Tal, Goreans!

I apologize for not making last month's column. Perhaps I shouldn't have undertaken this second job, but I need the money. By the way, Pantheus, the pay envelope was late - again. If this keeps up I am going to have to avoid the Street of Coins for awhile.

Seriously, I hope to make up for last month's lapse with an article of some length and substance.
But let us see, eh?

Tarnsman of Gor

Chapter 11

In this chapter, the caravan of Mintar crosses the mighty Vosk river and makes camp in the City of Tents from which Pa-Kur's horde will assemble and project itself against Ar. As Talena remarks, the scavengers have come to feed on the bodies of wounded tarnsmen. Tarl is not, at this point, concerned with Ar's fate but is rather more concerned with returning to Ko-ro-ba. His mission has been essentially completed. But it seems our young Tarl has been ensnared by the bonds of love. Talena, too, feels the constriction of these bonds.

Casting aside their worries, they wander about the City of Tents. They stop for a time to observe the slaves being auctioned off in what we learn is a typically Gorean fashion. We also learn that to Goreans there is nothing wrong with women being treated as a commodity. Even the slaves themselves are excited by the prospect and endeavor to bring the best prices. Tarl observes that, after a fashion, the women of Earth ("my own planet" he calls it - not yet considering himself a Gorean) sell themselves as well. I do not disagree with this observation, although our culture has somehow managed to warp this. What woman does not endeavor to present her physical charms in the best light possible? How many times have we men observed our women spending a great deal of time cleaning, primping, and dressing themselves? And then they present themselves to us for our approval. Interestingly, however, we are expected to both appreciate their beauty and yet at the same time "respect" it, by denying ourselves the full and unbridled physical pleasure of the bodies they have so carefully prepared. It can be a maddening experience to feel the bestial desire for a woman and then restrain ourselves from acting upon that desire because of some cultural constriction to "behave like a gentleman." Gorean men, even those who live on Earth, need not deny or restrain themselves. Such things are our birthrights as males and we simply refuse to surrender them.

Tarl too, feels this inner conflict as Talena, bedecked in slave silk, performs slave dance for him. One wonders where the daughter of the Ubar of the greatest city on Gor learns to perform the "cruel dances" of Gor. She then, boiling with what might later be termed as "slave heat," submits herself to him, begging to be made a slave. I have personally seen a female submit herself in this fashion after performing a dance. Tarl, still very much a man of Earth, and muchly a fool in this writer's opinion, removes Talena's collar. But even as he does so, we can tell he is fighting what we now recognize as a natural inclination to take her, use her, and *own* her as a slave.

The obvious consummation of the scene, however, be it Gorean or Earthen in nature, is cut short as Tarl is ambushed, knocked senseless, and captured.

Chapter 12

He awakens bound to the Frame of Humiliation. He learns of the supposed treachery of Talena. She has agreed to accept Pa-Kur and rule as his queen. She has also insisted that Tarl die a dishonorable death of a villian, betrayer, and blasphemer of Priest-Kings, unworthy to stain the weapons of Warriors.

Off Tarl goes down the Vosk. He ends up reunited with his own tarn, the not-yet-named Ubar of the Skies. He recovers the Home Stone of Ar (and we are treated to a description of it) and, more importantly, his saddle and harness. Escaping Certain Death, he is again free, mounted, and armed.

Chapter 13

Abandoning Ar to its fortunes, unconcerned with the treacherous Talena, Tarl heads for Ko-ro-ba. On the way, however, he discovers a sufferer of the "dreaded Dar-Kosis" being hunted by larls. After we learn a few things about the hunting habits of larls, Tarl saves the poor wretch. We then learn a few things about Dar-Kosis and, much to our surprise (I was indeed surprised the first time) we meet Marlenus.

Chapter 14

Tarl is again a prisoner, and again faces death. Marlenus has recovered the Home Stone. I note parenthetically--and again--that a Home Stone is not a place. It is a stone. We see Marlenus holding it in his hands.

Tarl and Marlenus speak. There is much respect between them even though they are, at this point, enemies. Such is the way of Warriors and it is a thing we who are Warriors seem to understand intuitively. It is not always obvious to those who are not of our caste. They do not seem to understand how one can both respect an enemy and endeavor to kill him. But then, why should they? They are not Warriors.

We now learn of Marlenus himself, and his motives for attempting to unify Gor. It no longer seems to be an evil scheme of imperialistic conquest as it did when Matthew Cabot spoke of it. We now see that Marlenus has a noble goal, although his means toward achieving it may seem a bit harsh. As Marlenus explains, however, in one of my favorite quotes, "there is no justice without the sword." Indeed, it is the sword, or at least the presence of the sword and the willingness to take it up if necessary, that keeps our societies and cultures from degrading entropically into pure chaos. In this I do believe.

The signal for impalement being given, Tarl informs Marlenus that Talena is alive, thinking to influence Marlenus in some way. But Marlenus, asking rhetorically, for he must have known the truth in his heart already, learns that Talena has submitted to Tarl. Marlenus places his honor above his love for his daughter and enrages Tarl into one of Norman's more excellent fight scenes. It begins with Tarl cursing Marlenus's honor in another of my favorite quotes. By having Tarl curse honor in such a fashion, Norman is not telling us that honor is not important. Rather he is telling us that it is the *most* important thing of all. As I sometimes say, though not often lest it be miscontrued by our detractors who seize upon the most trivial thing and twist it relentlessly toward their own small and hateful ends, honor is a harsh mistress. Tarl earns himself the honorable Tarn Death and is slung between two tarns to be torn apart.

Marlenus speaks quietly with Tarl and we see that Marlenus's love for Talena is not such a small thing that it can easily be cast aside. We also learn that Talena did not betray Tarl for her own ends, but instead sued for the Frame of Humiliation knowing that it would provide Tarl with a slim chance for survival. She, in essence, purchased this chance for Tarl by selling herself to Pa-Kur. We also learn that Mintar is a shrewd Merchant indeed. (You gotta keep an eye on them Merchants.)

In another outstanding scene, Tarl re-escapes Certain Death ("You have luck," Marlenus has told Tarl), is re-re-armed, and is re-re-united with his tarn. Can you hear the audience rooting our hero on? Swell of triumphant music, cut to a scene of the mighty Tarl heaving on the one strap against a dramatic backdrop of sky, and fade to black.

Until next time, Goreans, I wish you well.

Zeb