(04-15-2015, 10:46 PM)Sounsyy Wrote:(04-15-2015, 10:19 PM)Faye Wrote: I don't think the OP's real life comparisons meant--let's take the samurai one for example--that only Japanese people can be samurai and no other races are allowed, or that Japanese people make for better samurai, etc. Rather, when people first come up with their character, they start with the idea of an archetype. Well, I guess I can't speak for others--that's how it usually works for me, at least. So when the idea "samurai!" pops into someone's head for a character, it seems a little... counter-intuitive, I guess is the best way to put it, to then make said samurai character a white guy, at least if it's for no reason more than "I prefer to play a white guy." In fact, I'd argue that where real life races are concerned, that can be seem just as (if not more) racist--to change the respective race of a member of some discipline that belongs to another culture, especially when whitewashing or changing from a minority to a majority--than to say "all samurai should be Japanese."
What you've described is essentially cultural appropriation, and yes, I would agree it is quite wrong.
However, the issue I take with the OP is that the comparisons in game are not accurate to begin with. Ala Mhigo is not all Highlander, as I detailed in this earlier post quite extensively. Nor are all Ishgardians Elezen/Midlander. Nor are all Domans Midlander. Nor are all Ul'dahns Lalafellin despite a significant population of these majority races being presented to us in game. There are native Roegadyn NPCs in Gridania. There are multiple Elezen hailing from Limsa Lominsa. YET, the egregious misconception that there are race locks persists despite evidence presented to the contrary. One Doman Lalafell is labeled an "exception" whereas one Doman Au Ra is taken as part of the norm. Why? One Ishgardian Miqo'te is the "exception" but the Temple Knight's second-in-command is Garlean. No one bats an eye, why?
A more accurate RL comparison is to look at Hollywood Films that are set in 1800s England, and when the director is asked why there are no PoC in the film, they reply with something along the lines of "We're trying to keep it true to the time period." As if blacks, asians, or other non-white minorities did not exist in England at the time - which is outrageous.
What the OP has said, essentially, is that because my character's race (Miqo'te) is not apart of the Ala Mhigan majority race, that makes her "inauthentic." She is not "true to the setting/time period." Despite one of Ala Mhigo's greatest heroines in lore being... Miqo'te.
This is correct.
We are dealing with a lot of assumption and educated guessing when it comes to Ishgard. None of us have been there, and won't be there until June. While there is nothing wrong with an educated guess, throwing up a barrier to explain how someone is "doing it wrong" based on assumption and such IS wrong.Â
Lets take a little speculative lore walk.Â
We know that after the fall of Gelmorra some of the Duskwight Elezen went to Ishgard to seek refuge. They did this because of hostility, ire, and violence thrown their way by the Gridanians. As close off as Ishgardian culture was, it was a better option than staying in the Black Shroud. Now, Keepers of the Moon also made the Black Shround their home and faced the exact same ire, violence, and hostility as the Duskwights. It is not too far fetched to think that there would be some Keepers in the way back past who made the same decision as some Duskwights did. A few generations of a Keeper population living in Ishgard later, and you probably have some Keeper Miqo'te Dragoons.
Granted, the above is all speculation. It is still fairly reasonable speculation, however. We need to remember that the City States are more diverse than we think. Prior to the fall of Ala Mhigo, there were constant wars between City States over territory. Displaced refugees would have migrated and settled constantly, creating the diversity we now see. While a City State may have been founded by X race, that does not mean that X race is the only race that has populated a City State over the centuries.
Yar.
