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Topic #526
Do any of your settings become characters in your stories?
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In a way, yes. Many literary theorists have discussed this idea of scenery as character. It’s always there doing some heavy lifting for the story. It sets the stage and it tells genre. In OBBH entry 504, I talk a lot about scenery. The subject is important to me in screenwriting, as it helps the show don’t tell immensely. There’s so much that can exist mis-en-scene to drive narrative and character. It interacts with the whole thing. That’s why theorists see this scene as character idea.
Here are some resources on the theory topic:
- Scholar’s Bank: SETTING AS A REFLECTION OF CHARACTER
INTERIORITY IN SHORT FICTION - Reader’s Cafe: The Impact of Nature on Character Development in Literary Works
- JSTOR: READING “LANDSCAPE” IN LITERATURE
There are parts of my Trailokya series where the objects come alive, which is not alarming in a dark fantasy. If you’ve seen the movie Legend (1985), you’ll notice things like this happening in the lair of Darkness (played by Tim Curry). Specifically, I’m thinking of that imp. It’s not unusual, because we see it Clash of the Titans (1981). Fantasy makes ample use of this, and I am sure you can point to other movies and books, too.
Where things get crazy is the way that I make use of the fluidity of objects as possibly alive thing, and make two of the realms in this image. There is the seemingly static, emptiness of Avernus and the blank canvas of Astral. You can learn more about them in The Seven Planes: A Primer. These worlds function very differently from each other, but each takes on a person like quality.
Let’s take a look at these two worlds:
The Avernus is an eraser, essentially. It reminds me of the Loom myth, where an entity can undo the stitches of your existence. The Loom weaves the very fabric of reality. Whether you picture it on its own or in use by a weaver. It takes on personhood because of power and action. Avernus takes on this important role, almost a barrier between worlds. Enter it, and your fibers will be picked apart by all the creation going on in there. For one of the characters in Trailokya, it acts like a scrubber, cleaning up the muddle and mess like a therapist. It’s traumatic but healing.
You wouldn’t want to stay in Avernus, because eventually all your bits and pieces are picked apart and repatriated to other things everywhere. In other words, you as you are no longer exists. You would likely want to stay to buff off the dead stuff and reinvigorate that inner light. No, you won’t forget things and lose stuff, unless you’re in there for awhile. The big part to remember is, you don’t choose what stays and goes. Other than your surface sloughing off, the rest is what it gets to first–like a dip in an acid bath.
Astral is the place most readers are likely going to want to go. This one is like an amusement park, but only if you can control your mind. The theory about this place is exactly what it says. This is the Astral Plane you’ll here some new age folks talk about. The thing is, it isn’t New Age. The theories of this plane of existence are as old as humanity. Humans believe it is the place you go when dreaming, and some think they can access it while awake if they have the skill.
For Trailokya, this does function in much the same manner. However, access to the realm is heavily regulated. Unless you’re carrying a pass, you’re not getting in. Dreams are pretty much a cycle of the Bio-Vessel. Once in a while, an atman will manage to break through, but that is purely accidental. Keep in mind, some beings have a pass. 99% of those people are from Gyuto Order. Certainly, people can access states of mind that seem like the Astral, but are only dream states.
The biggest difference in the series is that in the Astral, things are really happening to you. Don’t fall or fight with things you can’t win against. You will get hurt. The realm is not closed to bad guys. It’s just below the Avernus where the weavings are fast and loose, if you want to see it as a layer cake to better picture it.
The fun thing about Astral is that it can be molded by thought. If you get there and you want to enjoy a day at Disneyland, like you remembered when you were a kid, you let it access those memories and recreate the event. With control and strength of mind, you’d be able to experience the full thing for however long you could manage to hold it together. It would not be the exact copy, just a copy of what was logged in the brain. And, yes, you can skip the bad parts, if your skill is up to snuff.
The Gyuto Order resemble Buddhist monks for this very reason. As strong symbols of a faith that prides itself on mental control, they were perfect to head up the division. The training is just as rigorous as we understand that of Shaolin. They need to be warriors and in great control of their mind, too. Dao-Ming is no delicate flower, so it is saying something if her existence is threatened. It is saying even more when an Astral gate takes damage.
Bad things lurk in the fog of Astral. This is why control of the mind is so necessary. You’ll sense the intrusion and you’ll know that it is not part of the projection. The Astral will not keep them out or keep them separate unless your will is strong enough to cancel the other entity out. Be careful out there!
Other bad things are your fears. Yes, they can manifest. Remember, Astral likes to project your thoughts onto it’s foggy reaches to give form to it’s unrealized existence. Like a mirror, it shows what you give it to show. Many of the dark creatures will just be ominous thoughts. However, this doesn’t make them less harmful if left to their devices.
Thus, these places feel very much alive. They’re reading your presence and interacting like a conscious entity would. Although they have magical properties, they’d be akin to any other magical being–a neutral chaotic wizard/witch pair. Ask a Gyuto Master if they think the planes have persona, if you don’t believe me.
Click on the links below in the scroll box to find out what the other authors think about place crossing into persona. Don’t forget to subscribe before you leave. The hop will arrive each Friday to your inbox without having to search for us. See you next time!
