[Onomastics] Primitive Casters and Nostalgia

Ahoy hoy!

Ziggy ZigZag here. 

Something to talk about today is related to the concept of Savage Magic, Primitive casting. Part of the reason Savage magic gets called that is how brutal it seems and also to juxtapose it to Primitive. If you don't know what Savage magic is, don't worry, it might not even be a real thing.Keyword being 'might'.

However, Primitive doesn't always mean barbaric, savage, or unrefined. 

First, the word 'caster' basically means a magic caster (duh). But remember in Overlord, 'casting' means 'chanting' hence why magic requires verbal components, even Wild Magic. It's a basic aspect of the Japanese language. 

Primitive however also has an additional nuance that you might not know (Ziggy didn't know about it either for a while). It's very important to note, WILD MAGIC is the name of the system (romanized by the man, the myth, the legend, Maruyama himself). Yet he named the class (via romanization) PRIMITIVE not WILD caster. Strange, no?

Certainly, WILD and PRIMITIVE convey a certain feeling, of something untamed or uncivilized. 

WILD magic however is also written literally in Japanese as 'Origin'  or 'Beginning' Magic. The idea can be read as "the original magic". That means it was there from the start of the world. But it can also mean the magic is 'original' or enables originality like Martial Arts do with how you work with the system. 

Why Maruyama romanizes things the way he does also has deeper meaning. WILD magic for example has a history to it. But today the focus is on PRIMITIVE.

None of the other Dragon Lord Job classes have that connotation (Draconic Necromancer, World Connector, Overed Dragon). Thematically PRIMITIVE... doesn't quite fit don't you think?

So allow Ziggy to shamelessly follow the example of our forefathers, those great thinkers and writers of the Hellensic period who would cite external sources of things we ourselves will never read in totality!

"The term 'primitive' is also applied to the work of many artists belonging to many periods and mileux, which displays a naive vision, a technically 'simple' conception and presentation of reality, even a certain crudeness of style. Perhaps a kind of untutored art. "
"As far as literature is concerned, primitivism has very different connotations. Fundamentally, the primitivist writer... 'an extoller of things in the past'... and primitivism is, and expresses, a form of nostalgia for a primitive (or pre-civilized) way of life. " 

"Dictionary Of Literary Terms and Literary Theory" 1992 ed.

- J.A. Cuddon

Hopefully you can understand why Ziggy would use a citation for this concept given it's complexity and multi-faceted nature. 

What a divergence from the common interpretation of 'Primitive' isn't it?

A common cultural aspects of Dragon Lords is they are modeled after a hyper specific niche of online fans of a certain series who looked on with disdain to the 'poison' of RPG game design. These fellows were often older, hyper insular, and would flex an extremely divergent outlook on game design to what we now all consider the mainstream (Fireball spell slinging, elemental magic, healing divine magic, etc). These titans became fewer and fewer with time, yet they lived on in old message boards and the like, unwavering believers in a path the different game industries all turned away from and abandoned. 

There is far more to the meaning behind 'poison' and 'pollution' Ziggy isn't talking about that goes into it, but hopefully you get how Primitivism and PRIMITIVE CASTER might be related to this group of people.

'But Ziggy (an imaginary person might ask)'

'Why would Maruyama use online culture in his series?'

....Hmmm? You mean the man who uses meme name for his characters, retconned out the 2chan alliance, and uses dumb Japanese time sex jokes? That Maruyama?

Well if you want a more recent example, Antilene's name for example can be taken as a meme name too based on modern Japanese internet culture. But that's a discussion for another day. 

Ignoring those angles, hopefully the provided analysis of the concept of PRIMITIVISM captures the exact same feeling of those old boomers of a bygone era. PRIMITIVISM itself can be  conceptualized as 'nostalgia fagging' as the children on the internet often say. Guess humans have always been nostalgia fags. 'BACK IN MY DAY'. 'THE GOOD OL DAYS.' Kappa.

The proper, general, term for this is 'Anemoia'. But it exists in various forms. PRIMITIVISM just happens to a specific form of ANEMOIA for basically pre-modern civilization.

In the context of Overlord, we can reinterpret PRIMITIVE CASTER as vaguely meaning 'a chanter of magic as it once was' loosely. So if you believe in the idea Dragon Lords didn't have Job classes in the past, the name of the class PRIMITIVE CASTER itself might actually support your belief!

Amazing how autism can lead to insights like this. Or maybe it's madness rebranded and spun into the idea of insight to be more palpable than just Ziggy's schizophrenic ramblings!

Fantastic.

It's very clear that thematically, the Dragon Lords do somewhat embody PRIMITIVISM. Many interpret the Brightness Dragon Lord as one who is attempting to 'save' or 'preserve' Wild magic for example. Meanwhile we know Dragon Lords can refer to Tier magic as 'filth' or 'vile'. There is more nuance to that, but PRIMITIVISM being that nostalgia for what is considered 'not modern' contrasted to how tier magic enchantment 'industrializes' the New World is a very apt and succinct way to contextualize the broad theme. 

The last aspect of PRIMITIVE that makes it more appropriate than WILD CASTER is the idea that it is 'self taught' or every Dragon Lord tends to develop magic on their own for the most part, given how many are known for different trump cards and specializations.   With how the Dragon Lords seem to be solitary for the most part at least in the present as well as how SOFT their magic system is (ie has flexible rules and restrictions), it would naturally lend itself well to creativity and thus self tutelage.

Primitive:

Original

Self Taught

Of an early stage of development

 

Primitivism:
Belief in the superiority of a way of life close to nature.

 

Say what you will about Maruyama, sometimes he can be quite astute when selecting names for things in Overlord. But what do you think of this exploration of PRIMITIVE?

The pollution of the world also takes on an environmentalism image as well thanks to this newer context beyond the literal. Here 'WILD' actually is more appropriate, that is the world as it was before it was tamed. 

Vaguely the two terms PRIMITIVE and WILD convey similar ideas. However hopefully you have gained a new insight into the significance of how Maruyama names things. Maybe now people will stop making fun of Ziggy for being so persistent about accurately translating the character sheets! Muh....

Anyway, thank you and have a pleasant or at least okay or middling day. Until next we meet, Autism-Man, AWAY!

/(o_o)/