also the last post made me realize i haven't shared the bulk of my arlathan cultural headcanons
i actually have a doc with a big list of things which i'll include, but first i will specify that, at its heart, i view arlathan as a artificially organic structure. much like the evanuris!
they are immortal, as are the elvhen. death does not touch them. very possibly disease does not, either, and certainly not rot. their bodies are built, designed, artificial yet entirely real, spirits now with blood pumping in their veins, with a heartbeat, with breath, with the feeling of cold or warm air on their skin...
because of all this, i think there is a cultural fascination with the organic, the biological, and those particular parts of it that they have no access to - death, disease, and rot. and very importantly, i see none of this as being grim or disturbing, either to the evanuris or the elvhen. it might eventually become disturbing to the elvhen as slavery begins or escalates, as slaves are "spent" in the creation of things, but it is not something that immortal beings have an inherent or instinctual aversion to. there is instead a deep academic fascination with anatomy, with death, with biology, with organic compositions
(btw, as with all my headcanon stuff, u have full permission to take this and run with it without crediting me!!!! u don't even NEED permission i don't feel, but i am explicitly giving it)
also i'm not a big pinterest user in general but working through my ideas for arlathan, it did help a lot. just bugs me that there is sm inevitable theft on that site... :/ but, nonetheless, i will include the link to my pinterest board for arlathan, with the BIG IMPORTANT NOTE!!! that a lot of it is explicitly anatomical, some with violent connotations, and that it might be disturbing. with that in mind... link
low pools with grand columns rising from them
perfectly round ponds, outlined with dense and perfect planting, always in bloom, an artifice of nature
winding staircases which provide glorious views
vines winding through railings, but never dropping leaves or dead flowers
buildings arranged to take advantage of light, where certain times of day create elaborate patterns of filtered light
surreal beauty
colors like an oil slick
curves everywhere, the predominant shape is of curves and circles
everything is so high... tall towers, and great, open structures where u can stare up and see all the floors above
a fascination with death, disease, rot - these things that do not touch the evanuris or the elvhen
skeletal depictions
huge, beautiful murals that show skeletons and rot but are surrounded by this almost ethereal beauty, all gold and gilt and vivid unreal colors that flow together so that every single piece is a piece of art unto itself
an entire building could be a skeleton. a ribcage making up the main room, its arms supporting each side, almost cradling the structure
please do not add hate to this post, bring up the art book, or bring up the books/comics. thank you!
note that this is a PURELY watsonian analysis
it's a fascinating concept, isn't it? an entire culture as a single whole. the qun is strict, demanding, and inflexible: so, too, are bodies. your blood has to do what blood does. your limbs have to do what limbs do. your brain has to do what brains do
of course, the qun as a cultural body is fully aware that each qunari is an individual. the triumvirate - the arishok, arigena, and ariqun - are themselves individuals, after all. i have never felt that the qun as a whole devalues the individuals within it, especially given how they recruit for various roles
unlike the dwarven caste system, the qun fills its roles through the recommendations of the tamassrans. tamassrans as a role are a keystone in qunari society: they choose who will breed with who in order to develop specific genetic traits, raise young qunari and provide education, and notably assign individual qunari to their role within the qun based on an assessment of the individual
thus, each individual is suited to their role within the broader society, which aids in smooth functioning. this, of course, does not preclude any problems... but compared to the dwarven caste system or the human system of lineage, qunari are given roles based on them as individuals rather than who they are born to or how
interesting to note here that both tevinter and the qun breed for select genetic traits. i don't think either group would care for the comparison! but it's still true
while they do not devalue the individual, they also do not value individual liberty over collective unity. nor do they value the lives of individuals over the goals of their society. specifically, the qun attempts to spread itself, to convert, and does so with an incredibly long-game approach to the matter
and this works for them at a social, cultural, and political level, because it is not about an individual in the government wanting something and trying to achieve it within their lifetime. the man we first knew as sten and later knew as the arishok is not trying to assimilate the world, but advancing the overall goals of the qun - the goals of the body - within his lifetime. the border skirmishes they have with tevinter are not a full assault because a full assault is not something the body deems necessary or useful
and since they seek conversion rather than destruction, invading and laying waste would be counterproductive. the qun is many things, but it is rarely if ever counterproductive
