From: Carlson, Pam (carlsonp@wdni.com)
Date: Wed 11 Sep 1996 - 02:18:00 EEST
Paul Hamarty reasonably suggests that there be a myth to explain birth
pain in Glorantha.
While this is a good idea, I don't think all Gloranthan births have to
hurt just because of a mythic truth, or as a special nature of the human
condition. As on earth, I'm sure there are lots of different myths
about this.
Specifically, I disagree with Paul's assumption that humans suffer more
than other mammals giving birth. Dogs - especially first time mothers -
suffer quite a bit, and are subject to a lot of complications. (And
not just the ones which are bred to wierd body shapes.) Anyone who's
read the James Herriot books knows that horses and cows often have
foetuses that are twisted around. (Animals which have a lot of young
per litter tend to have an easier time, because each pup is smaller
porportionately to the mother.) Humans do have a special case with our
infants having such big heads, but I'm not sure that's a lot worse than
having a foetus with four long, twisty legs, or 12 pups, some of whom
die and become septic.
I think that people think they suffer most largely because they don't
spend a lot of time sympathizing with other creatures! (This could
certainly be said of the Judeo-Christian mythos.) Also, women who
don't get a lot of excercise tend to have a more labor problems, so it's
not fair to compare our soft lives with those of wild animals. If we
ran around as much as they do, or as much as primitive people did, I'm
sure childbearing would be easier for us, too.
So much for _my_ little soapbox speech.
> I believe that without a Gloranthan myth that supports painful child birth,
there should
be no actual pain during child birth.
Well, there's still the physical aspect of having to push something the
size of a softball through your pelvis. Does Glorantha need a myth to
explain why it hurts when you get a sword through your chest?
> Would it be too much of a stretch in a fantasy world to believe
that women find birthing no more painful than a cow?
We do know that Gloranthan women do seem to have difficult births
sometimes; Khordavu's mother had to put up not only with birthing
Peloria's first heroquestor, but with the idiot priest who sat by her
bedside, counting her contractions for posterity!
I would bet that there are lots of spells to aid childbirth. There's
the troll one, which passes the pain onto the father. Oria and Ernalda
probably have spells which ease the pain and make the chances of success
higher. Of couse, fathers to be could always make sacrifices at
Oria/Ernalda shrines to help their wives, just as their wives pray at
the Orlanth shrines when the men are off on cattle raids or at war.
Pam
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