The Guild, Serenity, Mal, and Inara
POSTED BY: Bytemite
UPDATED: Monday, January 15, 2024 00:21
VIEWED: 20583
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Quote:Um... ok. Seems complicated. Seems like a different naming system would be a whole lot clearer than making them all different shades of Priestess.
Originally posted by Bytemite:
I think I've addressed your question about why have two different titles of Priestess, but if not, like I was saying, a House Priestess I think of as more like someone actually running a guild house, maybe by committee if the house is big enough. Whereas a priestess would be more like a companion, but legally authorized for performing ceremonies. And a High Priestess would operate between houses as necessary, devoted to facilitating communication and cooperation between guild strongholds and resolving disputes.
Quote:Seems beyond the Guild's business, especially the business of fertility and marriage. But we've already been over that one a'plenty.
What kinds of ceremonies? I think of the sort of ceremonies that other priestesses of the sacred feminine could preside over. Coming of age ceremonies, fertility rituals, fertility IMPROVING rituals, blessings of marriage unions for clients or companions/former companions...
Quote:I really don't get what that means. Too general a statement for my nitpicky brain! Well, and not enough separation of church and state for my vision of the future.
I can think of a lot of aspects in the companion profession where some sort of guild new-age ideas might enter into the equation, and where the guild might seek to invest legal authority into a priestess figure.
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I for one think that Mal DOESN'T find belief through Wash and Book's death. I think he's driven entirely by revenge and righteous anger to go to Miranda, to sic the Reavers on the unwitting Alliance peons, and in broadwaving the message. I don't see any new belief in Mal at all, and if so, in WHAT? Not God, obviously. Not himself, and not his crew, I'm pretty sure he already believed in those. A cause? What, like the same Independents cause that tore him down before?
I really just don't see it, and that has always felt tacked on to me. But then, I do realize that I am in a minority thinking that.
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Maybe it is beyond the guild... Although we do see Inara helping someone with a coming of age ceremony in Jaynestown.
My vision of it is someone acting in more of an official capacity, but same general idea.
And no fertility rituals? What about elderly gentlemen? I'd think they'd pay for future Viagra delivered under the guise of religious ceremony. I'd think a lot of younger men might, too. Women would be trickier, but I'm sure there's a market.
Marriage, maybe not so much the actual "dearly beloved" and "do you take" parts, but presence at weddings, especially if it's a client or a companion, that I do see. And I can imagine the guild coming up with some fancy ritual that basically says "we approve, companions you have contracted with will not interfere with your new life, good luck."
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A note of interest...
Out of Curiosity, I looked up the word "Madrassa", as in House madrassa. It's a variation on an Arabic word, meaning "Public School". Take from this any meaning you want .
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madrasah
"Might have been the losing side, still not convinced it was the wrong one." -Mal
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Quote:Hunh. Did you watch the same movie I did? That speech to the crew, the whole "I do not hold with that..." as in he does not hold messing with people and trying to make them... better. (and here he takes a significant look at River.)
Originally posted by Bytemite:
I for one think that Mal DOESN'T find belief through Wash and Book's death. I think he's driven entirely by revenge and righteous anger to go to Miranda, to sic the Reavers on the unwitting Alliance peons, and in broadwaving the message. I don't see any new belief in Mal at all, and if so, in WHAT? Not God, obviously. Not himself, and not his crew, I'm pretty sure he already believed in those. A cause? What, like the same Independents cause that tore him down before?
I really just don't see it, and that has always felt tacked on to me. But then, I do realize that I am in a minority thinking that.
That's not a belief Mal chose to stand up for?
*scratches head*
Yeah, I think we'll just have to agree to disagree on this one, cause I'm a little astounded. Mal's rediscovered *belief* was not a subtle theme of the movie.
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Quote:That was hardly a formal "ceremony" requiring any kind of legal standing as you've discussed for your Priestesses.
Originally posted by Bytemite:
Maybe it is beyond the guild... Although we do see Inara helping someone with a coming of age ceremony in Jaynestown.
