Originally posted by at99:
<STRONG>For all those lovers of Baldurs Gate series.
Where do you think the game mythology (of baldurs gate fame) came from?
Like who thought of Elves,Halflings, mages,druids,trolls,all those monsters etc
was it from a past culture, a fiction writer, merlin himself,group of countries,someones twisted mind ,D&D,etc</STRONG>
Complex subject, this. And it's not made any easier by the fact that some creatures had familiar names at one time, but in fact meant something entirely different than they do today.
Take Elves. Shakespeare's Elves, Fairies and Sprites were interchangeable minor air spirits, mischievous and friendly. The modern conception of Elves as a separate race, linked closely to the earth, ancient of days, gifted with magic and sometimes inimcal to humankind, derives straight from Lord Dunsany, the turn-of-the-century author who can be credited with created at least a portion of the modern fantasy genre. His "The King of Elfland's Daughter" and dozens of short stories create the mood, syntax, and background of Elves as they're often portrayed in modern times.
Hobbits were created by JRR Tolkien: the single thing that's original in his books. But Tolkien's hobbits are at least partially out of Kenneth Grahame (The Wind in the Willows), and other writers of English pastoralism, who hated urbanism, sophistication, modern inventions, unclean environments--and also foreigners and the lower class. Tolkien's hobbits are the perfect middle class society. They're friendly, love gardens, feast and make merry, and always know their place around their betters.
Trolls come out of Middle Europe, and you can find them in (among other places) the Brothers Grimm. They were enormous, ugly, brutish creatures. They tended to guard bridges and live under them, exacting a toll of a riddle upon people seeking to cross: answer, or die.
The term "druid" actually refers members of tribes who lived in England when Gaius Julius Caesar invaded at the head of his Roman legions. They (the druids) were still hunter-gatherers, living among the forests (which were plentiful in Britain until the famous Climate Inversion that occurred in Northern Europe in the 13th and 14th centuries). Caesar wrote that they lived in the trees and painted themselves blue before entering battle, a comment which has since been stated with ridicule about the English ever since.
The Druids were no more mystical than any other tribe at the time, and their religious practices wre very similar to those of many other peoples; but the latterday English used druids as a nationalistic rallying point. From there, it was only a step during this ecologically conscious age to convert them into a sort of religious Green Party.
Dwarves and Kobolds occur throughout Eastern and Central Europe, where they existed as sort of local spirits who didn't like trespassing on their territories. Occasionally, they'd invade human territory, provided their wisdom would give them a foothold: a good example is the Grimm fairytale, Rumplestilskin. Like some other spirits, they could also be helpful if properly treated; in one Russian fairytale, the little old dwarf assists the industrious, meek step-daughter, and harms the lazy, loud-mouthed daughter of an abusive woman.
The term "mage" derives from a religion, the Magians. They were worshippers of Zorastrianism, one of the earliest monotheistic creeds (a forerunner of Judaism, Christianity and Islam), and believed in the Divine Fire. The Magians lived in ancient Persia (modern Iran) and were very much persecuted under the Islamic regimes--remember that evil mage in Aladdin and his Lamp? He was a Magian, a Magician, as the oral work has it. That's the way the commonfolk thought of Magians: selfish, depraved, hoarders of secret knowledge. Yet another reference: remember the portion in the bible about the Three Magi? Yep, they're Magians. The passage was a piece of propaganda intended to be spread by word of mouth, and gain the conversion of Magians: "If three kings bowed before this child, shouldn't you?"
Small groups of Magians still exist in more tolerant Islamic states and India. Freddy Mercury, of Queen, was a Magian of Magian ancestry. At his death, his body was rendered back to the Divine Fire.
Giants occur throughout the literature of all peoples, and are often associated with earth spirits. A typical example is Ilya Murometz, of whom the pre-Christian Kievan-Rus (modern Ukraine and Russia) bards composed an entire cycle of story-songs. He and his small band of do-gooders, though, ran before the might of the White One with the Sword, in the end, and were turned to stone as they fled--the forced introduction of Christianity, as interpreted by those who were not Christian.
Paladins are simply knights viewed through a romantic haze. By the 16th century, Church attempts to create a code of conduct for the major unit of noble warfare, the knight, were rewarded with success. Orders of knighthood were springing up in many countries for a variety of reasons--some to act as armored extensions of the Church (Roman Catholic, that is), others being formed in subtle opposition, or as political rewards, etc. They were self-policing bodies who could, and did, suspend members that performed in un-chivalric fashion. However, it should be noted that courtesy or generosity to the lower class was never considered a virtue. When Sal-al-Din, the great Arabic commander, allowed tens of thousands of citizens out of a besieged city on the verge of starvation, to allow his troops a convenient cover for escape, Richard the Lion-hearted simply and deliberately mowed down commoners and troops, alike, without concern.
Priests? Well, that one's sort of self-explanatory.
Clerics were simply the medieval class who were brought up to the priesthood, knowing how to read, and having access to knowledge that no one in the secular hierarchy did. Consequently, their knowledge was sometimes regarded as magical in origin. It should be remembered that superstition was one of the greatest weapons in spreading Christianity. The Merogivian kings of France believed that their success in one important battle was due to a banner given them by representatives of the Pope that supposedly had a religious relic in it; they converted on the spot, and demanded conversion of all their captured territories. (They also gave away about a quarter of their holdings to the Church.) Priests were thus seen as powerful figures not directly involved in battle, but capable of great support from the sidelines.
Hope that helps.
[ 12-17-2001: Message edited by: fable ]