: Re: How to use today's moral compass in fantasy? During Roman and medieval times the use of slaves was very common in most civilizations. Crimes often carried punishments that would fall under "cruel

@Murray165

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I think you first need to distinguish between whether you are writing fantasy or historical fiction. If you want to write a fantasy novel, then you don't have to depict anything that happened in our own history. After all, you are creating a new world and you get to depict it in whatever fashion you deem necessary for telling your story. If you choose to use elements from our own medieval times in your fantasy world, then simply depict them as standard elements of the story. In describing your world and its inhabitants, you have the opportunity to determine how the reader perceives your characters, and ultimately it is truly up to you to do this. The important thing, however, is that with a fantasy story, the reader does not come in with any preconceived notions on how your world was formed or how its society behaves. You have to paint that picture for them.

On the other hand, if you are writing a story that is historical fiction, then you are going to be telling your story in a setting in which your audience will have preconceived notions. It is likely that your readers will have at least some level of understanding in regards to the morals and behaviors of that time period. Even so, it is still up to you to make sure that your readers understand that while certain standards of behavior might be considered barbaric today, in the time period in which your story takes place, those standards are considerably different.

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