For Barrayar mods (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
barrayarmods) wrote2016-12-20 02:54 pm
barrayarmods) wrote2016-12-20 02:54 pm
Entry tags:
[For Barrayar] cetagandan culture
history
The Cetagandan Empire is one of the oldest planetary governments in the Nexus, as well as the largest, having gradually spread from one planet to eight in waves of expansionism over the last several centuries. Eta Ceta IV is the center of the Empire and home to its capital city Cetaganda; all Cetagandan planets are so named, such as Rho Ceta and Mu Ceta. However, within the Empire they are more commonly referred to as satrapies. Each is led by a satrap governor reporting directly to the Emperor himself.
The Cetagandan Empire is known for its distinct, if somewhat obscure, caste system, which features a two-tiered aristocracy: the lower ghem and the upper haut. The Empire's upper government is comprised almost entirely of haut men, including the Emperor and Empress; the elusive haut women serve far less visibly, although each satrap governor has a haut lady consort. However, while satrap governor terms are restricted to five years, so as not to allow them to build power bases, the haut lady consorts serve the satrapy itself rather than its haut governor, and are permanently assigned. The ghem, however, make up the military caste, and constitute the entirety of Cetaganda's military force -- one that most hesitate to reckon with, considering their aggressive expansionism and formidable military might by sheer numbers alone. To the uninformed observer, their society must seemed flipped: a formidable military force seems like it would be ill-controlled by an effete, artistic upper aristocracy. The simple explanation is, of course, due loyalty to their reigning lords. But the relationship between the ghem and the haut is considerably more nuanced than that.
The Cetagandan Empire is, in itself, a centuries-long eugenics experiment. The cultural ideal that drives Cetagandan society: the perfection of the human genome. Genetic politics rule supreme in the Empire, the driving factor behind just about every level of politics, society, and custom of Cetaganda. Much of the upper government is centered around the pursuit of this ideal; it is the haut government that controls the distribution, combination, and modification of the Cetagandan genome.
Aside from genetic politics, however, the highest virtue in Cetagandan culture is that of aesthetic value. This drives the particular aim of the Cetagandan mission: the perfect human genome would not only provide for optimal health, but beauty as well. The art of aesthetics is just as deeply ingrained in Cetagandan culture, and these two ideals intersect so as to regard the human body, as well as its underlying genetic makeup, as the ultimate art form. Aesthetic pleasure plays heavily into every element of social and public design on Cetagandan worlds: dress and face-paint are often elaborate and carefully coordinated, artistic pursuits are societal virtues, and art installations of all kinds feature heavily in Cetagandan spaces, both private and public. The Cetagandans approach art as an immersive and interactive process, and true appreciation of the subtleties of Cetagandan art requires skill and training.
society
The ghem and haut castes are clearly delineated and separate, although they work together. Cetagandan society also has divided gender roles in each cast, making for a four-faceted society.
The ghem, the lower aristocracy, is the far more visible side of Cetagandan high society. They are a clan-based caste, not unlike the Barrayaran Vor. Face-painting is a ubiquitous ghem custom, another form of art, though this one serves a social function: the colors and patterns used can denote one's clan, status, and occupation (either current or seeking). In military context, different patterns denote things such as rank and specialization. Often this takes the form of full face-painting for formal occasions; half-face-paint is used more commonly among soldiers on active duty or in less formal contexts, although this is a relatively new trend.
Ghem men make up the military force, all the way up to the chain of command. Although the ghem military seems to operate independently of its government, military forces are supervised by the governor of the satrapy on which they are located. However, entry into the military is not required of ghem men. Many ghem lords who do not join the military work in the artistic sector instead invest their careers in aesthetic practices of non-genetic nature: the art of the senses – taste, touch, sight, smell, and sound all alike – is a cornerstone of Cetagandan society. The ghem, male and female alike, also engage in other industry, service trades and skilled labor demanded of a developed society.
Ghem women are not permitted in the military, but are sometimes involved in non-military scientific pursuits and such industries as fashion and textile design. However, ghem ladies largely play the function of socialites and artists of a different nature. Unlike ghem men, the art of ghem women is a genetic one. While only haut ladies are permitted to handle the human genome, ghem ladies experiment with a wide variety of non-human genetic projects, creating majestic, living works of art designed with form rather than function in mind. Some of what Cetagandans consider beautiful and artistic is a little unsettling to offworlders.
