conversely paying an admission fee to be entertained by actors. We show up, we participate in our own ways, we interact and entertain one another. Awards - and the titles that go along with them - are the kingdom's way of saying, "You showed up and did stuff and we appreciate it. Way to go and thank you!"
It's A Big Deal. Your King and Queen call you into court. (99% experience this as a deer in the headlights moment, wondering, "What did I do?") An Official Fuss Is Made. Your name is read out to those in attendance with great acclaim and poof! You are now Lady Twinky Sparkledust. Hip hip huzzah or whatever the cheer is in your kingdom (yes, there are regional variations).
Now, being Lady Twinky Sparkledust means your latte at Starbucks is still the same price as it was yesterday. The world outside the SCA will not care. Inside the SCA, it means, "Thank you" and generally "Thank you," feels pretty darn good.*
The following is my SCA award resume - it's for illustrative purposes because I don't show up and do stuff to amass jinglies and titles.
Award of Arms = Showing Up And Doing Stuff
Order of the Troubadour (East Kingdom) = Showing Up And Doing Performing Arts Stuff
Order of the Rose Leaf (West Kingdom) and Corolla Vitea (Principality of the Mists) = Showing Up And Doing Arts Stuff
Friendly Castle, La Cortesia, Den Grimme Aeling (Principality of Cynagua, for Showing Up and Being Hospitable, For Showing Up And Being Courteous and For Showing Up To Support A Principality I Do Not Reside In, respectively).
Some titles are bestowed by the Crown. Some titles are deliberated upon by members of The Order Of Whatever Award This Is: they look around, one of them says, "Hey, Lady Twinky Sparkledust is doing thus and such, we should keep an eye on her." Depending on what Lady TS does, they may go to the Crown and say, "We think Lady TS has Shown Up And Done Stuff and should be a member of Our Order."
And of course, some titles are won, usually by deeds of arms. Win a tourney, be King. Or Prince. Or titular head of a province. And it's not always combat: in the Barony of the Far West, one can become Baron or Baroness by winning an Arts and Sciences Tourney.
Arbitrary? Sorta. Sometimes people do get lost in the cracks. Sometimes people assume one already has an Award of Arms or whatever. The royalty are not omniscient. They need people to say, "Hey, Twinky Sparkledust has been showing up and helping out at local events and she makes these awesome period sparklegizmos and she spent last evening putting toilet paper in the portajohns and peeled six hundred onions for tonight's feast. She should be recognized." At which point, the royalty can do something about an Official Thank You. (Know someone deserving? DO something about it - write to your royalty and make a recommendation.)
So yes, there are people in our Society who take their awards and titles seriously. The duke who was the king who gave me my Troubadour insists I come play for him at Estrella - and ALWAYS asks if I need anything. The princes and princesses who presented my Rose Leaf and my Corolla are people I love and admire. And those wacky Cynaguans just keep giving me stuff, I don't know why.
*That other 1% though. I was involved in a situation that made me physically ill and extremely unhappy. It culminated in my returning an award token to the Crown and requesting that my name be removed from the rolls of the order. The Crown accepted my request and no, you do not get to hear what happened, why or what award it was. (If you know or think you know, I beg your silence and discretion in the matter. It is over and done. I only mention it here, because it was the right thing to do and it illustrates how serious these little "Thank yous" can be.)
So, to Timothy and Gabrielle, Andreas and Isabella, Gemini and Mari, Dmitriy and Jimena, Gunther and Keisha, Reinar and Elisif, and to the members of the populaces of two kingdoms who put 'em up to it: "You're most welcome."
"You can CALL yourself anything you want, you just may not be able to register it with the College of Heralds. You can even call yourself by any title you want - as long as you are willing to accept the attendant aggravating consequences: offending or alienating people who have titles in this game and place value upon them for sentimental reasons (generally because someone higher up the food change said, "Poof! You have a title!"). And having to explain yourself constantly, that sort of thing."
