The Half-Giant Social Plight
What Differentiates Half-Giants From Humans?
Simply put, there are two factors that characterize all half-giants: their stupidity, and their lack of
discernible culture. Their culture lies in the fact that they will often adopt the traits of those around them,
and thus this adaptability takes the place of any culture that would otherwise exist.
Are All Half-Giants Stupid?
Yes. The wisest of half-giants is probably no more clever than a rather dim-witted human. But it is
important to understand what is meant by stupidity. Many people attribute stupidity falsely - for example,
to primitive peoples or to children. Stupidity doesn't really describe either of these cases; ignorance or
naivety are perhaps better words. So a half-giant is not like a child or a primitive humanoid, but rather,
simply a very stupid person, although this is a much more subtle concept.
What Characterizes Half-Giant Stupidity?
It is easier to start off with what DOESN'T characterize a half-giant's stupidity. A common trend in the
past has been to portray half-giants as speaking like Tarzan does in popular movies. While this is a
player's prerogative, it is not particularly accurate. A half-giant is very observant to the habits of others,
and prone to imitating them. There is no place where a half-giant would have picked up such bizarre
speaking patterns, so it doesn't make much sense to have them.
Similarly, speaking like a child is not the most appropriate way to portray a half-giant. Very young
children often speak poorly because they have not grasped the proper situations to use words in. As
mentioned above, half-giants are very attentive to such things. It will take them longer to figure it out than
it would a human, but an adult half-giant understands most grammatical rules - especially the simple ones -
but might slip up on such things as saying "an" rather than "a" before a word that begins with a vowel.
These examples, while specific to speech, really illustrate how all of a half-giant's thought processes
work.
The first factor could be described as "attention resources." Because of their dim wits, half-giants will have
to focus very hard on one thing to get it right. When panicked or rushed, this kind of concentration breaks
down, and half-giants will tend to make all sorts of blunders.
But in most situations, this kind of single-minded attention will be very obvious. It is easy to picture a
half-giant peering at the ground, their brow furrowed as they speaks very slowly, picking out each word
carefully to get their thoughts across. Of course, this is a stereotypical example, but it depicts the general
idea. The same kind of thing will occur for all variety of tasks - whether hunting or fighting, bargaining or
talking, maybe even while drinking a cup of mead.
This kind of forced attention leads to the next aspect of a half-giant's stupidity, which is "inflexibility."
Both their limited attention resources and their dim wits make them very inflexible in their thinking tasks.
From a problem solving point of view, a half-giant is likely to adopt one approach and stick with it to the
bitter end. In practical situations, being forced to be flexible will cause a half-giant to become uneasy and
frustrated, and to make the same sort of blunders he or she would make when panicked. This is a function of
their inflexibility and their inability to properly shift attention.
Their inflexibility also begins to describe two other intellectual traits of half-giants: "perseverance" and
"lack of subtlety."
Perseverance is another characteristic which describes inflexibility in problem solving tasks, but in a
different light. Just as someone with inflexibility will have difficulty adopting new problem solving
approaches, someone who is persevering will continue to do the same thing over and over again - even
when it is absurd. The examples of this are endless, and open to varied interpretation. It is not beyond the
grounds of reason for a half-giant to keep purchasing ale while waiting in a tavern, simply because that's
what they do in taverns. Or to continue demanding a lower price while bargaining, even though it's
absolutely ridiculous; or to continue beating a dead kank.
Subtlety requires two things: flexibility of thought, and multilevel thought. Since half-giants are absolutely
lacking in both of these, they are some of the least subtle creatures in the known world. A half-giant will
tend to say what's on their mind, and be absolutely incapable of manipulation, deceit, or any other kind
subtle undertakings.
Half-giants are also practically incapable of thinking in the abstract. Nebulous concepts such as justice,
love and honor are hard to truly grasp even for many of us - for a half-giant it may as well be impossible!
A half-giant will have difficulty understanding anything that they couldn't physically wrap their hands
around. This makes half-giants easier to control as slaves and other laborers, and because of this are often
found among the ranks of soldiers. The half-giant mind makes them prone to cheerful adoption of others
customs. Perhaps due to their inability to see beyond their present situation, a half-giant is rarely an
unhappy individual.
Why do Half-Giants Adopt Others' Customs?
Partly because they lack any of their own, partly because of their dim wit, and partly because they are
characteristically observant and imitative. A half-giant will typically identify with some individual or group
in their present situation, and relate to that individual as a role model or a peer - depending on the
circumstance. It is a natural reflex for the half-giant to adopt the customs of that group, including anything
from their way of speaking to their dress. Despite their dim wits, half-giants are rather observant of social
actions, even though they rarely understand them! Because of this, a half-giant can quickly adopt the
prejudices of their companions; their likes and dislikes. Unfortunately for others, a half-giant can be almost
schizophrenic with this behavior! Although their perseverance can cause them to carry on a habit simply
for the sake of carrying it on; if another social group supplies a replacement habit, the old one will be
discarded without a thought.
Are Half-Giants Easily Tricked?
They are very easily tricked. They cannot think flexibly or with subtlety, they cannot grasp abstract
concepts, and they are highly suggestible and trusting. All together, these things make half-giants very
easy to manipulate. A half-giant does not attach any value to an item other than that which it seems to have
at the moment, and the same goes for a friend.
Why Are Half-Giants so Trusting?
Because they think everyone thinks exactly the same way they do! They get awfully confused when this
might not be the case, which often makes them all the more easy to manipulate.
Are Half-Giants Universally Curious and Kind?
Though perhaps these are not the best words to describe them, yes. Curiosity can sometimes
describe an academic pursuit - a drive to understand things, and delve into the unknown. This kind of
curiosity is absolutely foreign to the half-giant. The idea of understanding things and delving into the
unknown is really complex for them to even consider. Nonetheless, they typically act in a curious manner.
This is more of a childlike curiosity which is caused by their lack of attachment to the present situation and
the way novel stimuli feeds their bizarre sense of self.
Comparatively, kindness typically describes some kind of genuine concern for the well-being of others,
and an understanding of a moral dimension to your actions. As you can imagine, these are not concepts
which are at home in the thoughts of a half-giant. However, a half-giant is similarly incapable of harboring
true malice. Thus, a half-giant's actions are typically perceived as being kind because they are drawn to
immediate rewards and are naturally imitative of others - neither of which tends to elicit open aggression.
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