Breaking Ties (![[info]](http://www.insanejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} breakmods) wrote,@ 2010-06-04 01:17:00 |
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BLOOD PURITY AND PURIST CULTURE
MUGGLEBORN: A magical person with no identifiable magical heritage. HALFBLOOD: A magical person with at least one Muggle grandparent. PUREBLOOD: A magical person with eight magical great-grandparents. Note that as the term 'fullblood' is not used in the Harry Potter books themselves, it is not being used in game. A purist is anyone, regardless of their blood status or standing in society, who believes that Muggles are inferior to wizards and that Muggle blood and culture is a pollutant which corrupts wizardkind. Much like real world prejudices, purists will vary in their beliefs and the depth of their hatred, but this is the underlying commonality. Purist society is, in simplest terms, the culture and structure of those who are pureblood and hold blood purity to be of importance. Non-purebloods may be at the fringes of society, or wish to enter it, but the established pureblood families with long lines are at the centre of society and are what others aspire to be. Not all Death Eaters are a part of society or aspire to be. Some will simply be looking for protection or power. However, society is the centre of many Death Eaters' lives and a heavy influence on them. Who is counted a part of society may fluctuate as some people become blood traitors or those of lesser blood curry favour with society members, but a well-informed society member will always be aware of these changes. Technically, if a wizard has no magical great-grandparents, they are considered a pureblood. However, to the oldest of purebloods, these are loose standards and while they are doing well by improving their bloodlines, they would still 'pollute' an impeccable family tree. There is therefore a distinction between the 'old' families and the 'new' families. The old families tend to be insular (and interrelated). They are what compromise what is known as 'society.' With several generations of marrying right, a new pureblood may hope that his or her descendants will eventually be accepted as a part of society. The exact definition of an old pureblood will vary based individuals, however, there are some families who are widely accepted as old purebloods and a part of pureblooded society. Black, Bones, Bulstrode, Burke, Crabbe, Crouch, Dolohov, Flint, Gamp, Goyle, Greengrass, Lestrange, Longbottom, Macmillan, Malfoy, Meliflua, Mulciber, Nott, Parkinson, Potter, Prewett, Rosier, Selwyn, Smith, Travers, Weasley, Wilkes, Yaxley, Zabini You may note that not all names of Death Eaters are here. Not all Death Eaters can be pureblood, and not all those who are pureblood can be a part of society -- we encourage you to think about playing a Death Eater who is simply anti-Muggle, or places a high priority on improving their bloodline. Certainly, an impeccable bloodline will earn the respect of most anyone within the Death Eaters. However, the Death Eaters are, in the end, a meritocracy with a halfblood at the top (not, of course, that anyone knows that). Blood alone will not win you high rank among the Death Eaters. As we see, Severus Snape, a half-blood with a Muggle father, rises to the top of the Death Eater hierarchy by Deathly Hallows. Death Eaters, particularly those who have not been promoted above the status of normal member, are expected not to complain about serving under someone of 'worse' blood than them. If you don't like being beneath a half-blood, work harder. PURIST CULTUREStanding within society is determined by a wide variety of factors, the most important of which is blood. Being a pureblood, particularly one from an old, establish family, is the greatest boon which one can have in society. If one does not have this status, one is expected to be working to improve their bloodline. Two halfbloods may marry and produce a child with purer blood, who can then go on and marry and produce a child with purer blood, until eventually, no one may remember the last Muggle on their family tree. For non-purebloods who wish to be accepted into society, this is their ultimate goal. A long way after blood is wealth. The wealthier a family may be, the better they can 'keep up appearances' and acquire the things which are symbols of high status in society: a large estate, horses, racing brooms, hunting excursions, dresses, and jewellery. Gawdy displays of wealth are considered to be nouveau riche and are generally frowned upon. The English aristocratic upper class, though they live in what most would consider to be the lap of luxury, are not prone to what they see as frivolous spending, and will use their possessions until they have worn apart. Wealth is not as important as blood, and many society families may have spent their inheritances wastefully generations ago, but it does help to possess it. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, is behaviour, which is dictated below. The behaviour expected in purist society encompasses a wide range of topics, so we will attempt to be brief. Etiquette is an important part of society expectations, and all society characters should be expected to know how to respond to an invitation to a party and to set a table (or, at least, which fork to use). We obviously don't expect you, as a player, to learn all of these things, but remember that society members are expected to be polite to other society members (at least, to their faces). This goes for withces and wizards who are not members of society as well. Though, obviously, a Muggleborn witch or wizard would not be given the same amount of respect as a pureblood member of society, but a level of decorum is expected, if only for appearance's sake. What's more, a violent war involving purism has made many purists more reluctant to speak out about their beliefs, lest they be accused of involvement in the Death Eaters. All children, boys or girls, are expected to contribute to the world in one way or another. Their first and most important manner of contribution, of course, is the continuance of their family lines. Failure to marry and produce children is seen as the worst offence a member of society could commit (aside, of course, from running off with someone unacceptable). However, men and women are expected to hold jobs. Some acceptable areas of employ may include law, diplomacy, medicine, accounting, or writing. Some may simply run charities and philanthropic endeavours. Women, on the other hand, may hold 'pink collar' jobs, not because they need the money, but in order to contribute to society. In the last few decades, the Ministry bureaucracy has swelled, and the truth is that the government cannot afford many people to sit idle. More people are required to work simply to keep the wizarding world running, and purist society has been forced to change somewhat. As a result, it has, in recent times, become socially acceptable, and even encouraged among some families, for young, unmarried women to take on employment as a matter of improving wizard society. These women often may refuse pay or only work part time, but their being out in the world has the added benefit of being the eyes and ears of society in a time when knowing who is suspected of Death Eater involvement is very important to many families. These jobs need not be difficult ones, or ones which require much training. In general, they will be cushy and mostly for show. Healing is an acceptable path for a more courageous society lady, but many will choose to work as secretaries, clerks, or for charitable organisations. St Mungo's is a popular volunteer location. Upon marriage, the vast majority of society women will leave the work force and focus solely on philanthropic work and the raising of their children. Any woman who seems too 'career minded,' particularly after marriage, will be seen as requiring 'reigning in.' As with the loosening of restrictions on women in the workplace, rules regarding courtship, dating, and marriage have loosened in recent decades. This is likely a result of women becoming, in some ways, more independent. Whereas arranged marriages were once very common, most marriages in society these days are what may be called 'love matches.' Most parents, knowing how badly arrangements can go, prefer to allow their children to choose their spouse from the acceptable pool of the opposite sex. Arrangements will usually only come into play if parents are genuinely concerned for their offspring's future -- because they are unruly or because they are growing old. In general, most couples tend to adhere to the saying, "one year of courtship, one year of engagement" before marrying, so that they have two years to become familiar with each others' character. Of course, circumstances may dictate that things move more quickly (or more slowly), and it is not a hard and fast rule, more a guideline. A young man is expected to ask a young woman's father (or nearest living male relative) for permission to court her, after which they will be chaperoned, likely by a married relative as they get to know each other better. How long a couple's meetings will be chaperoned depends largely upon the families involved. More conservative parents will wish for their children to be chaperoned until they are actually married. But, in general, parents are more willing to allow children they consider trustworthy to spend some time alone before they are married. (And, indeed, some couples may find time alone together without their parents' permission.) Though not precisely Victorian, purist society is conservative about sex. Most realistic purists know that they will not always be able to prevent their children from engaging in it if they so desire. This is strongly discouraged, of course, but the expectation is that, if it does happen, it should be kept behind closed doors, and no families involved should be embarrassed (if you catch our meaning). This is an unspoken understanding -- no one is going to come out and say it outright, but grown purists will understand it. Once a couple is married, affection and respect is expected to be fostered between them. Of course, things do not always happen this way, but it is considered the preferable situation. Most parents will nor force their children into a marriage with someone they hate, and most marriages are relatively comfortable. Many society couples love each other genuinely. However, the fact of the matter is that, within a marriage, it is generally agreed that the husband holds the power. If a woman wishes to influence her husband's decisions, she is expected to use her wiles, wit, or gentleness to persuade him, not to outright demand. In the end, despite the newer freedoms that women have gained since the 1950s, the fact of the matter is that men in purist society are still expected to call the shots, and a wife is expected to yield to her husband's wishes. |