Why? Why can't you just show up and say "I'm Contessa Twinky SparkleDust?" without someone saying, "Pardon me, but I don't think so?" Or at least giving you the old stinkeye? Why is such importance placed on titles in the SCA?
Gaius put it very well once. " Because we can't pay people to do what they do."
The SCA is an interactive amusement. We are not acting a role for paying customers, or conversely paying an admission fee to be entertained by actors. We show up, we participate in our own ways, we interact and entertain one another. Awards - and the titles that go along with them - are the kingdom's way of saying, "You showed up and did stuff and we appreciate it. Way to go and thank you!"
It's A Big Deal. Your King and Queen call you into court. (99% experience this as a deer in the headlights moment, wondering, "What did I do?") An Official Fuss Is Made. Your name is read out to those in attendance with great acclaim and poof! You are now Lady Twinky Sparkledust. Hip hip huzzah or whatever the cheer is in your kingdom (yes, there are regional variations).
Now, being Lady Twinky Sparkledust means your latte at Starbucks is still the same price as it was yesterday. The world outside the SCA will not care. Inside the SCA, it means, "Thank you" and generally "Thank you," feels pretty darn good.*
The following is my SCA award resume - it's for illustrative purposes because I don't show up and do stuff to amass jinglies and titles.
Award of Arms = Showing Up And Doing Stuff
Order of the Troubadour (East Kingdom) = Showing Up And Doing Performing Arts Stuff
Order of the Rose Leaf (West Kingdom) and Corolla Vitea (Principality of the Mists) = Showing Up And Doing Arts Stuff
Friendly Castle, La Cortesia, Den Grimme Aeling (Principality of Cynagua, for Showing Up and Being Hospitable, For Showing Up And Being Courteous and For Showing Up To Support A Principality I Do Not Reside In, respectively).
Some titles are bestowed by the Crown. Some titles are deliberated upon by members of The Order Of Whatever Award This Is: they look around, one of them says, "Hey, Lady Twinky Sparkledust is doing thus and such, we should keep an eye on her." Depending on what Lady TS does, they may go to the Crown and say, "We think Lady TS has Shown Up And Done Stuff and should be a member of Our Order."
And of course, some titles are won, usually by deeds of arms. Win a tourney, be King. Or Prince. Or titular head of a province. And it's not always combat: in the Barony of the Far West, one can become Baron or Baroness by winning an Arts and Sciences Tourney.
Arbitrary? Sorta. Sometimes people do get lost in the cracks. Sometimes people assume one already has an Award of Arms or whatever. The royalty are not omniscient. They need people to say, "Hey, Twinky Sparkledust has been showing up and helping out at local events and she makes these awesome period sparklegizmos and she spent last evening putting toilet paper in the portajohns and peeled six hundred onions for tonight's feast. She should be recognized." At which point, the royalty can do something about an Official Thank You. (Know someone deserving? DO something about it - write to your royalty and make a recommendation.)
So yes, there are people in our Society who take their awards and titles seriously. The duke who was the king who gave me my Troubadour insists I come play for him at Estrella - and ALWAYS asks if I need anything. The princes and princesses who presented my Rose Leaf and my Corolla are people I love and admire. And those wacky Cynaguans just keep giving me stuff, I don't know why.
*That other 1% though. I was involved in a situation that made me physically ill and extremely unhappy. It culminated in my returning an award token to the Crown and requesting that my name be removed from the rolls of the order. The Crown accepted my request and no, you do not get to hear what happened, why or what award it was. (If you know or think you know, I beg your silence and discretion in the matter. It is over and done. I only mention it here, because it was the right thing to do and it illustrates how serious these little "Thank yous" can be.)
So, to Timothy and Gabrielle, Andreas and Isabella, Gemini and Mari, Dmitriy and Jimena, Gunther and Keisha, Reinar and Elisif, and to the members of the populaces of two kingdoms who put 'em up to it: "You're most welcome."
