About 'restricted slaves'

- About "restricted slaves"

This notecard is for informational purposes only.

Also, every section deals with one specific feature and cannot be quoted by itself. In other words, READ the ENTIRE notecard.

Given that this notecard is long enough, I am not going to insert a bunch of quotes in here. You can probably find a quote to say almost anything you wish and a counter quote to argue against it.

(a) Were there any Unrestricted slaves on Gor.

The answer is a short simple no depending upon how exactly you define unrestricted slaves. All slaves can be used by any free man is not the way it works on Gor. Slaves were property and Goreans held honour above all else. The use of another's property without their permission... Either explicit or implicit could be considered a breach of code.

“Neither a plow, nor a bosk, nor a girl may one man take from another, saving with the owner’s saying of it,” quoted Thurnus.

(b) So where does the term UNrestricted slaves come from?

In many cases, the permission for use of a slave was implicit. It did not need to be given by the Master. Then there were camp slaves who might have belonged to one of the warriors but it was understood that their use was open to all. And of course any major household also had slaves who would serve all the members of the household including guests, guards etc unless the owner was to mandate otherwise. Note that in either of these two situations, the men who would be using the slaves would be subordinate to the one who owned the slaves. Hence they would not make a move on a slave unless they knew that the slave was to be used by one and all. A nice way to explain the above situation is to think of a slave as a company car.

Sometimes, the permission for use was implicit in that it came from a fee that you have paid for something else. For example, in a tavern the use of a slave normally came with the slave. The same applied to the bath girls (note that in some baths, the sexual use of a slave might have cost extra as well). A nice way to explain this situation is to think of a slave as a complimentary car thrown in with your hotel room or something.

Now, note that in either of the two above cases, the UNrestricted use of a slave girl was restricted to the venue at which they were found. In a tavern, it would be in the alcove. In a big household, it would be in one of the many rooms therein... And so on and so forth. One would not take a girl out of the tavern and use her on the streets. That would be committing theft in a way for she belongs to the tavern and thus you are denying the tavern of its coin by using her outside.

If you ask for permission, none whatsoever. I should also note that if a guest mentioned that he fancied a slave, few Gorean men would grudge that man the use of the slave if he had many to go around. If you have already shared food and drink why not share what comes after? On the other hand, if the guest knew that the slave was the only/preferred/love slave, he would not indicate an interest in her either.

If you dont bother to ask for permission, a lot depends on the intent. And mostly it was a matter of code and not something that would even go to court in many cases.

If you were a young man entering into your manhood and if you were to use my slave, I would probably clap you on the back, congratulate you and ask you whether you found her pleasing.

If you were to use her because you could not "control the urge", I would probably wonder what kind of man you were to be so weak before the wiles of a female slave... But I would accept whatever coins you offered and not think more of it. Note that in reality in Gor, this never happened. Men were Masters. Any sign of weakness even to the wiles of a slave girl made them feel like they would not be considered so in the eyes of their brothers.

If you were to use her for the sole purpose of causing insult... Or in case of a white silk, use her to lower her value, the consequences might be heavier.

Again a lot depends upon the INTENT. If you had not meant any harm but simply made a mistake, it would probably just be a passing thing. The raping of slaves was not as such frowned upon for it served to remind them of their place. But the intent behind it WAS important.

Note that when discussing intent, two points are important. What you perceive it as and what the other person perceives it as... I find it a good exercise to think of a slave as your neighbour's car... If you are on good terms with your neighbour, you might actually be able to ask to borrow his car. If he is your closest chum... heck you could probably take it for a spin and let him know when you got back. If your neighbour hates you... He would probably call the cops.

(d) Did restricted slaves exist?

Even though there were no unrestricted slaves on Gor... It did not mean that all men on Gor were saints. Some would use other people's property no matter what the consequences. Again as with any other roleplay, if you decide to play the bad guy, make sure you are ready to accept the consequences.

If a slave were to be sent out on errands it was entirely possible that a passing stranger may take fancy to her and use her... Damn the consequences since by being a stranger no one could identify him anyway.

So the short answer to whether restricted slaves existed or not, yes they did. If you as a Master are that particular about her not being used by ANYONE (friend, foe or otherwise), you should keep her confined or belted at all times. Both of this did happen in the books though in most cases the Masters weren't bothered enough to do so.

(e) Could slaves (or Masters) decide who they could or could not be punished by?

Slaves had to be pleasing to all free. The term Restricted or Unrestricted does not apply to punishments. Any Free may punish a slave who is found displeasing.

However that does not mean you punish them in a way that would lower their value. Goreans were extremely careful about their property. The Gorean slave whip was designed to cause the maximum amount of pain while causing the minimum amount of lasting damage to the slave's skin. Same goes for the slave goad. Most other punishments described in the books are also similar. They cause the slave a GREAT deal of discomfort and pain but do not harm them in a way to lower their value.

(f) Could anyone just pick up and kill a slave.

Yes... And No. If you want to kill a slave, make sure you purchase them BEFORE you kill them. Killing them and then going... Oh sorry... I will pay you 2 coins for her... Is just plain and simple stupid.... Sort of like taking a sledgehammer to your neighbour's car and telling him you would compensate him later.

Now... Having said that, there are circumstances in which such a thing might fly. If the slave has done something so insulting that the Master would have killed her by his own hands if he had come to know, he will probably thank you for doing the needful for him in his absence. But be careful before you make such a decision. While your neighbour may thank you for putting your rabid dog out of his misery, he might not be so happy to know that you killed it just because it peed on your plants.

(g) can a slave fight being used? Or can they quote they are restricted?

No.. Quite simply put, slaves are helpless in their slavery. Once sufficiently trained,, they have no choice but to submit to the caresses of a Master. ANY Master. There are exceptions to every rule of course. But I would make sure you have a long established role-play that makes your resistance realistic. In the books, there were very few cases of a slave who could actually resist another man's touch once they had been taught their slavery. In fact, even in those few cases, their bodies could not help but respond even if their mind screamed no. Once subjected to the furs of a Master, a slave's body could not help but respond.

Also, slaves have no right to order the free. While you may emote the fact that you worried your Master may be angry with you for getting yourself in such a situation, under no circumstance should YOU tell the Master. "I am restricted.". Your use or lack of use is something to be discussed among the Free. You do not enter the equation.

(h) Did all slaves cost 2 copper tarsks?

If you really think that all slaves were cheap..............

I think you have a lot of relearning to do.

Maybe a visit to your local car market would be helpful. I personally simply adore Porsche ! *grins*