given their emphasis on the whole over the individual, there does not appear to be any cultural valuing of one group over another. the soldiers are not better or worse than the bakers, who are not better or worse than the stonemasons, who are not better or worse than the scholars, who are not better or worse than the priests. my arm is not better than my lungs
and the distinction between vashoth and tal-vashoth ties into this. as an entity which wants to convert, the qun sees those who are of "qunari" descent - ie the so-called-but-not-really "kossith," the horned giants we think of when we think about "qunari" - but who were born outside of it as potential converts. comparatively, tal-vashoth, those who have abandoned the qun, are seen as irredeemable. they appear to be the sole group who the qun views as irredeemable and unable to be converted. to know, really know, and to still reject the body appears to be the worst "crime," so to speak, one can commit against the qun
the perspective of the body also makes sense of the "aqun-athlok" thing. it is not a transgender identity, not as such, but the qun has gender roles within its culture. and if the tamassrans select someone for a role that goes against their gender, then that gender is changed; they are aqun-athlok. but even to say the gender is "changed" is inaccurate: i think it's more accurate to view it as the gender is revealed following the results of the assessment. genitalia doesn't matter to the qun, outside of the province of the tamassrans who selectively breed. gender identity does not matter to the qun. nonetheless, they do have gender roles in their society, and the gender is dictated by the role, not the other way around
to further this conversation, there is the potential that roles are not gendered in the way we think of things being gendered, but rather that qunlat has inherent distinctions between roles as part of their linguistic structure, distinctions that may not translate particularly well. which may have led to the shifting from "the tamassrans are [specific qunlat word]" to "the tamassrans are [rough translation to other languages]" to "the tamassrans are women" <- this has no basis in canon afaik, but is an interesting thought nonetheless, and not entirely unrealistic
this meta is based off of canon, yes, but also interpretations and some degree of headcanons seeping in
pls don't include character/game/etc hate on this post, ty! <3
Spirits and Demons/”Demons”
I have two primary views on the spirit/demon division: 1) that there is no ‘division,’ and that both aspects are a congruent part of a single whole, like varied emotions in a single person, or 2) that there is a division, but it is not an ‘unbecoming’ or a ‘breaking’ but a transition, with the possibility of transitioning back.
First view:
In this, I would say that Solas, when he was a spirit, was simultaneously Wisdom and Pride, all the time. I think it’s very possible to view spirits as having twinned aspects.
Second view:
Conversely, here I would say that Solas was Wisdom, and eventually transformed to Pride – but that this was a reaction more than a destruction or ruining of who and what he was.
I believe that in either view, the creation of the veil dramatically altered things for spirits. Whether it’s a congruent whole or twin aspects, I think that spirits outside of the Fade experience considerably more rigidity, that they are much more confined to what they are. Within the Fade, I believe these changes are easier and wear far less on them. And I believe prior to the veil, it was easier for spirits to change even outside of the Fade.
In All New, Faded for Her, the first view would be that Solas’ friend was destroyed not because its Pride was anathema to who – and what – it was, but because it was forced to do something against its own nature. Either nature, that of Wisdom or Pride. In this view, it becoming Pride is because it was twisted against its nature, in the sense that Wisdom became Pride when its will and nature were denied. It became Pride as a reaction. As, if you will, an emotional response to the challenge it was facing. Pride in itself, in its right to be who and what it was.
(Predominantly) Wisdom -> (predominantly) Pride as a reaction, an emotional response.
In the second view, Wisdom was pulled into the physical world as Wisdom, then became Pride when Wisdom’s nature was fundamentally denied, then was brought back to Wisdom. This would have been an absurd amount of stress and wear on a spirit, and I think it’s possible to interpret this as the spirit losing its cohesion, its sense of self. Being traumatized and losing itself in the process of these forced transitions in an environment that it was not adapted to. The mechanics of this could be similar to the above – that a distressed Wisdom became Pride as an emotional response – or it could be closer to the literal “corruption” that is talked about in-game, of a spirit becoming twisted outside of its purpose and becoming a demon.
(Exclusively) Wisdom -> (exclusively) Pride because it’s nature (as Wisdom) was denied; a trauma response.
I think that on the surface, a spirit twisted outside of its purpose and becoming a demon does imply that a spirit (innocent, gentle, fundamentally good) became twisted and transformed into a demon (malicious, violent, fundamentally bad). But a spirit twisted outside its purpose could be more about identity rather than loss/destruction of self. If the entity – spirit or demon – is able to be one way, it will. If different circumstances are presented, it may be another way.
