On Ayn and Thea

[xperroni]

I guess everyone knows by now the story of Ayn, son of Rhys and Maia, that after the end of his adventures can choose to marry Thea, daugther of Lyle. Since some people seem to think the fact that they're cousins is a great deal, I thought I should give my two meseta on the topic.<p>First, there is the historical background. PSIII happens inside a great ship, but it is still a medieval fantasy story -- and in the middle ages, inbreeding was a common practice among noble families. It was understood that nobles shouldn't marry commons, and suitable brides weren't always available among other noble families. Besides, sometimes it was prefered as a way to keep the family money and lands from being shared with outsiders; power and politics always played important roles in marriages among the nobility. I doubt Ayn and Thea's marriage would be one of interest, but the point is this sort of thing wouldn't be unknown to them.<p>Then there is the cultural differences between East and West. Western religions regard inbreeding as an almost hideous act; eastern morals, however, are much softer on the subject. Specifically in the japanese case, even marriages between brother and sister are known to happen; although it is not something to be openly discussed, it isn't that great a deal neither.<p>So, for the makers of PSIII, the blood relation between Ayn and Thea wouldn't look important, even if they were aware of it -- something I don't take for granted. Even if they were, and gave some importance to it, it could easily be regarded as acceptable within the setting.

[LaconianShot]

Strangely enough, this topic has never really been discussed on this board. I'd say it's because it's simply common knowledge that royalty used to marry relatives.

[Monocromatico]

I never thought of this as a big deal. Over here relationships between cousins is a relatively common thing.

[Lord Khyron]

What blood relation?<p>According to the japanese..<p> <blockquote><br>King:<br>I am the king of this country of Cille!<br>To pester and chase after my daughter Marlena so betrays your aggrieved<br>ignorance of your proper place!<p>(A battle between Kein's party and King Cille ensues. King Cille is <br>defeated.)<p>King:<br>You vanquished me... Perhaps you are a man of the stature Lyle says you <br>are...even though you are an Orakian.<br>But, you have a choice to make! I understand through my nephew Lyle's<br>reconnaissance that the girl you call "Lena" is actually the princess of <br>Satera, the kingdom adjacent to your own...the very princess raised as <br>your fiancée!<br>Of course, should you choose Marlena's hand, that would be fine, too...<p></blockquote> <p>If any relation it's a very distant one. Lyle being the Nephew of the king..<p>Thea and Ayn would be very distant cousins maybe o.o<p>And further more.. the surnames..<p>Maia - Marlena Le Cille<br>Ayn - Ayn Sa Riik<br>Lyle - Lyle La Mirah (mee-rah)<br>Thea - Lann La Mirah<p>I don't feel disturbed by it, considering them being cousins. <br><p>[size=small][Edit by Lord Khyron on [TIME]1116195207[/TIME]][/size]

[xperroni]

<blockquote><i>Originally posted by LaconianShot</i><p>Strangely enough, this topic has never really been discussed on this board. I'd say it's because it's simply common knowledge that royalty used to marry relatives. <br></blockquote><p>Well, whoever compiled the PSIII list of glitches and bugs seems to think it is a great deal. And I vaguely remember reading other people refering to it in similar ways.

[ThePeaGuy]

Well, Ayn and Thea are second cousins (distant blood relatives), so I guess such a marriage is sorta acceptable.<p>But I'm not really sure, though, because I've been brought up to believe that these kind of marriages/relationships with blood relatives are immoral.<p><p>[size=small][Edit by ThePeaGuy on [TIME]1116197366[/TIME]][/size]

[Benoit]

I wouldn't call such marriages immoral, but they can be dangerous for the offspring.

[ThePeaGuy]

<blockquote><i>Originally posted by Benoit</i><p>I wouldn't call such marriages immoral, but they can be dangerous for the offspring.<br></blockquote><p>Which is exactly why most Western societies are primarily against it.<p>EDIT: Or is mainland Europe more open towards such relationships? <p><p>[size=small][Edit by ThePeaGuy on [TIME]1116199469[/TIME]][/size]

[Siren]

I accepted this marriage, simply because of the distant relationship between both bride and groom, and because inbreeding is common within royalty.<p>And inbreeding is indeed dangerous, as royalty began consistently developing hemophilia and other recessive diseases, this aside from the other side-effects.

[Monocromatico]

<blockquote><i>Originally posted by Siren</i><p>I accepted this marriage, simply because of the distant relationship between both bride and groom, and because inbreeding is common within royalty.<p>And inbreeding is indeed dangerous, as royalty began consistently developing hemophilia and other recessive diseases, this aside from the other side-effects. <br></blockquote><p>The russian imperial family, in the end, had more weak and deseased members than healthy ones because of this practice. The same for the portuguese royal family (the son of king John VI, who became emperor Peter I of Brazil, had a bad case of epilepsy and died before he turned 40. He had 4 children that died days before they were born, and a few more died before maturity age. Only his son Peter and a daughter survived long enough. Or something like that).<p>The rejection of our society towards familiar inbreed is a deffensive instinct against malformations caused by the evidenciation of recessive genes that cause genetical diseases. The "moral" is the rationalization of that, a human way to explain why that is "bad" or not, and therefore, it´s a very, very relative concept.

[Lord Khyron]

The problem is..<p>Step children often do marry.<p>Aka Brother has a sister because his father remarries, and that sister is from the new mom and a different father.<p>SO if Step children can do it, being very distant relatives, then I believe Ayn and Thea can.

[Alis in Wonderland]

maybe Palman genetics doesn't work like human genetics. given the number of clones created during ps2 era, they must be extremely genetically resilient. <br>also, if they had perfect cloning, even the Palman refugees with their limited technology might have had some kind of gene therapy.

[Malakai]

When I played Ayn's adventure the first time through, I chose Thea. Why? Ayn and Thea deserved each other. Then they had a sissy son to complete the three-generation episode of defecient heroes.

[xperroni]

<blockquote><i>Originally posted by Malakai</i><p>When I played Ayn's adventure the first time through, I chose Thea. Why? Ayn and Thea deserved each other. Then they had a sissy son to complete the three-generation episode of defecient heroes.<br></blockquote><p>I strongly disagree with the notion of Sean being "sissy". And how come PSIII heroes are "defecient" (sic; I think he meant "defective"), if every generation starts up stronger than the previous one?<br><p>[size=small][Edit by xperroni on [TIME]1116280033[/TIME]][/size]

[Lord Khyron]

Simple.. Rhys is a poor as hell Prince..<p>His sons inherit 2 kingdoms, so they are richer.<p>LMAO simple math.