Genetic politics also drive marital and romantic customs among the ghem. Polygamy is commonplace, with ghem lords often taking on more than one wife throughout his lifetime, usually out of genetic desirability, although romantic and sexual attraction still play a considerable part. The traditional ghem household consists of a ghem-lord and his wives, as well as their children; the ghem-lord's heirs are typically the children of his first wife, although they are all raised in the same household.
The haut are far more obscure in practice, and unlike the ghem, genetic politics are the sole driving factor behind the progression and procreation of the haut. Genetic politics are of a sort of trickle-down nature; the haut possess the latest and greatest in genetic developments, and they permit certain genomic features and combinations to pass down to the ghem in a carefully controlled manner. Due to their extensive genetic refinement, the haut are of even more legendary beauty than the ghem. Unlike the ghem, the haut do not wear face paint.
Similar to the ghem, the haut exist in clans better known as constellations, each headed by a ruling haut lord. The inheritance of the Imperial line is not as straightforward as Barrayar's, at a glance: rather than the Emperor's wife, the reigning Empress – the Dowager Empress – is the reigning Emperor's haut mother. Marriage as recognized by the ghem or in other more traditional societies is not a feature among the haut.
Haut men are the ruling class in terms of government and policy control. Although the ghem military functions with a surprising level of autonomy, they are ultimately controlled by their haut lords. Each satrap governor reports directly to the Emperor, and are rotated in and out of power on five-year terms. Haut men also work in the scientific sector as well, developing Cetaganda's – and most of the Nexus's – deadliest biological weapons.
Haut women are elusive and rarely seen in public. When they do enter the public sphere, they are usually ensconced on float chairs encased in an opaque force bubble. Haut women play what is arguably the most important and influential role in Cetagandan society: control of the Star Crèche, the gene bank of the haut race, which is centralized on Eta Ceta IV. The Dowager Empress is the highest-ranking haut woman, and so the ultimate authority over the Star Crèche.
Unlike the ghem, the haut do not deal in traditional family structures. Rather, haut children are the product of carefully negotiated genomic contracts between constellations, with the aim of producing varied and desirable new genetic outcomes or capturing a particular genetic line. This is also the process by which genetic alterations created by the haut, their own particular art form, are introduced into the haut race. This process is overseen exclusively by the haut of the Star Crèche, meaning that every single genetic alteration and contract must have the approval the Dowager Empress and her board of geneticists. The Dowager Empress has the power to issue a final veto on any and all genomic contracts – including those regarding the production of an Imperial heir.
There are several kinds of haut genomic contracts, but none of them equate to marriage. The most common is a one-time genomic cross between a haut lord and a haut lady. These are not decided by the progenitors of potential offspring, but by the haut women of the Star Crèche. There is special procedure when it comes to the genomic contract for the Emperor's heir; such contracts are permanently exclusive.
Passing haut genes down to the ghem is not accomplished via contracts, however. Ghem lords, typically officers, who make great achievements in their careers are sometimes awarded a haut wife. To be able to pass on haut genes along with his own to his children is one of the highest honors for ghem lords in Cetagandan society. A ghem lord's haut wife automatically takes precedence over any other wives the lord may have, and her children become the lord's new heirs.
A haut lady cannot live in stratification between both classes. When a ghem lord is awarded a haut wife, that lady is culled from her constellation, no longer bearing its name, and is effectively cut out of haut life. She no longer travels in an opaque force bubble, nor does she have access to the Star Crèche or any part of haut society. But does not become a ghem lady, either. Social protocol dictates that one treats the haut wife like one would a haut lady: averting their gaze in place of the force bubble, never addressing her directly.
Inevitably accompanying the haut are the ba, a caste of genetically-engineered servitors. Sexless and sterile, the ba serve two major functions to the haut: first, as servitors genetically programmed to be loyal to the haut; while ba are autonomous individuals and are capable of acting on their own will, they are engineered such as to serve only the haut agenda. Second, the ba are used to test newly altered genes before potentially introducing them into the haut population. Much like everything else about Cetaganda, the ba are engineered with aesthetics in mind, and though they lack the surreal beauty of the haut, they nonetheless have an aesthetic appeal.
culture
Cetagandan culture is complex and extremely high-context. This makes it somewhat opaque and impenetrable to the rest of the Nexus, especially since the Cetagandans don't make much of a concerted effort toward cultural transparency. They consider other galactics inherently inferior, with their relative lack of genomic refinement.
