1. Sham

    Sham New Member

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    Characters

    Discussion in 'Plot Development' started by Sham, Jan 9, 2011.

    Okay, okay, okay. My story is taking place in before times(Daggers, swords, assassins), and the MC is a girl, 15 years old. What would her hobbies be? And since it was back then, would she be treated as property? The story is taking place in present tense, if it matters. Okay thanks!
     
  2. Sham

    Sham New Member

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    Oh, sorry, I forgot to mention it was in Medieval times. Sorry!
     
  3. Mallory

    Mallory Contributor Contributor

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    Girls that age in that time period would do stuff like (if she is rich) sewing, embroidery, learning things like which type of silverware to use for which type of dining event, reading poetry etc.
    If she was poor, she'd do things like mending, cooking and preparing food, helping with the farm/livestock, babysitting little siblings etc.

    Whether she actually likes these things or is just pressured/forced to do them is up to you.
     
  4. Sham

    Sham New Member

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    Do assassins usually come from wealthy families? Because I'm planing on making her an assassin.
     
  5. Elgaisma

    Elgaisma Contributor Contributor

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    depends when and where medieval times is a huge time span and women's rights fluctuated. Weren't so bad early on by 1066 were a bit more restricted, 14-1600s were horrible. By the time of Katherine Parr weren't so bad again noble women were starting to receive an education again.

    Her best bet for emancipation is a convent lol Give me a date and a time and I can give you names of women to read about that will help.
     
  6. Elgaisma

    Elgaisma Contributor Contributor

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    I think Asia is your best place for a setting then have you read Tales of Otori by Lian Hearne? Possibly the Borgia family in Italy maybe of use.
     
  7. Sham

    Sham New Member

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    I don't know about that. But were assassins wealthy? And did they had education back then?
     
  8. Sham

    Sham New Member

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    Okay, I think I got the start of it...


    Wrapped in tight gloves. They match with my “little black dress”. Well, that's what Uncle calls it.
    Mourning. That's what I'm doing right now. My name is Catherine. I prefer Kat. But anyway, I'm mourning. My parents, Marria Bluemace and Christopher Bluemace, are pronouced dead. The city of Rome hasn't been the same since the Guards; Horrible, greedy men who's intentions aren't to protect Rome, but to steal from it.
    “Kat,” says someone, “Are you okay?”
    I face the speaker. It's someone I don't know. Probably a friend of my parents. He's dressed in a black robe. I think there's a sword behind him. Hidden, like someones going to murder him now.
    I nod.

    Well? Comments? Ideas?
     
  9. Unit7

    Unit7 Contributor Contributor

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    1) Where in the World does it take place?

    I am no expert but just because such and such was common place in X doesn't mean it was in Y. Even today in some places Women are still treated as property.

    2) You should narrow the time frame down. Medieval is a rather broad spectrum. The Middle Ages took place between 500 AD to about 1500 AD. Its about a thousand years.

    So without the general time the story takes place and where it takes place. It would be... well hard to give any accurate information.

    As for the assassins bit. I think you need to get a better understanding of things. Assassins are not often like the ones you see in Fiction. In most cases of assassination, atleast the ones we know who did it, are often done by people that are average joes. They are not highly trained or come from secret societies. Quite a few tend to act alone or in a small conspiracy. Such as the case is with Julius Ceaser. A group of Senators wanted to kill the dictator in hopes of restoring Rome to its former glory.

    Sometimes Governments, such as the US, are involved in assassinations. I believe during the Cold War, the US tried several times to poison Fidel Castro.

    But this is your world. If you want your family of Assassins to come from a rich family, if you want them to be part of a bigger organization, if you want them to be dirt poor, thats going to be up to you. But I suggest you read up on Assassins.
     
  10. Sham

    Sham New Member

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    The place would be Rome...Somewhere. I don't know yet. And for the time...It would have to be when women were treated like property and slavery thrived.
     
  11. Elgaisma

    Elgaisma Contributor Contributor

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    I recommend you read about the Borgia family, Cadfael by Ellis Peters, Tales of Otori by Lian Hearne, and get some kids history books out of the library. Read the BBC website its history section is good. Check out Youtube for CBBC Horrible Histories. Ancient Rome is not really medieval it is earlier. 1100s England could just about give you a woman in slavery it was disapproved of but done.

    Between them you will have a better starting base for your stories. I actually think Asia is better for what you want than Europe.
     
  12. Ellipse

    Ellipse Contributor Contributor

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    A 15 year old girl at that time in history would either be married or getting ready to be married. If she isn't married, then she would be considered under rule of her father.

    Roman women of that time couldn't vote or hold political office. They mostly stayed at home and raised the family. While the husband was away, they would be in charge of running the house (taking care of finances, giving the slaves order, etc). If her father happens to die while she is unmarried and does not leave a will, she would be entitled to a share of the property equal to any of his sons.
     
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  13. Elgaisma

    Elgaisma Contributor Contributor

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    Both of these cover such huge time frames sometimes it isn't true, there are lots of legal and cultural differences througout the time frame of 'Roman Times'

    Again the same with medieval there are times when 16-18 wasn't unusual for marriage.
     
  14. Ellipse

    Ellipse Contributor Contributor

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    The Roman Empire roughly lasted a thousand years. A lot of stuff did change for them, but I doubt anyway wants to read a giant wall of text here. :D

    The Romans adapted a lot of their culture from Greek culture, which stretches back even further.

    The Spartans shared a lot of similarities with Greek culture while having their own spin on things too.
     
