Majora's Cat
How about that
The kingdom of Hyrule itself and what the kingdom represents in the real world hasn't really been explored much. That's why I'd like to delve deeper into the world of Hyrule and explore its economy, real life counterparts, and the inner workings of its government. Too often these very noticable things are ignored, so I hope that this thread will be enlightening for some and stir up some discussion.
What do we already know about Hyrule? Well, it is ruled by a king, making is a monarchy. The problem is this: the king doesn't appear to have any real power. In each and every Zelda game, it seems as if the king has little to no power, and the king does have some sort of control over Hyrule, it was never made apparent in any Zelda game. It seems that the fate of the kingdom of Hyrule really rests in some sort of Parliament, which by that I mean a sort of council that does the real decision-making. That's why I'd like to compare Hyrule to England, because the two are actually very much alike. The reason I say this is because of England is also a monarchy, and much like Hyrule, England's leader is a figurehead. I'm only assuming that the King of Hyrule is a figurehead in each game, there's no solid proof to thoroughly prove this theory or disprove it. The King of Hyrule in the Wind Waker is a bit harder to analyze: while many may call him a good ruler, there wasn't ever a backstory about him being a strong leader or a real leader at all. He guides Link and is a character of real value in the Wind Waker, but that doesn't mean that he'd necessarily be able to run an entire kingdom all by himself (with the help with his advisers, of course). Such is the case with most kings and queens in history - they never did take much control of their respective countries, it was more of the nobles and those close to the king that really pulled the strings.
However, Hyrule is similar to England in yet another way. It's a well-known fact that England and the entirety of the United Kingdom is diverse in culture and race, much like the United States and Hyrule. There exists the Gerudo, Zora, Goron and Hylian races in Hyrule. I believe that the Gerudo and their cunning represent Middle Eastern nations, the Zora and their fondness for water represent those who live in the tropics, the Goron and their impressive strength represent countries like Russia (where the people are big and quite powerful, in terms of both physical strength and military strength), and the Hylians represent the majority of Europe. You can find people from all over the world in England (and the United States), and one can see the underlying themes of all the races of Hyrule.
While I'm on the subject of diversity in Hyrule, I simply must compare it to Jerusalem. Now, one may think at first that the Holy City and Hyrule have almost nothing in common. It isn't a very detailed or complicated connection between the two, it's more of a loose one. As I know many fans of the Zelda series know, the kingdom of Hyrule is usually divided into sections of the kingdom, each section being the domain of one of the four main races. The only place in the real world where there's something somewhat similar to thise is Jerusalem - the city is divided into the Christian, Jewish and Muslim sections. The three Semitic religions are sort of representative of the four races in Hyrule - each is different but similar in several ways, and there are dedicated sections of the land that is given to each religion/race.
Economically, I believe Hyrule to be strictly capitalist. At a glance, the only thing that the government of Hyrule seems to control is gates, and guards are posted around the land just to protect against perils and threats. Otherwise, the land of Hyrule isn't oppressed at all. Civilians living in Hyrule kingdom can start businesses and sell goods of their own accord, and they are not restricted in any way. Even in Hyrule Castle Town, the kingdom's central hub for business and mingling, nothing is controlled by the government. There are guards posted around the gates, but that's for the civilians' safety.
Hyrule under Ganon's rule in Ocarina of Time is a completely different situation. It seems like a the complete opposite of normal Hyrule - evil creatures are widespread across the land and seem to be under Ganon's direct command. If this is the case, then Ganon's Hyrule is most accurately described as a totalitarian society. First, I'd like to address the meaning of the term "totalitarian", for those who aren't entirely sure: totalitarianism is the exercise of control over the freedom, will, or thought of others; authoritarian; autocratic. Ganon's tainted and evil Hyrule fits the bill exactly - everyone must love the great Ganon, as he will be displeased if they don't. All the townspeople in Hyrule's several regions are kept under control by the threat of evil creatures of the darkness, which Ganon may or may not have control of in Ocarina of Time and definitely has control of in Twilight Princess. Hyrule's civilians are also stripped of many of their so-called "rights" as Hylians. The last statement isn't supported by a single line, but one can easily see how oppressed the people of Hyrule are after Ganon becomes supreme ruler in OoT. Therefore, Ganon's Hyrule is (just in my opinion) decidedly totalitarian, though I'm sure that examples of totalitarian government in real life aren't as harsh or fiendish as Ganon's rule.
