Castles--to a kid--belong back there past cowboys and Indians, with kings, queens, knights, battles, maybe with pirates and explorers, but not as far back as the Bible stories, and they’re a little mixed up with history, but mostly belong to the world of story. Castles--to draw--have crenellated battlements and towers, but also pointy-top towers for flags to fly from. Castles have unhappy princesses and princes who go on quests.
It has been a disillusionment as an adult to think of the dismal reality of most people’s lives in the age of castles. Maybe it’s presumptuous and chauvinistic to assume that their lives were miserable. How much have we gained over time? How much do personal freedom and advances in technology add to the quality of life? Quite a lot, probably. I would have been dead in childbirth, if not before from other causes. So a 30-year lifespan. I would be sad to miss the past 15 years of my life. And I am glad that I have been able to choose my work, that I am educated, that I am not automatically 2nd class and owned by men. I’m glad to live in the present, despite missing out on romantic castles.
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