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some REAL rambling...
Okay, this is not GREG SPEAKING FROM THE MOUNT...
This is just me thinking aloud. (Well, not really aloud. I'm sitting here typing.) I don't even know if I like these ideas. They're definitely not canon.
But the following notions occured to me today...
Gargoyles don't seem to have a native language. They acquire human language ... perhaps much the same way that they acquire names. Naming is clearly addictive. And language, in many ways, is just sophisticated naming.
Clearly gargoyles are just as intelligent as humans. Before humans developed tools, Gargoyles were at the top of the food chain. They may not have created/invented as much "stuff" as humans have, but they also had way fewer needs. Necessity being the mother of invention, they had less motivation for inventing sophisticated shelter, clothes, tools, etc. But that in and of itself isn't a comment on their brain-power.
So why no need for language and names?
When it comes to naming, gargoyles clearly felt that names were superfluous if not somewhat limiting, if not downright harmful to the spirit. Humans must define things. Gargoyles know that things just are.
We are friends. What other name do we require, etc.
It fits in with their animistic/monotheistic view of a higher power. A higher power that requires no name.
Does beg a question, though if you go back far enough.
Does the sky need a name? Does the river?
Elisa responds: "The river's called the Hudson."
But she could have responded: "The river's called a river."
Did the gargoyles have a language that they ABANDONED in favor of human words -- even if those human words were Atlantean (like the term "Gorlois", the true Atlantean etimology for "GARGOYLE")?
Or perhaps...
Gargoyles are so attuned to the earth. They have biological clocks that match the seasons. They have relationships that require no names, until those names have been imposed.
Is it possible, that gargoyles once... long ago... had mild psychic abilities that left them with no need to create language? It wasn't words that they intuited (or transmitted or read or whatever) but emotions, maybe images or sensations.
Maybe it was tied to magic. Not that Gargoyles are magical creatures, but if magic was free-flowing before the Will-O-The-Whisps evolved into the Children of Mab (or whomever) and somewhat confiscated that power for their own, perhaps that magic was just part of the Earth that gargoyles were so attuned to, and allowed for some psychic congress.
Or perhaps, it is a biological ability -- based on biio-elecricity and brainwaves -- that has faded with disuse. Perhaps the very language skills that Gargoyles learned from the human race dampened their psychic intuitiveness, much as Fox's natural magical abilities were stunted by her human upbringing.
Either way, it suggests that this ability could be latent.
I'm NOT saying that the gargs we know are psychic. They've all been fooled enough, even by the INTENSELY emotional Demona (who would theoretically be broadcasting as well as receiving) to bely that notion.
But I wonder if this isn't an interesting area of speculation.
If you see me at the Gathering THIS WEEKEND, it's a topic I'd be interested in discussing.
Stanley writes...
One more about the stone form...
I noticed that often times there are shots of the rising sun, but the Gargoyles remain flesh until the light rays actually hit their body. This seems to imply that it is the actual physical impact of the sun rays on their bodies that turn them to stone. But by that token, a gargoyle hiding inside a dark room with no windows would remain flesh during the day. So instead, do they have some sort of biological clock, in tune with the rotation of the earth? But that seems even too complicated for a gargoyle. I'd like to hear anything you had thought out concerning the specifics of this idea.
Greg responds...
Again, I've answered this before. I don't know what you could possibly mean by "too complicated for a gargoyle".
They do indeed have a biological clock, a pretty intense one that adjusts for the seasons, etc. Like all of us with a biological clock, one can defy it -- briefly. But an actual visual cue like the sun hitting you is a powerful psychological trigger that makes it difficult to beat the clock.
Seneth Somed writes...
Greg,
After reading a few posts in the archives concerning
whether a gargoyle's weight changes during stone sleep, I
thought about it, and I figure they stay the same weight.
For example, in the very first episode Goliath hauls five
stone gargoyles from the Viking camp to the top of the
castle. Yeah, Goliath's strong, but could he carry a ton
of uneven weight several miles, then up several flights of
stairs, then do it four more times without getting winded?
Maybe I should ask you, so
1. How strong was Goliath? Could he lift a ton? Maybe
two? Ten?!?
A better example of a stone gargoyle's weight is Broadway
turning to stone midair. Seems more plausible for a 350
pound statue to survive such a fall than a 1500 pound
statue. But enough speculation.
2. Do gargoyles stay the same weight when in stone, or do
they gain weight?
3. This has probably been asked before but... do gargoyles
change to stone through their whole bodies, or do they just
have a stone shell?
Thanks for your time. You really show some dedication by
doing this. I hope it pays off. I still can't wait to see
what happens next.
Greg responds...
1. I'm not good with numbers.
2. I don't see how they could gain weight -- laws of conservation of mass and all.
3. They change throughout into a stone-like organic substance.
Thank you.
matt and others in the Comment Room writes...
we were wondering if a gargoyles urge to protect is a natural urge or something they are taught by older generations to do, or a combination of both?
Greg responds...
I'd guess both.
Babs writes...