Those are my two cents on what kind of kingdom Hyrule is, if it were to be given such titles in real life. My question to you good people of Zelda Dungeon is this: what kind of kingdom do you believe Hyrule is in terms of economy, government and (maybe) politics?
What do we already know about Hyrule? Well, it is ruled by a king, making is a monarchy. The problem is this: the king doesn't appear to have any real power. In each and every Zelda game, it seems as if the king has little to no power, and the king does have some sort of control over Hyrule, it was never made apparent in any Zelda game. It seems that the fate of the kingdom of Hyrule really rests in some sort of Parliament, which by that I mean a sort of council that does the real decision-making. That's why I'd like to compare Hyrule to England, because the two are actually very much alike. The reason I say this is because of England is also a monarchy, and much like Hyrule, England's leader is a figurehead. I'm only assuming that the King of Hyrule is a figurehead in each game, there's no solid proof to thoroughly prove this theory or disprove it. The King of Hyrule in the Wind Waker is a bit harder to analyze: while many may call him a good ruler, there wasn't ever a backstory about him being a strong leader or a real leader at all. He guides Link and is a character of real value in the Wind Waker, but that doesn't mean that he'd necessarily be able to run an entire kingdom all by himself (with the help with his advisers, of course). Such is the case with most kings and queens in history - they never did take much control of their respective countries, it was more of the nobles and those close to the king that really pulled the strings.
However, Hyrule is similar to England in yet another way. It's a well-known fact that England and the entirety of the United Kingdom is diverse in culture and race, much like the United States and Hyrule. There exists the Gerudo, Zora, Goron and Hylian races in Hyrule. I believe that the Gerudo and their cunning represent Middle Eastern nations, the Zora and their fondness for water represent those who live in the tropics, the Goron and their impressive strength represent countries like Russia (where the people are big and quite powerful, in terms of both physical strength and military strength), and the Hylians represent the majority of Europe. You can find people from all over the world in England (and the United States), and one can see the underlying themes of all the races of Hyrule.
While I'm on the subject of diversity in Hyrule, I simply must compare it to Jerusalem. Now, one may think at first that the Holy City and Hyrule have almost nothing in common. It isn't a very detailed or complicated connection between the two, it's more of a loose one. As I know many fans of the Zelda series know, the kingdom of Hyrule is usually divided into sections of the kingdom, each section being the domain of one of the four main races. The only place in the real world where there's something somewhat similar to thise is Jerusalem - the city is divided into the Christian, Jewish and Muslim sections. The three Semitic religions are sort of representative of the four races in Hyrule - each is different but similar in several ways, and there are dedicated sections of the land that is given to each religion/race.
Economically, I believe Hyrule to be strictly capitalist. At a glance, the only thing that the government of Hyrule seems to control is gates, and guards are posted around the land just to protect against perils and threats. Otherwise, the land of Hyrule isn't oppressed at all. Civilians living in Hyrule kingdom can start businesses and sell goods of their own accord, and they are not restricted in any way. Even in Hyrule Castle Town, the kingdom's central hub for business and mingling, nothing is controlled by the government. There are guards posted around the gates, but that's for the civilians' safety.
Hyrule under Ganon's rule in Ocarina of Time is a completely different situation. It seems like a the complete opposite of normal Hyrule - evil creatures are widespread across the land and seem to be under Ganon's direct command. If this is the case, then Ganon's Hyrule is most accurately described as a totalitarian society. First, I'd like to address the meaning of the term "totalitarian", for those who aren't entirely sure: totalitarianism is the exercise of control over the freedom, will, or thought of others; authoritarian; autocratic. Ganon's tainted and evil Hyrule fits the bill exactly - everyone must love the great Ganon, as he will be displeased if they don't. All the townspeople in Hyrule's several regions are kept under control by the threat of evil creatures of the darkness, which Ganon may or may not have control of in Ocarina of Time and definitely has control of in Twilight Princess. Hyrule's civilians are also stripped of many of their so-called "rights" as Hylians. The last statement isn't supported by a single line, but one can easily see how oppressed the people of Hyrule are after Ganon becomes supreme ruler in OoT. Therefore, Ganon's Hyrule is (just in my opinion) decidedly totalitarian, though I'm sure that examples of totalitarian government in real life aren't as harsh or fiendish as Ganon's rule.
Those are my two cents on what kind of kingdom Hyrule is, if it were to be given such titles in real life. My question to you good people of Zelda Dungeon is this: what kind of kingdom do you believe Hyrule is in terms of economy, government and (maybe) politics?
