So i'm going through my first read through, and i just finished book 5. And nowhere to be seen is someone going to the a bathroom. or there ever even being one, sure they have actual BATH rooms but no toilets, outhouses, or someone being in a bush. Kinda irritates me, don't they bodily functions.

So i'm going through my first read through, and i just finished book 5. And nowhere to be seen is someone going to the a bathroom. or there ever even being one, sure they have actual BATH rooms but no toilets, outhouses, or someone being in a bush. Kinda irritates me, don't they bodily functions.

 

I can only recall a single mention in the entire series of someone going to the bathroom, and if you're only beginning book 6, then you're still some ways off.

Later on there's talk of a 'necessary', I believe. (KoD11)

Later on there's talk of a 'necessary', I believe. (KoD11)

 

Yeah, that's the one I was thinking of.

Isn't there mention of a chamber pot at one point when Elayne or Nynaeve gets drunk?

Isn't there mention of a chamber pot at one point when Elayne or Nynaeve gets drunk?

 

 

There are dozens of mentions of chamber pots, but nothing else about real bathrooms, not even in castles.

I think there is a certain part in Illian where a lot of chamber pots are emptied in the river/canals. I think it's something like the "Perfumed Quarters".

Well there were no real bathrooms in equivalent time for the real world, I believe. However, there were steam bath houses and they were mixed sexed so rather like the Aiel sweat tents.

All fantasy (or most) tend to leave out the distastfull aspects of the real world. Its ment to be a escape. After all, LoTR wouldn't be the same with scenes like "Greetings mighty Gandalf from whence have you came?"

"Greetings wise Elrond I have just come from squeezing out a turd sent by the darklord himself"

RJ figured we didn't want to read about it. Fans complained. So he threw in a few references in the later books, including a urine-tasting midwife, as if to say, "Well, how do you like that?"

All fantasy (or most) tend to leave out the distastfull aspects of the real world. Its ment to be a escape. After all, LoTR wouldn't be the same with scenes like "Greetings mighty Gandalf from whence have you came?"

"Greetings wise Elrond I have just come from squeezing out a turd sent by the darklord himself"

 

Distasteful? So descriptions of someone having their eye torn out would be disallowed? /ironic

All fantasy (or most) tend to leave out the distastfull aspects of the real world. Its ment to be a escape. After all, LoTR wouldn't be the same with scenes like "Greetings mighty Gandalf from whence have you came?"

"Greetings wise Elrond I have just come from squeezing out a turd sent by the darklord himself"

 

Distasteful? So descriptions of someone having their eye torn out would be disallowed? /ironic

 

I think "mundane" would be more precise.

All fantasy (or most) tend to leave out the distastfull aspects of the real world. Its ment to be a escape. After all, LoTR wouldn't be the same with scenes like "Greetings mighty Gandalf from whence have you came?"

"Greetings wise Elrond I have just come from squeezing out a turd sent by the darklord himself"

 

Distasteful? So descriptions of someone having their eye torn out would be disallowed? /ironic

 

Apples and oranges. The eye being torn out is a plot point and one that people were looking forward to. Ridding onesself of excriment, while realistic, is not critical in advancing the plot. The fact that people complained that we didn't have any on-screen restroom scenes is ridiculous...I for one didn't need to be told about it to know it happened.

Brandon has mentioned it more than once. He uses the term "privy" and it sounds really odd to be, because RJ never used that term.

Yeah he did. Six times in the RJ books, and 'privies' twice.

Don't forget the "Tend to nature" comment in ToM. No real spoiler here for anyone, as it is unimportant in and of itself as far as the words go.

I think there was a comment by Basel Gill in book 6 or 7 about going to the "jakes" as well.

All fantasy (or most) tend to leave out the distastfull aspects of the real world. Its ment to be a escape. After all, LoTR wouldn't be the same with scenes like "Greetings mighty Gandalf from whence have you came?"

"Greetings wise Elrond I have just come from squeezing out a turd sent by the darklord himself"

 

There are some classic references in better Fantasy series.

