MERCEDES-LACKEY Digest 2072 Topics covered in this issue include: 1) Re: The OAM by Kenneth Allen Hyde ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 6 Sep 1999 19:57:49 -0400 (EDT) From: Kenneth Allen Hyde To: Misty Lackey List Subject: Re: The OAM Message-ID: On Mon, 6 Sep 1999, Sorana Stargem wrote: > OAM stands for the Order of Amber and Marigold. We are the Order that > protects Van from accusations that he's whiney, self-centered, a brat, > etc. We've gotten a reputation for it (don't ask me when, I only > joined a couple of years ago), so you won't see many people attacking > Van on this list. Mwahahahahah! Such naivete touches my heart. Of course I would never attack Van, but I must point out that it has nothing to do with the OAM (although I respect your desire to defend his Magical Whininess). I wouldn't attack Van simple because it would just be another excuse for him to feel self-pitying and angst-ridden and to be mean to Stefen (who happens to be *my* favorite male character in the Misty canon). *giggle* I'm sorry, but as one of the traditional "enemies" of the OAM (y'all were founded by my "fiancee" and co-venerable elder, Heather, as a response to certain criticisms made against Van by yours truly), I just had to respond. More seriously, to those who have stated that everyone on the list can identify with Van, I have to say that I for one never have. Very few of the experiences that he has in the books speak to me on any personal level, primarily because his response to his life-experience is so alien to my own. Those of you who know me from the list and from real life are aware that I tend to be a fairly contented person. And when I am feeling attacked by the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, my invariable reaction is not to "suffer them" but to either ignore them completely, or to "take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing end them." (BTW, just a side note, but has anyone else noticed a definite similarity of personality between the Great Dane and the Last Herald-Mage?). This has been true for my entire life and may explain why I find myself so little identifying with Van. He just doesn't react or experience things anything like I do. Stefen, I can identify with (well, except for the part about being in love with Van). Van just makes my teeth hurt. For the people on the list who can identify with Van, I am glad that Misty invented him and gave him to the public. It is wonderful to find a character that you can identify with and to know that you are not alone in feeling the way you do. The characters that I identify with in literature are ones that I treasure, for their rarity and for the feeling of "companionship" that I derive from their existence. It is wonderful that Misty has created someone who can give that same sense of fellow-feeling to some of my list-sibs. Just don't expect me to agree that he is the coolest character she has written or that he is my favorite. *smile* Besides, if everyone liked the same thing, think what a haggis shortage there would be. =) Okay, for those who absolutely have to have some kind of concession, I'll admit that Van is probably one of Misty's best-written and carefully detailed personalities. Maybe that's why my reaction to him is so strong. May the seas be your solace and the forests a refuge for your spirit, Cennydd Councilor of Mist Kenneth Allen Hyde | No matter how subtle the wizard, a knife Univ. of Delaware | between the shoulder blades will seriously Dept. of Linguistics | cramp his style -- Old Jhereg proverb kenny-+AT+-Udel.Edu | A mind is a terrible toy to waste! -- Me //www.ling.udel.edu/hyde/prof/ken.html ------------------------------ End of MERCEDES-LACKEY Digest 2072 **********************************