Quote:There hasn't been one iota of the show suggesting that this is a service the Guild offers. I mean, invent it if you want for your fic, but it ain't canon. Companions are hired for sex and companionship, not to get impregnated, and not to help someone else to get impregnated.
And no fertility rituals? What about elderly gentlemen? I'd think they'd pay for future Viagra delivered under the guise of religious ceremony.
Quote:Sure, they'll have a party, a happy going away deal, but do you believe this is happening so often that the Guild needs specially ordained marriage officials? It makes no sense!
Marriage, maybe not so much the actual "dearly beloved" and "do you take" parts, but presence at weddings, especially if it's a client or a companion, that I do see. And I can imagine the guild coming up with some fancy ritual that basically says "we approve, companions you have contracted with will not interfere with your new life, good luck."
I'm trying, but I just don't see any of this as practical. And it's certainly not canon. (Not that ideas have to be canon to make good fic.)
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Quote:
Originally posted by mal4prez:Quote:Hunh. Did you watch the same movie I did? That speech to the crew, the whole "I do not hold with that..." as in he does not hold messing with people and trying to make them... better. (and here he takes a significant look at River.)
Originally posted by Bytemite:
I for one think that Mal DOESN'T find belief through Wash and Book's death. I think he's driven entirely by revenge and righteous anger to go to Miranda, to sic the Reavers on the unwitting Alliance peons, and in broadwaving the message. I don't see any new belief in Mal at all, and if so, in WHAT? Not God, obviously. Not himself, and not his crew, I'm pretty sure he already believed in those. A cause? What, like the same Independents cause that tore him down before?
I really just don't see it, and that has always felt tacked on to me. But then, I do realize that I am in a minority thinking that.
That's not a belief Mal chose to stand up for?
*scratches head*
Yeah, I think we'll just have to agree to disagree on this one, cause I'm a little astounded. Mal's rediscovered *belief* was not a subtle theme of the movie.
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And let us not forget, "Someone needs to speak for these people." Revealing the Truth of Miranda became important for Mal, part of the "I don't hold to that" thing.
"Might have been the losing side, still not convinced it was the wrong one." -Mal
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Quote:And, in the last showdown:
Originally posted by TDBrown:
And let us not forget, "Someone needs to speak for these people." Revealing the Truth of Miranda became important for Mal, part of the "I don't hold to that" thing.
"Might have been the losing side, still not convinced it was the wrong one." -Mal
MAL: I know the secret. The truth that burned up River Tam's brain. Rest of the 'verse is going to know it, too. 'Cause they need to.
OPERATIVE: Do you really believe that?
MAL: I do.
OPERATIVE: You willing to die for that belief?
MAL: I am.
Huge, pivotal moment of the movie. And not an accident that the "belief" word was used here, in the chat with Book, and by Inara when she described the Operative as a believer. AND when Book dies!
As I said, it was not a subtle theme! I hadn't thought so, anyway.
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Okay, now that we've firmly established that the movie is about "belief" can anyone tell me where the mindset that for Mal and Inara to be together, Mal would need to give up Serenity.
Doesn't she love the ship as much as him? It's their home. I've watched the show, read the comics, have all the Companion books, have every format of the movie and I still don't see this as an issue between them. She never asks him to give up his ship for her.
Now that her secret has been confirmed, in several panels, wouldn't she want to be near Mal and his crew, who she considers her family, as much as possible in the time she has left?
And that would mean being on Serenity.
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Easy there Platonist - the belief discussion is not so off topic! It's an offshoot of the idea that Mal would need to leave Serenity in order to leave Serenity Valley. It's not that he'd have to settle on a ranch to be with Inara, it's that he'd likely do better with her if he was all healed and stuff. Hence my thought that he does not need to leave the ship in order to change, to get better.
It has nothing to do with what Inara would want from him. (This is carried over from many discussions on other threads, so probably wasn't so clear.)
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