It will adapt. It is a living being, albeit not living in the same way as physical/mortal beings. But it is nonetheless existing moment to moment. And I think the fact that Solas’ friend can become Wisdom again is very stark evidence that the spirit/demon transition is not absolute.
Now, the other big point for me is “demon” as a term. First off: I think it makes perfect sense in-game for this to be the term. There is so much real world precedence for demonizing (heh) certain emotions. Lust is evil. Pride is evil. Sloth is evil. So on and so forth. But the fact that it makes sense for the cultures in-world doesn’t actually mean it translates adequately to the reality of the spirit/”demon” division or their nature. By which I mean…
A Desire demon. Why are they always demons? Why is it not a Desire spirit? A spirit of Desire? Why is it specifically a demon? Now, one could argue, with cause, that the term demon is applied to things that present a risk to physical/mortal beings. And certainly the gameplay supports that perception. Desire, Pride, Envy, Despair… all of these are demons, and they all attack us as players. Or they can, anyway. But there have been times in various games where they don’t attack. Off the top of my head, I can think of two Desire demons and one Pride demon who do not attack the player character or seem to be otherwise doing direct, immediate harm. They are following their nature – in one case I remember, a Desire demon is tricking a templar into believing they are husband and wife, but I honestly can’t remember if its draining him of life or just… fulfilling his desires, and sating its own nature through that.
But in either case, its a being who needs to live. It may be a threat, yes, but it is not evil. No more evil than the dragons who attack your character. No more evil than your character is to the dragons, for that matter.
The final part is the idea that any of these – spirits, demons, or “demons” – can be summarized so simply. There are a number of codices in DAVG about this, and another that I believe is in DAI, but regardless, is definitely in at least one of the earlier games and contests the current classification of spirits and demons. It is a vast oversimplification. Wisdom can be hoarding knowledge, it can be observing, it can be experiential, it can be academic; Pride can be self-respect, it can be ego, it can be self-obsession, it can be being convinced you’re right. And this is only scratching the surface.
Are any Pride “demons” exactly like any other? Are any Compassion spirits identical? I don’t think so. And even if they started out the same – which I still don’t think they do – Solas tells us that they will not be the same. Something stirs where his friend Wisdom used to live. It is possible another spirit of Wisdom will grow there. But it will not be his friend; all of Wisdom’s experiences, the things that made it into the individual being it was, are gone with it.
Which also, I believe, supports the idea that spirits grow. They change. They develop. I don’t think it can be compared 1:1 to a human (or “human” because elves, dwarves…) growth, not least because of the vastly different timeframes involved. It’d be like comparing the physical growth and maturity and age of a human being to that of a tree. Or a mountain. Or a river. There is just such a fundamental difference in scale that everything follows an entirely different formula. A spirit may look unchanging to the eyes of a single mortal being. But over many mortal lives, it does change.
I don't have any grand unifying conclusion here. But I do think that in the world of Dragon Age, spirits and demons are better understood as just spirits, and that the current system of naming them is flawed and imprecise. And, again, I like that, in terms of the in-world narrative! It makes sense. These are very realistic biases to have, and I think having them makes the world richer and more organic. It's just fun to pick apart the fictional biases sometimes.
Many people in real life hate wolves because they can pose a threat to other animals, and rarely to humans. They are demonized because of their nature, which is neither evil nor good, it is simply natural. They need to eat. But making some human lives more difficult does not mean that wolves are evil. In a similar vein, some “demons” making physical/mortal lives more difficult does not mean they are evil. They are simply what they are, existing without an underlying morality, despite the morality applied to them.
Thedas: Hygiene, Body Disposal, and Germ Theory - Arlathan
please do not add hate to this post, bring up the art book, or bring up the books/comics. thank you!
I've discussed this before, but with Veilguard—and more insight into some of the other in-game cultures—I want to explore it again!
CW: Sewage; bodies; various forms of burial; quarantine; murder; slavery
This is absolutely just an interpretation and going off of my (limited) historical knowledge in these matters.
For simplicity I say "germs" here but please know that this includes viruses, bacteria, fungus, etc. etc.
Overview:
I see them as simultaneously the best and the worst. In my view, they are the safest and most hygienic culture... but it is not through any fundamental comprehension or technological innovation. It is magic.
