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fandomhigh2011-09-13 10:06 am
furious-maximus.livejournal.com) wrote in fandomhigh2011-09-13 10:06 am
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Bringing Literature To Life--Through Violence! [Tuesday, Second Period]
Today class was in the Danger Shop. “Welcome to Troy,” Max grinned as the students arrived. Unlike Cindy, he didn’t bring coffee or pastries. Though, to be fair, there wasn’t anywhere to put them. Class was set in a large field of tents. They spread out to the left and right almost as far as the eye could see. Behind everyone was a rocky beach with ships anchored off of it.
And in front of them was a massively-walled city. It almost seemed to radiate an aura of defiance.
“You might notice that, well, not much is happening.” Max waved around them. There were soldiers running here and there to do errands, but many of them weren’t wearing armor or carrying weapons, and there was definitely not fighting going on. “Welcome to siege warfare. Remember that the point of a siege is to get the other side to give up because they’re running out of supplies. So all you have to do is surround them, cut off any chance to get more supplies, and wait.”
“And wait, and wait, and wait.”
“Sure there are a few skirmishes from time to time, but almost never do you have two armies clashing with one another directly. It’s all small-scale stuff.” He grinned and shot Cindy an amused look. “Which makes for great stories. Especially if you can manage to get the right, heroic personalities into those little fights. It can get all personal that way.”
“But siege warfare is boring. Really, really boring. Lots of waiting. In tents. Out in the open. With whatever comforts you’ve managed to build up since you started sitting around outside. And the Greeks were here for nine years.” He shrugged as his eyes swept his students. “Is it any wonder that they wanted to go home? They missed their families, but they also missed decent baths.”
“There’s another really bad thing about siege warfare,” Max pointed out. “Let’s take a look at the night the Greeks finally broke in.” The Danger shop shifted and suddenly the class was on a rooftop in the city, and it was night.
People ran screaming through the darkened streets, colliding with each other, tripping over one another, occasionally fighting each other. Screaming, yelling, the clash of weapons and armor, it was basically pure chaos.
“Welcome to Troy!” Max yelled to be heard over the din. “The Greeks took the city at night, and night fighting is always confusing and chaotic. You can’t see very far, it’s hard to tell whether the people you’ve run into are friends, foes, or civilians. And, remember, the Greeks had been here for nine years. Out in those tents. They’re pissed. To some degree they blame the Trojans for not giving up and surrendering so that everyone could just go home. That means that they don’t really care if they’ve found soldiers or civilians. They’ll kill, steal, and burn until there’s nothing left.”
“This is the first lesson of war and legend. War is always a messy, human thing. It’s driven by human pettiness along with everything else. And in some senses it’s brutal, thuggish, and dirty. Stories tend to leave out that part. That’s not to say that they get everything wrong, or that there isn’t some sort of glory in combat, but this part’s important too.”
Max nodded to a staircase at the back of the roof they were on. “Your assignment today is to explore the city. Grab a partner from class and wander the streets. While no one can get hurt, you might be chased if you’re spotted by the wrong people, so be cautious.”
And in front of them was a massively-walled city. It almost seemed to radiate an aura of defiance.
“You might notice that, well, not much is happening.” Max waved around them. There were soldiers running here and there to do errands, but many of them weren’t wearing armor or carrying weapons, and there was definitely not fighting going on. “Welcome to siege warfare. Remember that the point of a siege is to get the other side to give up because they’re running out of supplies. So all you have to do is surround them, cut off any chance to get more supplies, and wait.”
“And wait, and wait, and wait.”
“Sure there are a few skirmishes from time to time, but almost never do you have two armies clashing with one another directly. It’s all small-scale stuff.” He grinned and shot Cindy an amused look. “Which makes for great stories. Especially if you can manage to get the right, heroic personalities into those little fights. It can get all personal that way.”
“But siege warfare is boring. Really, really boring. Lots of waiting. In tents. Out in the open. With whatever comforts you’ve managed to build up since you started sitting around outside. And the Greeks were here for nine years.” He shrugged as his eyes swept his students. “Is it any wonder that they wanted to go home? They missed their families, but they also missed decent baths.”
“There’s another really bad thing about siege warfare,” Max pointed out. “Let’s take a look at the night the Greeks finally broke in.” The Danger shop shifted and suddenly the class was on a rooftop in the city, and it was night.
People ran screaming through the darkened streets, colliding with each other, tripping over one another, occasionally fighting each other. Screaming, yelling, the clash of weapons and armor, it was basically pure chaos.
“Welcome to Troy!” Max yelled to be heard over the din. “The Greeks took the city at night, and night fighting is always confusing and chaotic. You can’t see very far, it’s hard to tell whether the people you’ve run into are friends, foes, or civilians. And, remember, the Greeks had been here for nine years. Out in those tents. They’re pissed. To some degree they blame the Trojans for not giving up and surrendering so that everyone could just go home. That means that they don’t really care if they’ve found soldiers or civilians. They’ll kill, steal, and burn until there’s nothing left.”
“This is the first lesson of war and legend. War is always a messy, human thing. It’s driven by human pettiness along with everything else. And in some senses it’s brutal, thuggish, and dirty. Stories tend to leave out that part. That’s not to say that they get everything wrong, or that there isn’t some sort of glory in combat, but this part’s important too.”
Max nodded to a staircase at the back of the roof they were on. “Your assignment today is to explore the city. Grab a partner from class and wander the streets. While no one can get hurt, you might be chased if you’re spotted by the wrong people, so be cautious.”
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