Do
not ask the stones or the trees how to live; they cannot not tell you; they do
not have tongues; do not ask the wise man how to live, for, if he knows, he
will know he cannot tell you; if you would learn how to live, do not ask the
question; its answer is not in the question but in the answer, which is not in
words; do not ask how to live, but, instead proceed to do so.
Gorean
saying from Tarnsman of Gor
As
some of my friends and readers know from my travels across Second Life (SL),
I’ve been frustrated for some time about my inability to enter the community of
Gor inworld and meet its participants and
learning about the lifestyle. I felt
like any writer trying to get into a closed society (e.g., organized crime,
cults, the Jimmy Kimmel fan club) and is frustrated by his or her inability to
get inside.
Gor is a
fictional universe based on the novels of John Norman. They are fairly controversial given their
treatment of women. But, SL being the
place that it is, whole communities have been built around this theme. Gorean communities are purportedly among some
of the largest and best organized inworld.
I’ve been meaning to visit them and see for myself what’s going on.
Well, I’m
happy to report, I’ve finally made it inside Gor in SL!
A friend
introduced me a freewoman of Gor, Lady Wiebeline Hoorenbeek
(AKA Lady Bel, seems no one can pronounce her name.) who would be happy to meet
me and show me around. (OK, maybe she
wasn’t happy to see me but she was happy to show me around Gor.) An exchange of IM’s and we were set.
Now, one
doesn’t rush into a Gorean sim
in SL. One must be properly
attired. Lady Bel gave me some homework
of which the primary to do was getting an appropriate set of clothes. She even gave me a LM for a place to obtain
some freebie Gorean clothing. What could be simpler right?
Well, to
make a long story short, I waited until the night before our appointment to
visit the freebie shop. Seems they had
primarily women’s clothing and what little men’s clothing they had was suitable
for me. I didn’t think cross dressing was
appropriate for my first introduction to the Gorean lifestyle. As for the men’s clothing, after a little
research, I’d decided to go as a scribe.
Seemed logical and less likely to get my avatar killed. So, the professional assassin’s costume
didn’t work.
OK, SL is full of freebies
right? How hard could this be. Let me just say this, women have a lot more
choices when it comes to dressing as a Gorean in SL. Especially if they don’t object to be
partially dressed and fully chained. Men
are OK if they’re willing to either do the same or go as Conan the Barbarian. While all this is going on a female friend
was chding me via IM about the usual female prejudices about men and
shopping. I don’t want to say I was
stressed but pressure was building.
(After all, I couldn’t exactly go nude
because that would have brought up a whole slew of other issues I wasn’t about
to go into either.)
Eventually, I located a
fairly decent scribe’s costume from a purveyor of medieval costumes and it cost
me a few Linden (not too many) and I was set.
Except that I waited until
about fifteen minutes before I meet Lady Bel to put my new clothes on. (Remember my latest failed makeover.) I sense the dismay in Lady Bel’s voice when I
ask if I could show up nude. I manage to
get my pants on and literally run out the door of my house to go meet her at Spirit
Wilds. After a rushed exchange of
greetings, I manage to complete getting dressed while Lady Bel completes the
arrangements for our trip. I’m told to
greet people by saying “Tal”. OK, I can
handle that.
A word about Lady Bel. She is dressed in a free woman’s costume
which consists of a floor length dress and a veil. We may be going to Gorean communities where
women are required to go about veiled in public. She had once been a slave and obtained her
freedom and is now a seamstress in Gor.
Our first stop is Genesian
Port where I receive my first introduction to Gorean life. (That is after learning to dress
myself.) Lady Bel instructs me in how to
obtain and wear my combat meter and HUD.
(This is where I’m telling myself that I’m a non-combatant. Right?) We then TP to the nearby trade docks.
When we arrive, I look around
at the surrounding scene and am impressed.
I see a port in the style of Late Middle Ages or Early Renaissance in
Real Life (RL). (No, I wasn’t there but
I read a lot.) Someone has gone to a lot
of trouble to create a realistic scene.
(Or, as realistic as something can be when based on a series of books
about an alternate Earth.) The few
people about are dressed in typical Gorean costume.
