Comments on: Chapter 11 – Page 2

By: Twigs

Twigs — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 20:12:29 +0000

So I have a pun and a legitimate question all in one.

The way Bayen and Brayen are dropping their h’s … what ax-ent is that?

By: gangler

gangler — Tue, 31 May 2011 06:11:52 +0000

You get into a sketchy area with the willing suspension of disbelief when the story starts sending mixed messages about whether this happened even within the context of the story or not. We’re expected to simultaneously allow ourselves to believe the story within these events transpire, as well as the meta-narrative which pretty explicitly states that these events did not transpire. I would be outright shocked if absolutely no one questioned the significance of these events, or found themselves writing them off in favor of the metanarrative which contradicts their importance.

It’s perfectly natural. Even if none of it was ever real to begin with, it does become much harder to emotionally invest when the story is no longer real even within its’ own context. The classic “It was all a dream” scenario is a good example of this. The frustration associated with that revelation is due to how it invalidates any feelings one may have experienced during the dream sequence.

Of course, a story like this is a bit more complex than a mere dream sequence, begging questions regarding the nature of reality. I suspect that the discussions that arise from this are at least partially intentional, as we all express our varying opinions regarding whether or not this can be considered real or not. How a synthetic universe shines under the light of creationist views. Exactly what manner of substance or significance the universe must have in order to be considered real. There are varying views on the subject to be found here, and personally I’ve found it quite interesting. Whether the authors planned for it or not I’d count it as a success.

By: Goldeye

Goldeye — Mon, 30 May 2011 15:45:41 +0000

I just noticed Byron’s eyes are brown…could have sworn they were blue at some point (chapter 7?) …did I miss something?

Love the comic by the way!

By: FoolishOwl

FoolishOwl — Mon, 30 May 2011 12:11:39 +0000

My guess is that, given the glimpses we had of the players in Sepia World, there’s a close correspondence between the players and the characters. I’m not sure of that, and I don’t think the sense of the narrative, at least in the immediate context, depends on that. My broader point was in response to the idea that’s been expressed repeatedly since the start of Chapter 9, that the feelings of the characters don’t matter because we know now they’re not real experiences.

Of course the author of the comic isn’t Byron the Berserker. The authors are T. Campbell, Phil Kahn, John Waltrip, and Erica Henderson. What I meant is that the meaningfulness of the feelings are not dependent upon the veridity of the events. there is an important facet of what it is to be human that involves our ability to imagine counterfactual narratives, to empathize with other people, even non-existing people, and think and feel our way through those counterfactual narratives. I find it distressing when some people dismiss a facet of human nature that, ultimately, all technology, culture, and society is built upon.

By: gangler

gangler — Mon, 30 May 2011 05:23:35 +0000

Oh, hey. I got something kind of like that. Both my parents have one parent with blue eyes. They’re an interracial couple. So while me and my sister are very dark brown haired, mahogany people with brown eyes, my brother came out as this blue eyed, blond haired white kid. From the rest of our physical features we’re still clearly related. It’s almost like a blatant and poorly done color swap between him and I, but I’d be lying if I said dad hadn’t asked the doctor some questions to see if this was legit.

It lacks the recessive hair, but it’s still always surprised people that a perfect Aryan boy somehow came out of this union. He also somehow inherited my mother’s british constitution, whereas neither my sister or I really get sick for the most part. I’m pretty sure there are some relatives we’ve never quite managed to convince that he was fathered by the same man as us.