Ok im not gonna ask to many questions, I know your probably going crazy from all the other questions that everyone else is asking. I was reading through the archive and FAQ's to hunt to see if what I was going to ask was already answered and over 2-3 hours later when I lost all felling in my butt(shut up ;p) and my eyes about to pop out; to my dismay I didnt find the answers, unless my dumbass just didnt see them which that is probably more likley. We'll here they are
1) hmm how can I put this (no not a sex question) I was wondering what the Gargoyles skin is?... uh ours is flesh , lizards are scales, bears are fur. Now some Gargoyles you can tell what thier skin is just by looking at them, so I guess this is leaning more towards the Scotish Clan. Depending on what breed of animal they are the skin would be more harder to puncher.
2)Darn forget what episode , We'll it's the one when Owen stuck his hand in the pot of life and it turned into stone, I took notice in the rest of the shows his hand pretty much stayed in the same postition, but when watching "Broadway goes to Hollywood" he was holding a book with that hand. So my question is can he move that hand as if it wasn't stone or was that just a glitch in that episode ?
3)Regarding to question #2. When Owen turns into Puck his hand is not stone anymore, since they are 2 different people im guessing that when he's Owen he has a different body and Puck the same , but they still do share the same body, is that Pucks magic changing his hand to flesh for teaching shake ?, you can just say , sure whatever you think for this one. I don't quite know what I just asked either.
I'm one of those people that analyze everything kinda goes with the territory with having a slight case of O.C.D, ya notice things that no one else does, but kinda miss the things that are right in the open.
Danke for taking the time to answer my questions.
Gargoyles Forever !
Greg responds...
1. We always referred to it as "hide".
2. "The Price". I didn't work on "Broadway Goes To Hollywood", but that clearly is a mistake.
3. They aren't two different people. Owen is an identity that Puck can assume. When Puck returns to being Owen, he recreates the stone hand -- all part of his bargain with Xanatos.
DPH writes...
Since you have updated your timeline since you last answered the question about Angela and Ophelia possibly being "in heat" in 2008 (02-02-00), I thought I would ask that question again since that part of the timeline might have changed.
1)When is the earliest time that Angela and Ophelia could have laid an egg?
2)Will Angela, Ophelia, or both of them be capable of laying an egg in 2008?
Greg responds...
The earliest for either is 2008 and, yes, both are potentially capable of laying eggs in that year.
Another Angel writes...
If the gargoyles were not to know who their parents were... how did they prevent inbreeding?
Oh, and the Gathering was so much fun this year- can't wait for 2003!
Greg responds...
I've answered this before. Sense of smell helps. Also most (though not all) gargoyles breed among their generation, procluding a mating with any biological siblings.
Hope you enjoyed 2003. I'm looking forward to 2004.
Will writes...
Dear Greg, I was wondering how can the gargoyles gilde , like 5 feet away from lava?
Greg responds...
Hot air?
Joseph writes...
what would be the science behind how goliath and his clan glide,and climb almost anything except solid steel?
Greg responds...
Who said they can't climb solid steel?
I don't know the science. They glide on their wings. They climb with their claws. Do you need more science than that?
Faieq writes...
A while ago I noticed a short ramble of yours entitled 'While I'm thinking of it...' It was rambled on Monday 4th March 2002. I won't repeat the whole thing here, however the beginning started off with you repeating an exchange between you and Aris Katsaris concerning the date Angela and the other eggs on Avalon would have hatched and underneath your response you wrote;
"With all this in mind...
I know I've established -- both here and in my own head (particularly with regards to G2198) that eggs hatch on the Spring Equinox.
But does anyone remember whether (and where) I've established what month the eggs are laid in?
I can't recall if this has come up yet.
Anyone know? And would this solve my problems at all?"
Recently I remember another question previously submitted on Friday October 13th by Aris Katsaris that may help you.
"Aris Katsaris writes...
A small tidbit that you revealed through the last contest was that the hatching of the eggs takes place in March 21st - the Spring Equinox, that is.
Now, I always felt it would be on an equinox or a solstice- those are the only dates that make sense really... Is the laying of the eggs also done on the Spring Equinox (ten years earlier ofcourse)?
How about the egg's conceiving? Have you decided how much time is spent between the eggs's conceiving and laying?
Greg responds...
That's interesting. Maybe.
As for conception, maybe I'll make it a six month term and put it on the fall equinox.
The truth is I chose March 21st because it's my son's birthday. But sometimes things in the Garg Universe just seem to come together. It's cool that way.
recorded on 10-20-00"
From your above response I assume that the eggs would be laid on the spring equinox, with the females being fertile on the fall equinox from the previous year.
I don't know whether this would clarify any problems over when the eggs hatched, but I hope it helps.
Greg responds...
I agree, it helps. Thanks.
I also don't know if it fixes my math problems, but I'm hopeful. And I like the idea of females being in heat at the fall equinox and laying their eggs in the spring (and the eggs hatching ten years later in the spring). For a race, that is so attuned to the bio-rhythms of their planet, it just feels right.
I don't think that literally all the eggs are conceived on the EXACT same night. Same with laying. Same with hatching to some extent too. There's probably something like a three night window for these things (say, two nights on either side of the equinox).
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