Lack of Intersectionality and Gender Issues
I am well aware that feminism has changed a lot during recent decades. That probably explains why in earlier Bradley books we have hippie-like described questions of free love or polyamory, and then (in The Alton Gift or inThe Children of Kings) we get supposedly emancipated, but monogamical relationships (Mikhail and Marguerida, Domenic and Illona). That explains many other things in the series.
Why, then, should I demand intersectionality in the books in which the feminist undercurrents first appeared in the mid seventies? Because that would prove that Darkover Series is somehow outstanding. Well, it is not. And what is more, intersectionality is not a question of recent ten or twenty years. Published in 1995 Four Ways To Forgiveness by Ursula K. Le Guin copes with this question, showing how slavery and patriarchy are connected, and how the slave women are more endangered by sexual harassment and other forms of discrimination than the free ones. And guess what? Of course Bradley does not see that feudalism and patriarchy are connected, that one hierarchy creates another one. She criticises only patriarchy, but not the hierarchical social order. For her, these themes are completely unconnected. (Besides, the only book concerning more deeply commonfolk’ problems is The Heirs of Hammerfell. The peasants from Hammerfell are endangered by losing of their rural grounds, and the Lost Heir promises them to find another lands. And that is all. Oh, yeah, and we have also a help for everybody in the times of cholera epidemy in The Alton Gift. Bradley? It is not enough. By the way of feudal questions.) From her books, we don’t see how common women are exposed to the violence from the privileged ones. In Two To Conquer Bard di Asturien made harm to soooo many women, but yet the most highlighted cases were of Melisendra (a leroni from one of minor noble houses) and of Carlina, the king’s daughter and the Bard’s wife. There was also Lysandra, a servant girl, but her plot seems to be designed only to show How Vicious Bard Was. Do not misunderstood me. It is great that Bradley showed that every type of rape is evil (marital also, damn!). But she didn’t describe how some groups of women would be more endangered. What is more, Bard didn’t receive any official punishment for his actions. He should have been out into the darkest dungeon, damn! But not, he experiences all his terrible deeds from Carlina view, and for Bradley, it is enough. And then he rescues his sonny from a fire, so he is A Good Man now, and we shouldn’t punish him. But still I like this book, because it is more climatic than the most Darkover series, and we have an Evil One as a protagonist, and Melora (Melisendra’s sister) is just… Super.
Anyway, in Darkover books problems of common women are rarely mentioned. When they are, they are usually cut to a perspective of a leroni or a Renunciate who benefits of the new life, because in the previous one she would be just married off and soon got a pack of kids. It is also often inclined that such women’ husbands tend to be abusive. Do you really think then that there is no domestic violence among the aristocracy? *Facepalm*
We can find another troubles with intersectionality in Traitir’s Sun. Not to mention that the whole intrigue and secret political meetings are performed by men. Not to mention that Hermes Aldaran, one of the Good Guys, is almost as good in cheating his wife as Michael Corleone. Not to mention that Marguerida (supposedly equal to her husband, yes?) is involved only in the final battle. There is some much more darker aspect in this book.
Dyan Ardais, Illona’s father, is described as a guy with terrible reputation who is not willing to marry, and who has entirely a dozen of illegitimate children with commonfolk women. In The Alton Gift he is shown yet in another way: as a Poor Outsider being forced to marry by the society. I can’t see him as a man longing for love, deserving compassion. What I rather see is another Esteban Trueba raping helpless peasant women. Assuming that Dyan is privileged and that Darkover is a feudal society, I can hardly imagine that all (or the most) of his relationships were the voluntary ones. Do you think that I am exxagerating? That landowners, nobles, plantators didn’t use to rape peasant women, serving maids, slaves? It was terribly common. Ok, maybe The House of Spirits is too leftist for you? Well, you can as well find similar proofs in Absalom, Absalom! or in Crime and Punishment. I suppose that these books are not especially subversive, at least when it comes to political matters. Anyway, the point is: Dyan is probably a rapist bastard. And nobody cares about it.
