Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #prayerforthecrownshy, aggregated by home.social.
So? Is it a Hero's Journey? Maybe a variant where you get the trouble, but not the rewards. Maybe one where you gain some insight, but it's not enough for profound change. Maybe one where you don't get the girl, but your guide becomes a fully-formed friend instead of a cardboard helper figure.
Maybe one that's closer to what might happen in real life.
(6/n, n=6)
... but in the end, you've just traveled and are as lost as before. Maybe you need to go on another journey to find your true calling?
The ending seems to reject that thought: Mosscap and Dex just live in the moment, although it's clear that can't last. It's not a (non-sexual) "happily ever after", but it shows a deep bond between guide and guided, a friendship, that is - although it's clearly a reward in itself - is pretty atypical.
(5/n)
But their return still isn't much of a Hero's return. They're still reluctant, haven't changed that much, still hung up on their old insecurities and trauma, with no clear path forward. They cling to their helper, somewhat changing places and becoming Mosscap's guide - but not being needed that much.
They get some sex, but it's far from a partner as a reward. So here's a subtle subversion: you might think you've been on a Hero's Journey...
(4/n)
But first, let's see:
Call to the unknown: ✓
Meeting a guide on the way: ✓
Obstacles (both literally and figuratively): ✓
Breakdown and carthasis: ✓
So far, bog standard, eh? Dex isn't a man, his guide is very much on a journey of its own instead of simply being a helper, but still, so far, feels like a Hero's Journey for sure.
Dex even has change of mind, and is rewarded by an increase in social status/fame after their return.
(3/n)
In the standard Hero's Journey, he (it's classically a he) feels a calling towards the unknown, sets out, meets a guide, and crosses the threshold into it. He suffers hardships, grows, has a breakdown and some new insights, and returns to the known world changed. This includes rewards: treasure, the girl, a status increase.
(Obviously, this is subverted at least a bit in the second one, because it takes place /after/ Dex' return.)
(2/n)
So, thinking about Dex' journey in the "Monk and Robot" books, and whether it's a Hero's Journey.
(I asked @catrinity, who's thought about queering the Hero's Journey a lot, but she said she'd like to wait with her verdict until reading the second one. So Lena: beware small spoilers!)
These books queer so much (natural/artificial, robot abilities and society, social status systems...), what about this one? It sure needs some good queering.
(1/n)
Still thinking about "A #PrayerForTheCrownShy" and its comfortable human society which has done so well for itself. It makes me think about how the humans in @sbdivya's #Meru get treated for "Ambition and Avarice Disorder" if they want beyond their comfortable lives, and how the Utopians in @adapalmer's #TerraIgnota whine about "complacency".
Here, we really might have a happy, complacent society. And even though I make so much fun of the Utopians, it somehow irks me.
Huh.
A personal issue for me might also be that I don't think believing you need to do more than just exist if you can do something well is all that bad. I actually do believe that there's a responsibility everyone has to give to society according to their ability.
I'm not really hedonist enough to be a disciple.of Allalae, I guess...
In the end, I have to say I wanted to like this one; I'm a bit disappointed I didn't like it more.
(4/n, n=4)
It also feels unstructured: even though the Big Question "what do humans need?" lurks in the background, it's never meaningfully addressed; both Mosscap and Dex struggle with it, but there's no resolution.
Maybe there can't be; but it stuck me as unsatisfying: there's no way forward, just being comfortable in the moment. Maybe that's an answer, but it's not a satisfactory one for me and also feels oddly trivial for a series thinking such deep thoughts.
(3/n)
As the previous "Monk and Robot" book, it does have thoughts about what makes a person worthy and how to deal with not feeling particularly worthy, as Dex does. The writing is beautiful too. Dex and Mosscap are a delight.
But... yeah, there's a but here.
But it all kind of fell flat for me. The previous one was all about reversals, about queering the natural/artificial binary; this one doesn't feel as innovative, even though it has elements of it.
(2/n)
"A Prayer for the Crown-Shy", so. Not sure how to formulate final thoughts, but I'll try.
It's a beautiful fleshing-out of the world of "A Psalm for the Wild-Built", that's for sure. Both human (they've got a favor-based barter system! And their own Amish/Luddite populations!) and robot (they can't really replace things that break down! And are very careful be about not using wildlife!) cultures are developed and gain depth, as Mosscap and Dex travel.
(1/n)
I never thought about it being sad that small children themselves won't remember many of the milestones their caregivers might find important: their first smile, when they started to crawl and walk, or spoke their first word.
But I think they'll retain an emotional memory about what was important about that time: getting picked up when they needed it, being able to get around freely, successfully communicating their needs. It'll strengthen them anyway.
Now, outsiders watching the world more closely and attentively than insiders is a common theme. But here is a subtle reversal: an autistic person observes social behavior, a Black person pays attention to White society, because they have to: it's not safe to make mistakes.
The robots have to stakes in it anymore. They watch closely purely because they enjoy doing so.
But maybe that behavior is a remnant too?
Looking seems to be a theme here. Mosscap does it: it watches the natural world, learns its distinctions and quirks, watches a fish die, observes humans. On multiple occasions, it tells or shows humans to go have a /look/.
Is that because a robot is not /of/ nature in the same way a human is? Humans interact with it so much they don't (can't afford to) look it in quite the same way. The robots don't need much from the world, they can be observers all right.
That thing they do, keeping balances of favours and seeing a negative balance as a cry for help... As someone who's very scared of being a burden and who's been used because of it, I do hope they'd also check in with someone who's got a huge positive balance.
Could be they just are very strong and have much to give, could be they're overexerting themself...
"Without use of constructs, you will unravel few mysteries.
Without knowledge of mysteries, your constructs will fail.
Find the strength to pursue both, for these are our prayers.
And to that end, welcome comfort, for without it, you cannot stay strong."
Every hobbit would agree, I guess.
But that triangle sure is hard to make equilateral! I've failed by only pursuing constructs while ignoring comfort and being scared of mysteries for a long time.
As I've decided that these aren't the weeks for dystopia, I'll just go ahead and read Becky Chambers' "A Prayer for the Crown-Shy" now. I really liked the first one! And the title kind of fits me.