Name: Famine
Colour: Grey
Goals: Depriving food and water sources; Reducing subsistence; Drain life energies; Intensifying hunger
Description:
We, humans, are all greedy beings. For those who more privileged than others, we often order more than we can chew and consequently, dump the leftovers. We always want more and more, never having enough. It is only in the face of shortage, that's when we realize we need to be frugal in terms of food because food is a basic survival item that we all require. People of lower economic status know this as their daily routines involve finding adequate amount of food just to live another day.
The Horseman Famine usually collaborates with his two brothers, Pestilence and War. It is often the actions of the first two that lead to Famine. Otherwise, Famine usually hides behind the curtains, observing the play and make his entrance after the first two acts. Think about it, Pestilence leaves people ill with the inability to work. Consequently, no one tends the fields or work for cash. Similarly, War destroys practically everything along its path, burning down food supplies or draining them by feeding the soldiers. After finishing their tasks, Famine finally makes an appearance to clear out the surviving people, like a crow plucking the leftovers of a carcass.
In my take of the Horseman, Famine is depicted as an old rotting man with long grey hair and weathered suit. It is encased in a bone shelter which only opens when he is ready to strike. Famine literally drains all life around it. Vegetation wilts and people instantly became skeletons. It has a crow as a pet who feeds off the leftovers when Famine has enough of the nutrients he absorbs from his surroundings. After the crow is done, he moves on to the next location.
Unlike War, those who suffers under Famine experience slow death. Imagine someone lock you in a room and deprive you of food. In general, humans can survive at most 7 days without food provided that there's water. So, it's a really slow death and unbearable one, much like Pestilence. Your hunger will overwhelm you rendering hallucinations and delusions. Hunger is a powerful drive that is essential in life because it propels us to find food. When you have both hunger and shortage of food, it's no wonder that hunger can drive people crazy and desperate.
Deprivation
No comments:
Post a Comment