Random thought of the....moment.

[letterblade]

I can't actually say 'day,' after all--haven't been updating enough.

The thought was started by a question on the fantasy novel exam (more later-ish, including, I hope, my answers to it): Is "common" the official language of your world?

And as I was sitting there eating my obscenely early breakfast (sausage and cheese scrambled eggs with cumin yey!), the thought occured to me: I want to see--or write--a fantasy world where there is, in fact, a common tongue that everybody knows, but it's ridiculously simple and primitive and is useful pretty much only for travel guide book type phrases. Y'know, "excuse me, sir, where is the tavern?" and "this beer has no head!" and "discard the beer, I want a wench" and "madam, you are a female dog." That sort of thing. And if you want to say anything particularly detailed or specialized and eloquent, you have to revert to a language you actually know--which may well not be a language anybody else knows. I think this could be used to great comic effect--mortal enemies shouting pregenerated insults at each other because they don't know each other's native tongues, or the daring and torried interspecies romance reduced to blurts of "I love you like sun!" before the lovers give up and start snuggling.

Or, worse yet, the sex scene--
Man: Where is, uhhh, howdoIsayit, um, little happy bump?
Woman: ...little happy bump?
Man: You know, um, small, round... *makes hapless thumb gestures* makes you happy?
Woman: I do not get child with you yet!
Man: No, no, no, not pregnant. Thing...here. Like there. Should be.
Woman: You are a strange race!

It could be fun. And sometimes verge into depressing existential musings on the failings of communication--or at least it would if I wrote it. And the entire plot would probably hinge around some crucial misunderstanding, or a badly worded curse, or somesuch. Though I'd have to do a lot of linguistics research.

Come to think of it, I'm sortof doing that in Teh Novel, except there the common tongue is about as complicated as English, but simple by comparison to some of the specialty languages (though less the old languages of the various species) which are incredibly advanced and intricate and designed to describe things like magic and theoretical physics and philosophy which most languages kinda falter with. And since most of my characters are ridiculously intelligent and know at least two languages, often three or four or five, and are certainly fluid in the common tongue (which in world is probably some sort of long-evolved and codified pidgin, but I do have to make it comprehensible in English), it doesn't often come up.

Blather.

As far as why I'm up and contemplating fantasy languages this obscenely early...road test in an hour and a half. I'm actually not nearly as nervous as I've been in the past, but did I sleep well last night? Noooooo.

Comments

[cktraveler.livejournal.com]

You will do excellently. You have my talisman and I'll be praying to your success (unless you don't want it). Text me to let me know how it goes!

And as for a common language ... that's a nifty idea, and works much better than the usual "universal translator" conceit. Though it's also going to make diplomatic negotiations tricky between different races. (If I ever get around to writing Crown of Flowers, you'll see a different way of handling the same problem that's even more prone to awkwardness ...)

[mentalhygiene.livejournal.com]

a fantasy world where there is, in fact, a common tongue that everybody knows, but it's ridiculously simple and primitive and is useful pretty much only for travel guide book type phrases. Y'know, "excuse me, sir, where is the tavern?" and "this beer has no head!" and "discard the beer, I want a wench"

That's absolutely brilliant, you're really on to something here. That's *exactly* what a common tongue would be most useful for (and the ever-necessary "Excuse me, I really need to go, where is the little Orcs room?"). :)

Good luck on you're road test, you'll be okay.

[greenmouse.livejournal.com]

I am hung over and hate my life right now, but this made my entire morning:


Or, worse yet, the sex scene--
Man: Where is, uhhh, howdoIsayit, um, little happy bump?
Woman: ...little happy bump?
Man: You know, um, small, round... *makes hapless thumb gestures* makes you happy?
Woman: I do not get child with you yet!
Man: No, no, no, not pregnant. Thing...here. Like there. Should be.
Woman: You are a strange race!


That's just...I don't have the words. Please write this.

[ursula]

Cherryh's Chanur novels (science fiction, not fantasy) are more or less conducted in pidgin.

[mattador.livejournal.com]

I am amused and intrigued. Viva la linguistics.

So, in French "la petit mort" is a euphemism for orgasm, but "le petit mort" just means 'the little dead guy.'