  15. Sham

    Sham New Member

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    I want it to take place in Rome, and what happens if the girl in the family was older, but there was a younger sibling, would the younger male sibling be the ruler of the family?
     
  16. Elgaisma

    Elgaisma Contributor Contributor

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    At times in the Roman Empire girls were called Una, Dua, Tertia etc because the daughters of Julius Caeser were all called Julia, Octavian had daughters called Octavia etc. They were so unimportant their names were a number.

    You need to find out more - still suggest horrible histories they did some on Romans. They are a great starting place. I know too much to help you yet Sham. You have just gone from medieval to Rome. Do you want medieval Rome or the Roman Empire ?

    The Holy Roman Empire was still in existence at the start of WW1. It is a huge time span that is why I am asking OP to be more specific about what he wants. What he has suggested so far I think would fit better in Japan or China.
     
  17. Ellipse

    Ellipse Contributor Contributor

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    Really, with all the info you want/need, it would just be easier for you to look it up on your own. You could easily google it, or go to wikipedia. That way you can directly bookmark the info.

    To answer your question, most likely the younger male sibling would become ruler of the house once he reached adulthood, which was usually around 14-15 at the time. The sons were always expected to take after their father.
     
  18. Sham

    Sham New Member

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    Medeivil Rome. Sorry for my spelling. And what are the horrible historians?
     
  19. Ellipse

    Ellipse Contributor Contributor

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    Heh, yea, I agree with you on the time span. :D I'm speaking of the Ancient Roman Empire and you are speaking of the Holy Roman Empire.

    Both can be described as the Roman Empire but there are very big differences in time frame and culture.
     
  20. Sham

    Sham New Member

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    Thanks for all the help you guys.
     
  21. Elgaisma

    Elgaisma Contributor Contributor

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    ok Renaissance time maybe or before that.

    Horrible Histories are a kids series of books depicting history in all its horrible gruesome, stinky, miserable glory lol They are a wonderful starting place for any time period.

    You can try YouTube they have been made into a TV programme.
     
  22. Aeschylus

    Aeschylus Member

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    I'm confused about what time period we're talking. The Roman Empire was long before Medieval times. Some history:

    Roman civilization really flourished after Greek colonization of Rome. After that, Rome had a series of dictators/monarchs until 509 BCE, when the Roman Republic was instituted. As of 27 BCE, the Roman Empire came into being, replacing the Republic. This is the time period people generally think of when they think of Rome. After the reign of Theodosius I, the Roman Empire was split into the Eastern and Western Roman Empires. The Western Roman Empire fell in 467 CE/AD.

    The Eastern Roman Empire became the Byzantine Empire, combining Middle Eastern, Oriental and Western Roman culture into the culture that is commonly seen in Russia and Russian-influenced countries. The Byzantine Empire fell in 1453 when it was taken over by the Ottoman Turks.

    The Middle Ages is the period in Western European history between 467 (the fall of the Roman Empire) and 1453 (the end of the Hundred Years' War). It's also called the Dark Ages. It's mere coincidence that both the Middle Ages and the Byzantine Empires ended in 1453.

    The Holy Roman Empire was not really an empire at all but an association of states and later empires, formed in the Middle Ages and ending in 1806. It included a good chunk of Europe for much of the Age of Absolute Monarchs (after the middle ages), and generally consisted of the Catholic nations/empires in Western Europe. I believe Britain left it at some point. It was mainly German, and originally ruled by a Holy Roman Emperor until it weakened and became a loose alliance.

    (interesting note: The city of Constantinople in modern-day Turkey was the capital of the Roman Empire for a while, until the empire split. After that it became Byzantium, the seat of power in the Byzantine Empire. It became Istanbul in 1453 when it became the capital of the Ottoman Empire, which lasted until 1923).

    Anywayyyy, getting to the point. If your story takes place in Rome during the Middle Ages, you are not talking about the Roman Empire, you're talking about the city of Rome. Italy, including Rome, was just as divided in that period as the rest of Europe, with a number of different nation-states that were at constant war. Rome was part of the Papal States until it became part of Italy in 1870.
     
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  23. Sham

    Sham New Member

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    I want it to take place in Rome...Maybe the Holy Rome is a good idea?
     
  24. Elgaisma

    Elgaisma Contributor Contributor

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    Holy Roman Empire ie Austria Hungary was still in existence at the start of WW1. It wasn't really involved with slavery. Why don't you do what Lian Hearne did and base an imaginary country off of Rome/Medieval Europe. Combine the two.

    I still think with your descriptions so far they fit Asia better.
     
  25. Aeschylus

    Aeschylus Member

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    The Holy Roman Empire really had nothing to do with Rome at all; the name was more of a propaganda technique, to associate the empire with the nostalgic legacy of Rome, to make it sound powerful and successful. In fact, the city of Rome wasn't even included in the boundaries of the Holy Roman Empire.

    There really wasn't a longstanding institution of slavery in the Middle Ages. Feudal society did involve serfs, which can be compared to slavery, but I don't think that's what you mean. Ancient Rome, on the other hand (the Roman Republic/Empire), had a huge basis in slavery; slavery was a huge part of Ancient Roman society. I still tend to think that what you're thinking of is Ancient Rome.

    Now all this talk of Assassins and Rome... you're not thinking of Assassin's Creed, are you? Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood is fantastic, but it's only loosely based on real historical events. The Assassins did exist, but they were a Persian/Syrian organization during the Middle Ages. And Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood takes place during the Renaissance, not the Middle Ages--while it takes place in the city of Rome, it has nothing to do with the Roman Empire, or even the Holy Roman Empire.
     

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