Social protocol is complicated and largely made up of unspoken rules, and all participants are expected to know how to navigate them. To fail is an amusement to others at best and a faux pas at worst; many of their subtler cultural cues aim toward saving face. Showing deference and respect to one's superiors is also a cultural virtue. Cetagandans have a strange and obscure sense of humor, and the ways in which they deliberately undermine or emphasize their own cultural practices are always about making some subtle statement or another.
The Cetagandan virtues of art extend to all areas of their culture, including – and especially – their complicated dress code. Cetagandan civilian dress includes layered robes in a variety of colors and patterns, and the coordination of such fabrics with the season, the event or occupation one is attending, and the formality level of the event are all critical factors that govern Cetagandan dress code. It's not limited to clothing, either; the art of the fragrance in particular holds a high place in Cetagandan culture, and what scents one wears must also be coordinated with the rest of the dress.
Refinement of the senses is an important cultural practice. Cetagandan art relies on layers of subtleties; being able to detect and pick out such subtleties is the heart of true appreciation of art. Cetagandan children are trained to hone all five senses, in much the same way that one can learn to distinguish the finer differences between varieties of wine. Even correspondence is loaded with such subtleties; no one on Cetaganda ever just sends a note. Personal, public, and even military correspondence is governed by equally complicated customs and cues. The content of a message is not merely its words; the color, texture and make of the paper it was written on, the style of calligraphy or whether it's handwritten at all, the manner of delivery, subtle references to Cetagandan poetry, and the fragrances it's been imbued with are all equally important components of the message itself. The layering of several fragrances to convey an underlying message, in a code much like the language of flowers, is one of the key components and often the most overlooked by non-Cetagandans.
modes of address
Ghem lords and ladies are typically addressed as "Ghem-lord/Ghem-lady [name]" or simply "Lord/Lady ghem-[name]"; "milord/milady" are also used.
Ex.: Lord ghem-Estif; Ghem-lord Estif
Haut lords and ladies are usually addressed as "haut lord/haut lady [name]", although sometimes the "haut" can be dropped. They are also often addressed simply as "haut [name]", women especially. Constellations are treated as surnames among the haut.
Ex.: Haut lord Kyo Navarr; Lord Kyo Navarr; Haut Sei
A culled haut wife loses the name of her constellation and takes on the name of her ghem husband; however, she does not become ghem, but rather becomes Lady d'[name].
Ex.: Lady Diya d'Zefyst
Ba are given only one name, and are simply addressed as Ba [name].
Ex.: Ba Talim
The Cetagandan Empire is one of the oldest planetary governments in the Nexus, as well as the largest, having gradually spread from one planet to eight in waves of expansionism over the last several centuries. Eta Ceta IV is the center of the Empire and home to its capital city Cetaganda; all Cetagandan planets are so named, such as Rho Ceta and Mu Ceta. However, within the Empire they are more commonly referred to as satrapies. Each is led by a satrap governor reporting directly to the Emperor himself.
The Cetagandan Empire is known for its distinct, if somewhat obscure, caste system, which features a two-tiered aristocracy: the lower ghem and the upper haut. The Empire's upper government is comprised almost entirely of haut men, including the Emperor and Empress; the elusive haut women serve far less visibly, although each satrap governor has a haut lady consort. However, while satrap governor terms are restricted to five years, so as not to allow them to build power bases, the haut lady consorts serve the satrapy itself rather than its haut governor, and are permanently assigned. The ghem, however, make up the military caste, and constitute the entirety of Cetaganda's military force -- one that most hesitate to reckon with, considering their aggressive expansionism and formidable military might by sheer numbers alone. To the uninformed observer, their society must seemed flipped: a formidable military force seems like it would be ill-controlled by an effete, artistic upper aristocracy. The simple explanation is, of course, due loyalty to their reigning lords. But the relationship between the ghem and the haut is considerably more nuanced than that.
The Cetagandan Empire is, in itself, a centuries-long eugenics experiment. The cultural ideal that drives Cetagandan society: the perfection of the human genome. Genetic politics rule supreme in the Empire, the driving factor behind just about every level of politics, society, and custom of Cetaganda. Much of the upper government is centered around the pursuit of this ideal; it is the haut government that controls the distribution, combination, and modification of the Cetagandan genome.