 

aSoIaF

Tywin killed on the privy..."Lord Tywin Lannister did not, in the end, shit gold."

 

"Prince of Nothing"

He started calling it his “morning apocalypse” after she once cried, more in exasperation than good humour, “Just because you relive the Apocalypse every night, Akka, doesn't mean that you have to share it with me in the morning!" Achamian would chuckle ruefully while he cleaned himself, mutter something about the merits of heavy drinking and clean bowels. And Esmenet would find as much comfort as hilarity in the sight of a sorcerer splashing water on his ass.

All fantasy (or most) tend to leave out the distastfull aspects of the real world. Its ment to be a escape. After all, LoTR wouldn't be the same with scenes like "Greetings mighty Gandalf from whence have you came?"

"Greetings wise Elrond I have just come from squeezing out a turd sent by the darklord himself"

 

There are some classic references in better Fantasy series.

 

aSoIaF

Tywin killed on the privy..."Lord Tywin Lannister did not, in the end, shit gold."

 

"Prince of Nothing"

He started calling it his “morning apocalypse” after she once cried, more in exasperation than good humour, “Just because you relive the Apocalypse every night, Akka, doesn't mean that you have to share it with me in the morning!" Achamian would chuckle ruefully while he cleaned himself, mutter something about the merits of heavy drinking and clean bowels. And Esmenet would find as much comfort as hilarity in the sight of a sorcerer splashing water on his ass.

 

Not to mention Tyrion pissing of the Wall. That was epic.

There's a comment in KoD ( i think ) that has Elayne mentioning having to 'make water' all the time.

When Perrin and Egwene are held captive by Whitecloaks in tEotW, it is mentioned that they are only unchained to go to the latrine pit.

 

Nynaeve does not have a strong stomach, that is referred to so frequently that I'd have expected someone to mention it.

When Perrin and Egwene are held captive by Whitecloaks in tEotW, it is mentioned that they are only unchained to go to the latrine pit.

 

Nynaeve does not have a strong stomach, that is referred to so frequently that I'd have expected someone to mention it.

 

I think that's more in reference to seasickness than anything else! Though how you can be seasick on a river.. nvm.

When Perrin and Egwene are held captive by Whitecloaks in tEotW, it is mentioned that they are only unchained to go to the latrine pit.

 

Nynaeve does not have a strong stomach, that is referred to so frequently that I'd have expected someone to mention it.

 

I think that's more in reference to seasickness than anything else! Though how you can be seasick on a river.. nvm.

 

I get seasick...and if you want to quibble that she's on a river then I've been "river"sick too...but really, one word for the same thing is enough...since they don't have cars to get carsick or planes to get airsick they don't really need a blanket term like motionsick so seasick works just fine.

 

I think the point they were trying to make though is she had to throw up somewhere...if she was below decks then she wasn't doing it overboard.

oops sorry i meant first reread

And i do remember them going to the latrine pits now.

When Perrin and Egwene are held captive by Whitecloaks in tEotW, it is mentioned that they are only unchained to go to the latrine pit.

 

Nynaeve does not have a strong stomach, that is referred to so frequently that I'd have expected someone to mention it.

 

I think that's more in reference to seasickness than anything else! Though how you can be seasick on a river.. nvm.

 

I get seasick...and if you want to quibble that she's on a river then I've been "river"sick too...but really, one word for the same thing is enough...since they don't have cars to get carsick or planes to get airsick they don't really need a blanket term like motionsick so seasick works just fine.

 

I think the point they were trying to make though is she had to throw up somewhere...if she was below decks then she wasn't doing it overboard.

 

Well, it's more that I wouldn't have thought you'd get enough motion on a river vessel to cause nausea, though it would of course depend on the individual. I've taken a cabin cruiser up the Thames (though admittedly not the bits downstream nearer the North Sea) without problems, but got HORRIBLY seasick on a cross-channel ferry to Jersey C.I. (That was before the days of the nice, fast, stable, modern ships.)

 

Perhaps it was RJ's 'nod' to the tradition that wizards can't cross running water..