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Apr. 18th, 2018 09:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
skygiantsSo here's the irony: for the past decade I've been asking for a Ruritanian Romance About Democracy, and now it turns out that someone has written it, and the person who wrote it was WINSTON CHURCHILL, who just had an astounding amount of feelings about constitutions and the very dashing heroes who defend them with brilliant politics.
Also, unfortunately, it stars Winston Churchill's self-insert, who is insufferable, but, I mean, raise your hand if you're surprised by this. Anybody?
genarti is the person who turned up the existence of Savrola: A Tale of Revolution in Laurania, By Winston Churchill, Age Twenty-Five And A Half. The basic plot is as follows: a dictator has subverted the LAURANIAN CONSTITUTION and taken away the all-important RIGHT OF THE FRANCHISE from good Lauranian men of good standing and property.
However, Lauranians Love Their Democracy (there is a mention of a Lauranian folk hero who DIED rather than SUBMIT TO A TECHNICAL VIOLATION OF THE CONSTITUTION) so, naturally, there is a rebellion brewing, led by SAVROLA: a brilliant politician, leader of men, orator, speechwriter all-around figure of heroism.
(WINSTON CHURCHILL: Would you like an entire chapter about how Savrola composes his speeches? It's important to have the right amount of alliteration, you know! Oh, listen, here he's talking for AN HOUR about social and political reforms and THE CROWD IS RIVETED!)
Mostly this seems to be a one-man revolution, though Savrola also has a fiery but easily-swayed best friend named MORAT (genarti, upon encountering him in the narrative, immediately started to wonder if he was going to be stabbed in the bath) and a couple of other revolutionary seconds- and thirds-in-command who really don't do much of anything.
However! Sinister forces are also using Savrola for their own ends, namely: THE COMMUNISTS! Sparkling Communist repartee, As Reported By Winston Churchill:
COMMUNIST A: [Savrola] has no sympathy with the cause. What does he care about a community of goods?
COMMUNIST B: For my part, I have always been more attracted by the idea of a community of wives!
And then they both do the nineteenth-century equivalent of shouting "HEY-O!" and high-fiving. HUR HUR HUR.
Meanwhile, the dictator, who sees the writing on the wall, attempts to manufacture an excuse to shoot Savrola by launching his (the dictator's) Beautiful and Accomplished Wife Lucile at him and pretending to have a jealous fit.
Alas! they fall in love for real --
(Savrola woos Lucile by discoursing to her at length about entropy and the inevitable heat death of the universe; she is so enthralled that she can hardly get a word in edgewise. 'Nailed it!' crows Winston Churchill, lifting a triumphant finger from the keyboard as he writes their inevitable clinch. 'Who knows what women want? WINSTON DOES.')
-- leading the dictator to be shocked, shocked! by this astoundingly implausible turn of events!
Guess what Savrola and Lucile never actually discuss in the entire course of their acquaintance, by the way: POLITICS. (She does come and listen to his speech at one point! She's very moved by his dreamy voice, but nonetheless fails to espouse a single ideal.)
That said, the dictator's other plan to keep his stranglehold on power in Laurania is to stir up nationalist sentiment in his favor by writing sassy memos to Great Britain, everyone loves to hate Great Britain! they're the worst! which ... OK, I laughed.
In the end, the wheel of politics turns on Savrola in the final days of the revolution and he flees with Lucile ... but it's OK, the epilogue tells us he comes back a few years later and is recognized to national acclaim as a true hero of democracy and the country's only fit leader! HUZZAH FOR LAURANIA AND THE LAURANIAN CONSTITUTION.
Also, unfortunately, it stars Winston Churchill's self-insert, who is insufferable, but, I mean, raise your hand if you're surprised by this. Anybody?
genarti is the person who turned up the existence of Savrola: A Tale of Revolution in Laurania, By Winston Churchill, Age Twenty-Five And A Half. The basic plot is as follows: a dictator has subverted the LAURANIAN CONSTITUTION and taken away the all-important RIGHT OF THE FRANCHISE from good Lauranian men of good standing and property. However, Lauranians Love Their Democracy (there is a mention of a Lauranian folk hero who DIED rather than SUBMIT TO A TECHNICAL VIOLATION OF THE CONSTITUTION) so, naturally, there is a rebellion brewing, led by SAVROLA: a brilliant politician, leader of men, orator, speechwriter all-around figure of heroism.
(WINSTON CHURCHILL: Would you like an entire chapter about how Savrola composes his speeches? It's important to have the right amount of alliteration, you know! Oh, listen, here he's talking for AN HOUR about social and political reforms and THE CROWD IS RIVETED!)
Mostly this seems to be a one-man revolution, though Savrola also has a fiery but easily-swayed best friend named MORAT (
genarti, upon encountering him in the narrative, immediately started to wonder if he was going to be stabbed in the bath) and a couple of other revolutionary seconds- and thirds-in-command who really don't do much of anything. However! Sinister forces are also using Savrola for their own ends, namely: THE COMMUNISTS! Sparkling Communist repartee, As Reported By Winston Churchill:
COMMUNIST A: [Savrola] has no sympathy with the cause. What does he care about a community of goods?
COMMUNIST B: For my part, I have always been more attracted by the idea of a community of wives!
And then they both do the nineteenth-century equivalent of shouting "HEY-O!" and high-fiving. HUR HUR HUR.
Meanwhile, the dictator, who sees the writing on the wall, attempts to manufacture an excuse to shoot Savrola by launching his (the dictator's) Beautiful and Accomplished Wife Lucile at him and pretending to have a jealous fit.
Alas! they fall in love for real --
(Savrola woos Lucile by discoursing to her at length about entropy and the inevitable heat death of the universe; she is so enthralled that she can hardly get a word in edgewise. 'Nailed it!' crows Winston Churchill, lifting a triumphant finger from the keyboard as he writes their inevitable clinch. 'Who knows what women want? WINSTON DOES.')
-- leading the dictator to be shocked, shocked! by this astoundingly implausible turn of events!
Guess what Savrola and Lucile never actually discuss in the entire course of their acquaintance, by the way: POLITICS. (She does come and listen to his speech at one point! She's very moved by his dreamy voice, but nonetheless fails to espouse a single ideal.)
That said, the dictator's other plan to keep his stranglehold on power in Laurania is to stir up nationalist sentiment in his favor by writing sassy memos to Great Britain, everyone loves to hate Great Britain! they're the worst! which ... OK, I laughed.
In the end, the wheel of politics turns on Savrola in the final days of the revolution and he flees with Lucile ... but it's OK, the epilogue tells us he comes back a few years later and is recognized to national acclaim as a true hero of democracy and the country's only fit leader! HUZZAH FOR LAURANIA AND THE LAURANIAN CONSTITUTION.