Aside from genetic politics, however, the highest virtue in Cetagandan culture is that of aesthetic value. This drives the particular aim of the Cetagandan mission: the perfect human genome would not only provide for optimal health, but beauty as well. The art of aesthetics is just as deeply ingrained in Cetagandan culture, and these two ideals intersect so as to regard the human body, as well as its underlying genetic makeup, as the ultimate art form. Aesthetic pleasure plays heavily into every element of social and public design on Cetagandan worlds: dress and face-paint are often elaborate and carefully coordinated, artistic pursuits are societal virtues, and art installations of all kinds feature heavily in Cetagandan spaces, both private and public. The Cetagandans approach art as an immersive and interactive process, and true appreciation of the subtleties of Cetagandan art requires skill and training.
society
The ghem and haut castes are clearly delineated and separate, although they work together. Cetagandan society also has divided gender roles in each cast, making for a four-faceted society.
The ghem, the lower aristocracy, is the far more visible side of Cetagandan high society. They are a clan-based caste, not unlike the Barrayaran Vor. Face-painting is a ubiquitous ghem custom, another form of art, though this one serves a social function: the colors and patterns used can denote one's clan, status, and occupation (either current or seeking). In military context, different patterns denote things such as rank and specialization. Often this takes the form of full face-painting for formal occasions; half-face-paint is used more commonly among soldiers on active duty or in less formal contexts, although this is a relatively new trend.
Ghem men make up the military force, all the way up to the chain of command. Although the ghem military seems to operate independently of its government, military forces are supervised by the governor of the satrapy on which they are located. However, entry into the military is not required of ghem men. Many ghem lords who do not join the military work in the artistic sector instead invest their careers in aesthetic practices of non-genetic nature: the art of the senses – taste, touch, sight, smell, and sound all alike – is a cornerstone of Cetagandan society. The ghem, male and female alike, also engage in other industry, service trades and skilled labor demanded of a developed society.
Ghem women are not permitted in the military, but are sometimes involved in non-military scientific pursuits and such industries as fashion and textile design. However, ghem ladies largely play the function of socialites and artists of a different nature. Unlike ghem men, the art of ghem women is a genetic one. While only haut ladies are permitted to handle the human genome, ghem ladies experiment with a wide variety of non-human genetic projects, creating majestic, living works of art designed with form rather than function in mind. Some of what Cetagandans consider beautiful and artistic is a little unsettling to offworlders.
Genetic politics also drive marital and romantic customs among the ghem. Polygamy is commonplace, with ghem lords often taking on more than one wife throughout his lifetime, usually out of genetic desirability, although romantic and sexual attraction still play a considerable part. The traditional ghem household consists of a ghem-lord and his wives, as well as their children; the ghem-lord's heirs are typically the children of his first wife, although they are all raised in the same household.
The haut are far more obscure in practice, and unlike the ghem, genetic politics are the sole driving factor behind the progression and procreation of the haut. Genetic politics are of a sort of trickle-down nature; the haut possess the latest and greatest in genetic developments, and they permit certain genomic features and combinations to pass down to the ghem in a carefully controlled manner. Due to their extensive genetic refinement, the haut are of even more legendary beauty than the ghem. Unlike the ghem, the haut do not wear face paint.
Similar to the ghem, the haut exist in clans better known as constellations, each headed by a ruling haut lord. The inheritance of the Imperial line is not as straightforward as Barrayar's, at a glance: rather than the Emperor's wife, the reigning Empress – the Dowager Empress – is the reigning Emperor's haut mother. Marriage as recognized by the ghem or in other more traditional societies is not a feature among the haut.
Haut men are the ruling class in terms of government and policy control. Although the ghem military functions with a surprising level of autonomy, they are ultimately controlled by their haut lords. Each satrap governor reports directly to the Emperor, and are rotated in and out of power on five-year terms. Haut men also work in the scientific sector as well, developing Cetaganda's – and most of the Nexus's – deadliest biological weapons.
Haut women are elusive and rarely seen in public. When they do enter the public sphere, they are usually ensconced on float chairs encased in an opaque force bubble. Haut women play what is arguably the most important and influential role in Cetagandan society: control of the Star Crèche, the gene bank of the haut race, which is centralized on Eta Ceta IV. The Dowager Empress is the highest-ranking haut woman, and so the ultimate authority over the Star Crèche.
Unlike the ghem, the haut do not deal in traditional family structures. Rather, haut children are the product of carefully negotiated genomic contracts between constellations, with the aim of producing varied and desirable new genetic outcomes or capturing a particular genetic line. This is also the process by which genetic alterations created by the haut, their own particular art form, are introduced into the haut race. This process is overseen exclusively by the haut of the Star Crèche, meaning that every single genetic alteration and contract must have the approval the Dowager Empress and her board of geneticists. The Dowager Empress has the power to issue a final veto on any and all genomic contracts – including those regarding the production of an Imperial heir.
