On 7/2/2020 8:18 AM, nch via agora-discussion wrote:
> On 7/2/20 10:14 AM, James Cook via agora-discussion wrote:
>> One strange thing here is that Bard is mixed in with a long list of
>> other titles in R2581, but (from this point of view) is arguably more
>> similar to degrees than those other titles.
>>
>> Also, I recently noticed the description of Bard says it's for
>> *repeated* creative wit or poetry. Though I think we recently awarded
>> it for a single work.
>
> I was wondering about this too. A bard or a poet laureate irl is someone
> who continually creates/performs. A B.A. is more for someone who has
> shown a certain level of mastery over the ability to do so, but doesn't
> necessarily do it regularly. I don't know if Agora wants or cares about
> such a distinction.
>
At the time Bard was written (that was my first ever proposal, yay!) the
Herald didn't have the generic ability to award titles w/ 2 Agoran consent
- Agoran consent didn't even exist. Only defined ones could be awarded
each with its own award conditions. A bit more like straight-up win
conditions than a consent process.
Bard was the only type of Patent Title that could be awarded by some level
of Support (support seen like applause). In practice, it was awarded
after a good performance made someone say "bravo, make this person a
Bard!" but usually that was accompanied by "because e's also done other
art it's not a one-off thing" so there was some notion of it being sort of
a role/job (this is when we had Roles as well so it fit in with that). To
emphasize it as an ongoing guild, Bards needed less support to name new Bards.
Degrees at the time had a full academic process: the grad student picked
a Chair who assembled a three-person committee who did the review and
recommended a degree.
-G.
Original Bard text from R1922/4:
(c) A Patent Title (non-unique) now will
Be known as "Bard", and granted those with wit.
In order for one Title to be filled,
A level of Support must call for it.
Three players to a fourth may grant this name
If these three write as 1, with 2 Support.
A current Bard may also grant the same,
Provided that a second Bard's a sport.
And so we don't the name of Bard debase,
A Player with 3 Supporters can conspire
To (from a Bard), this Title to erase:
Or Bard (plus 2 Bards) make a Bard retire.
But lest we ruin some poor minstrel's fun
No bard will be dis-bard for eir bad pun.
