What the title says. You'd think that since the upper class tries to imitate Chelish fashion so much being pureblood Chelish would be seen as a good thing. Is it just among the lower classes that the Chelish are considered to be 'bad people?'
What the title says. You'd think that since the upper class tries to imitate Chelish fashion so much being pureblood Chelish would be seen as a good thing. Is it just among the lower classes that the Chelish are considered to be 'bad people?'
The Varisians and Shoanti, being the downtrodden and oppressed masses, do consider the Chelish to be bad people. And thus, we have the ethnic insult.
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Sometimes it's not the source of a slur that's important, but its connotation. See "gypped"/Gypsies. When we sat down to create new characters for our upcoming CotCT campaign, I compared Varisian culture to the Gypsies; not a problem. If someone who felt cheated and swindled said they were "gypped", that's seen as a slur by some.
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I imagine it's similar to how many oppressed people create derogatory terms to fight their oppressors in one of the only ways they can. It's like calling a white person a cracker or honky, both names used by racial minorities (though both have fallen out of use). It's not necessarily saying one is a "bad person" but rather stereotyping an entire ethnicity. In general, though, any racially charged epithet is going to have negative connotations because they represent racism.
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There's also the angle that a number of Chelish people, not just in Korvosa really, probably feel uncomfortable being referred to by a shorthand reference to Cheliax now that it's all devil-worshippy.
Sure you'll have plenty of people who feel they should stand firm and not be ashamed of their heritage simply because of the actions of their homeland's current behavior, but it's probably a source of discomfort for many.
There are PLENTY of reasons for Varisians and Shoanti to be sick and tired of Chelaxians.
Enough is ENOUGH! I'm sick and tired of these MF'n Chelaxians in this MF'n city!