While I’ve been playing a
gawking tourist with everything but a camera, Lady Bel has been talking with
one of the locals to see if she can get us into some brief RP. She leads us into the town where we meet a
slave woman who agrees to take us to a local inn for food and drink.
Lady Bel and I sit on
cushions placed on the floor around a round table. The slave girl serves us pastries and
tea. I notice Lady Bel offers some of
her food to the slave which she takes.
The RP is real and full of little gestures and expressions.
I keep telling myself that I’m in
society based on dominant men and submissive women where slavery and physical
punishment are condoned. Lady Bel, a RL
woman, keeps IM-ing me that this is a RP and everything I see is
consensual. She tells me as RL woman
she’s not crazy about this behavior but it’s only in the context of this
virtual world. So I play along. (Significant Other warns me not to get any
ideas.)
We talk
with the slave about her life inworld and she plays the role to the hilt. (I won’t be starting any revolutions around
here anytime soon.) She asks us if we’d
like to speak with her master about Gorean life and his responsibilities to his
slaves. We assent and she contacts him
to ask if he’ll meet us. Lady Bel are
lucky because the master agrees to meet with us. We follow the slave to a tearoom.
The tearoom is located on a large veranda and
is shaded by a trellis overlooking the sea.
A large man in typical Gorean costume (I have to meet his tailor.) sits
on cushions on the ground around a circular table. (I’m picking up a pattern here.)
Lady Bel and I join our host at his table after making
our introductions. (Apparently, I’m
described as a scribe for a gazette who asks questions. Works for me.) The slave is sent to the kitchen to help the
master’s wife. A kind repartee goes on
among our host, his wife, and the slave.
It’s like being invited into a family’s home and sitting down at the
kitchen table and listening to their give ‘n take.
The wife
joins us in traditional costume covered from head to toe in flowing robes. Eventually, the slave rejoins us. In the meantime, the master of the house
answers my questions about how he became a slave owner when a friend gave him
an unneeded slave (Yes, I know how that sounds as I write it.) and the
responsibilities of maintaining them. Lady
Bel has been IM-ing me that she finds his level of RP extremely good and is
impresses by the completeness of his answer and their realism. He is humorous and plays the role of a
gregarious, friendly host very well. (I
wish I could people like him in RL.) A family
friend drops by and joins us at the table.
It all seems so natural.
Unfortunately,
yours truly has to leave to get back to RL.
(Pesky thing sometimes.) Lady Bel
explains that we have to catch an early boat and we take or leave.
Several
blocks away, we stop and talk about what we’ve just seen. I must say that I’m impressed by it. This Gorean town is a highly functioning
social system. Everyone seems to be
integrated into the RP.
Lady Bel
offers to show me more later and I accept her very kind offer. She did all the heavy lifting for this story.
I thank
Lady Bel for all her help and we agree to meet again soon for another visit to Gor.
I’m finally on a roll with Gor!
Below
please find links to several pictures that I took during this quick
introduction to Gor. As always, don’t rely on my crude efforts
with photography. But, please if you go,
respect the rules around costume and behavior.
The last thing Gor needs is busloads of tourists gawking. (Remember must people go about in Gorean sims
carrying sharp instruments, even the slaves.)
I’d like
to thank Lady Bel for taking the time to meet with me, answer my questions, and
take me around the world of Gor. I
hope I haven’t embarrassed her too much!
Since in my rush to leave I didn’t receive permission to quote my Gorean
hosts, I have quoted them directly or identified them. But I am grateful to all of them for their
hospitality!
Gor inworld
is a very interesting place. I have many
more questions and I want to get answers.
I hope to blog more frequently about the world of Gor in SL. Watch this space for more to come!
As
always, I’m grateful to all inworld for their kindness and time in stopping to
talk with a stranger who was passing through their lives.
I welcome feedback from
readers, please either comment on my blog or
e-mail me at webspelunker@gmail.com
.
If you would like to read about my other adventures in Second Life please click here.
If you would like to read about my other adventures in Second Life please click here.
Photo No. 1 webspelunker as a
Scribe
Photo No. 2 Lady
Bel
Photo No. 3 Genesian
Port
Photo No. 4 Meal
at an Inn
Photo No. 5 Host
in Tearoom