It seems that pre-Veil, magic was everywhere. Strongest in the Fade, presumably, but still present in what I will call the physical realm. And the Evanuris, as we learn, were spirits first. The way Solas talks about the pre-Veil world implies that magic was everywhere, yes, but also that magic was heavily used by the Elvhen. He doesn't speak about the Evanuris or the "Creators" at that point, but it's safe to assume they also used magic heavily, especially given that spirits/demons(/"demons"*) seem to have a deeper and perhaps more organic relationship with magic from the Fade than mortals—or even immortals who are still physical beings, such as the Elvhen—do.
*For more information on my views here, see this meta.
Below: Germs; Sewage; Body Management; Conclusions
Germs:
Given the nature of the Evanuris as spirits who built bodies rather than fully-organic beings, I think that their immune systems would've been incredibly weak or incredibly strong. And since they clearly survived, I lean towards incredibly strong. Thus, I don't think that bacteria, viruses, germs, etc. would be any kind of significant threat to them.
The Elvhen may not have that level of immunity. Given how little we know about the Evanuris and the Elvhen and their dynamic throughout the history of Arlathan, it's hard to say that there was a single fixed reaction to Elvhen becoming sickened. But I think it unlikely that the Evanuris would care that much about sick individuals, unless that individual was uniquely important to one of the Evanuris.
But if a plague hit Arlathan that the Elvhen were susceptible to, then the Evanuris risked losing their society to inaction. Quarantine is possible… but I don't think it's particularly likely. They might have killed the infected Elvhen: this would be a brutally efficient approach, and may even be viewed as somewhat desirable, since the Elvhen are immortal. The burdens of a constantly-growing society would be substantial, and as it is clear that the Elvhen of Arlathan were the ancestors of modern elves in Thedas, it is equally clear that they can have children. So wiping out the ill or otherwise weakened would be a way to keep the population more manageable.
This is an extremely shitty, cruel thing to do, to be clear. But it's also something I could see the Evanuris doing, especially closer to the time of Solas' rebellion—not in relation to his rebellion, just that the Evanuris as he described them seem quite capable of this kind of brutality. They were then seen as gods, after all.
However, it's equally possible that they could magically control, cure, or prevent illness of any sort, or that the Elvhen were imbued with a pronounced immune system. Something that may once have been intended as a generosity becoming a cruelty, keeping slaves alive for eons so that skilled labor is never missed or absent until/unless they are "spent" in the creation of "marvels."
Sewage:
As for sewage, I truly cannot see the Evanuris tolerating chamberpots. I think that they would have developed some form of plumbing, and waste was deposited a substantial distance away, due to distaste about being near it rather than a hygienic caution. Alternatively I suppose it could have been magicked away, or else immolated en masse. Regardless, it is not stored near the cities or dumped into local waters or anything like that. A non-issue, not through knowledge but through aversion and luck.
Body Management:
I think the treatment of bodies would vary significantly depending on whose body it is. The body of a slave would likely receive a different treatment than the body of someone dear to one or more of the Evanuris. And should an Evanuris die, their body would receive yet a different treatment… and since I do not expect, given what we see and hear about, that an Evanuris could just die, it is more likely that a deceased Evanuris was killed, and the way their body is handled afterwards would have some relationship to that fact.
I imagine that Arlathan had some form of caste system: perhaps not as rigorous as what dwarves develop, but still a ranking system that delineates various types of skilled labor. Warriors, crafters, artisans, cooks, servants, and slaves. The bodies of most slaves would most likely be magically immolated without fanfare. This has the—unintentional—benefit of likely being hot enough to destroy many potential concerns. The bodies of highly-ranked/respected individuals might be magically preserved or interred/buried in some way. Magic would allow for separation of the body from the living in some manner or other. Perhaps a stasis field around preserved bodies, or some variation of a barrier around buried bodies to prevent wildlife and people from getting to it.
For the others—traders, crafters, etc.—it could be that disposal is left to the family or perhaps the group they come from. Alternatively, it might be that magical immolation is the standard for any non-Evanuris/non-beloved-by-an-Evanuris individual. Of course, what early Arlathan did versus what late Arlathan did may be substantially different, too.
Conclusions:
So in a big way, they have just lucked out. Their inclinations, cultural characteristics, and the way magic is always right there to help with mundane tasks in various ways has made them not really have to know what's going on, because for them, it is not going on.