There are several kinds of haut genomic contracts, but none of them equate to marriage. The most common is a one-time genomic cross between a haut lord and a haut lady. These are not decided by the progenitors of potential offspring, but by the haut women of the Star Crèche. There is special procedure when it comes to the genomic contract for the Emperor's heir; such contracts are permanently exclusive.
Passing haut genes down to the ghem is not accomplished via contracts, however. Ghem lords, typically officers, who make great achievements in their careers are sometimes awarded a haut wife. To be able to pass on haut genes along with his own to his children is one of the highest honors for ghem lords in Cetagandan society. A ghem lord's haut wife automatically takes precedence over any other wives the lord may have, and her children become the lord's new heirs.
A haut lady cannot live in stratification between both classes. When a ghem lord is awarded a haut wife, that lady is culled from her constellation, no longer bearing its name, and is effectively cut out of haut life. She no longer travels in an opaque force bubble, nor does she have access to the Star Crèche or any part of haut society. But does not become a ghem lady, either. Social protocol dictates that one treats the haut wife like one would a haut lady: averting their gaze in place of the force bubble, never addressing her directly.
Inevitably accompanying the haut are the ba, a caste of genetically-engineered servitors. Sexless and sterile, the ba serve two major functions to the haut: first, as servitors genetically programmed to be loyal to the haut; while ba are autonomous individuals and are capable of acting on their own will, they are engineered such as to serve only the haut agenda. Second, the ba are used to test newly altered genes before potentially introducing them into the haut population. Much like everything else about Cetaganda, the ba are engineered with aesthetics in mind, and though they lack the surreal beauty of the haut, they nonetheless have an aesthetic appeal.
culture
Cetagandan culture is complex and extremely high-context. This makes it somewhat opaque and impenetrable to the rest of the Nexus, especially since the Cetagandans don't make much of a concerted effort toward cultural transparency. They consider other galactics inherently inferior, with their relative lack of genomic refinement.
Social protocol is complicated and largely made up of unspoken rules, and all participants are expected to know how to navigate them. To fail is an amusement to others at best and a faux pas at worst; many of their subtler cultural cues aim toward saving face. Showing deference and respect to one's superiors is also a cultural virtue. Cetagandans have a strange and obscure sense of humor, and the ways in which they deliberately undermine or emphasize their own cultural practices are always about making some subtle statement or another.
The Cetagandan virtues of art extend to all areas of their culture, including – and especially – their complicated dress code. Cetagandan civilian dress includes layered robes in a variety of colors and patterns, and the coordination of such fabrics with the season, the event or occupation one is attending, and the formality level of the event are all critical factors that govern Cetagandan dress code. It's not limited to clothing, either; the art of the fragrance in particular holds a high place in Cetagandan culture, and what scents one wears must also be coordinated with the rest of the dress.
Refinement of the senses is an important cultural practice. Cetagandan art relies on layers of subtleties; being able to detect and pick out such subtleties is the heart of true appreciation of art. Cetagandan children are trained to hone all five senses, in much the same way that one can learn to distinguish the finer differences between varieties of wine. Even correspondence is loaded with such subtleties; no one on Cetaganda ever just sends a note. Personal, public, and even military correspondence is governed by equally complicated customs and cues. The content of a message is not merely its words; the color, texture and make of the paper it was written on, the style of calligraphy or whether it's handwritten at all, the manner of delivery, subtle references to Cetagandan poetry, and the fragrances it's been imbued with are all equally important components of the message itself. The layering of several fragrances to convey an underlying message, in a code much like the language of flowers, is one of the key components and often the most overlooked by non-Cetagandans.
modes of address
Ghem lords and ladies are typically addressed as "Ghem-lord/Ghem-lady [name]" or simply "Lord/Lady ghem-[name]"; "milord/milady" are also used.
Ex.: Lord ghem-Estif; Ghem-lord Estif
Haut lords and ladies are usually addressed as "haut lord/haut lady [name]", although sometimes the "haut" can be dropped. They are also often addressed simply as "haut [name]", women especially. Constellations are treated as surnames among the haut.
Ex.: Haut lord Kyo Navarr; Lord Kyo Navarr; Haut Sei
A culled haut wife loses the name of her constellation and takes on the name of her ghem husband; however, she does not become ghem, but rather becomes Lady d'[name].
Ex.: Lady Diya d'Zefyst
Ba are given only one name, and are simply addressed as Ba [name].
Ex.: Ba Talim