Gorean Forgiveness vs Mercy vs Pity

Forgiveness vs Mercy vs Pity

She then turned again, on her knees, to face Aemilianus “I am a slave!” she cried, prostrating herself before him, her chained wrists under her thighs. “Forgive me, Master!” Have mercy on me, Master!” Renegades of Gor, Page 375

Throughout the books slaves are shown to beg for mercy, forgiveness and pity.

In looking through all the references I see no difference in the situations where one word could not have been used in place of another. What I mean is, there is not one particle occasion where forgiveness is always begged and a different situation where mercy is always begged.

This is how the dictionary defines these words:

Forgive;
To excuse for a fault or an offense; pardon. To renounce anger or resentment against. To absolve from payment.
Synonyms of forgive are: pardon, excuse and condone. These verbs mean to refrain from imposing punishment on an offender or demanding satisfaction for an offense. The first three can be used as conventional ways of offering apology. More strictly, to forgive is to grant pardon without harboring resentment.

Mercy;
Compassionate treatment, especially of those under one's power; clemency. A disposition to be kind and forgiving. Alleviation of distress; relief. Leniency and compassion shown toward offenders by a person or agency charged with administering justice. A disposition to be kind and forgiving.

Pity;
Sympathy and sorrow aroused by the misfortune or suffering of another. Signifying kindly concern aroused by the misfortune, affliction, or suffering of another. Pity often implies a feeling of sorrow that inclines one to help or to show mercy.

What is interesting is that each definition uses at least one of the other words in helping to gain a better understanding of its meaning.

Here are a couple more quotes to help emphasize this:

I sensed the man standing behind me, on a ramp. “I was bitten,” I said. “I was bitten!” I twisted on the wood, trying to see him. “Have mercy, Master!” I said. “I was bitten!” “It was not the time permitted for screaming,” he said. “Yes, Master,” I said. “Forgive me,” I begged, “Master.” Slave Girl of Gor, Page 318

I feared I was to be cut to pieces. He struggled, it seemed, to control himself. ‘Forgive me, Master!’ I wept. I crawled to him, my head down. ‘Forgive me, Master!’ I wept. I kissed his feet, fervently. He pulled away, in anger. He moved to the side. He kicked me twice, in fury. I returned to him on my belly, and showered my hair upon his sandals, and then again kissed his feet, again and again. ‘Forgive me, Master!’ I wept, an errant slave, one who had done wrong, pleading for mercy and forgiveness. Magicians of Gor, Page 312

To sum this up, aside from subtle differences, it does not matter which word a slave uses to beg a Free Person not to punish that one.

There are literally hundreds of instances where slaves begged for mercy or forgiveness or pity. I have placed in the links below quite a few. To save space I did not include a lot of context. I will leave further research up to you or you may contact me.

	Forgiveness
	Mercy
	Pity

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