Themes of gender roles are rarely touched, too. Do you know why I like Le Guin’s Tehanu so much? Because Tenar orders his son to wash the dishes. Seems to be unimportant, but yet… Really, do you think that we will be emancipated without equal share of house duties? Such daily matters are actually the core of feminism. And in Darkover series we do not see it much. Marguerida performs traditional Chatelaine duties while her husband is a regent. The same with Regis and Linnea. The only guy taking care of a small kid is Hermes Aldaran (and it is only mentioned), but he lived on Terra back then. It seems to that on Darkover the only subversive, non-masculine role for a man is being a monk or a laranzu. If a woman wants an independent life, she has only two choices: Renunciate or laran Tower. But, oops, laran is usually inherited…
What is more, in so-called feminist books gender roles are almost never discussed. The only conversation close to it is in Two to Conquer. But even then it is a bit exxagerated. Melora? Believe me, a man does not need to wear a skirt to cook something.
Illusion of Shelter
Dragonriders of Pern, Knights of Jedi, Heralds of Valdemar, laranzu-in and Renunciates of Darkover, and many other fictional orders/groups/institutions have one thing in common. They are some kind of an enclave, of a shelter in often feudal or unjust universe. You can join them thanks to your gifts or abilities, not because of your priviliged social position or connections with aristocracy.
But such a shelter is an illusion. When we look at laran-wielders, we’ll soon acknowledge that it is quite elitary institution. The most important Tower in Arilinn takes only candidates from Comyn. What is more, many hidden laran talents would never get the chance, because are from the commonfolk, and it is found unnecessary to search among ordinary people. This change only in The Alton Gift. Former tries of Damon Ridenow and his forbidden Circle had had only one long-term effect: the Keepers no longer needed to be virgins.
When it comes to the Renunciates, it is not also very optimistic. Being a Renunciate is an escape only for women who like war and fightning. What should do a low-born woman – laranless and uninterested in being a warrior- dreaming about her own, independent job? Or about an equal marriage or relationship? What should do a clever and laranless child who is poor and cannot have a decent education? She or he has no solution, she or he cannot escape from patriarchal and feudal rules. So, the Renunciates and laranzu-in are very narrow paths to escape.
Attitude Towards Technology
In The Bloody Sun Jeff joins the Circle of Arilinn. The Circle meets with Pan-Darkovan League of merchants who demand mining of industry resources. The same – with machines – was proposed to them by Terrans. And then we have all the Comyn talking that Darkover does not need industry, that people would be only abused in factories. Feudalists warn about capitalists. How cute. This is exactly my problem. Darkovan people are already opressed by feudal system. And, besides technology and industry can be very useful for them and improve their lives. What is more, maybe thanks to the laran damage to the environment could be avoided? In some books (The World Wreckers, Traitor’s Sun) ecological issues are important. Thoughtless capitalism is obviously evil and leads to disaster for natural environment. It is good that Bradley points it out. But Darkover would be able to improve its inhabitants’ live without any ecological crisis. And this possibility is never fully used. Eternal Iron Age with occasional laran-made aircrafts for the Wealthy Ones is not good for anybody. But, of course, any major progress would mean some social changes, and social changes – as we’ve learned from Traitor’s Sun – are Evil!
It is directly connected to some conversation that Damon Ridenow and Andrew Carr have in The Forbidden Tower. Terran Andrew finds being a servant as something humilating. And guess what? Damon thinks that working with a machine in Terran Base is humilating, because you are submissed to a computer. And that servants should be actually grateful because such mansions as Armida provide them a job. *Facepalm*
Damon, my dear? Your servants do not need aristocrats. Aristocrats need servants, because they don’t like rushing their own asses, and they have houses so big that these houses cannot clean themselves and so. And they are, of course, bothered with such severe activities like hunting or balling.They are privileged and wealthy, so they can afford themselves a hell bunch of servants. And believe me, if there were no aristocracy, the commonfolk would be probably richer so that many people wouldn’t need to leave their homes and seek for a servant’s job. And besides, I’d rather prefered a submission to a computer than to any feudal lord. Because the computer cannot beat you, rape you or harm you in any similar way. And the whole submission to it comes to some hours behind a desk.
Left Hand of Fiction 