Another speculation about DAO - and this time, it's about the dwarves.

You know, it always struck me about how utterly different dwarven society was in the DA universe, but I could never put my finger on exactly why.
Now I think that I know why. Dwarven society in DA:O is a reflection of pre-revolution Russia (i.e. Russia under the Tsars)!
Think about it: the different castes (warrior caste, shaperate, merchant caste, the diamond quarter, the casteless) are similar to the state of people in Russia - i.e. the soldiers (who were honoured in Russia), the priests (ditto), the bourgeoisie, the Tsars (and Dukes, etc. who lived basically like Feudal kings), and the peasants and serfs (who were little better than slaves).
There is the similarity between the Carta (which, under Jarvia, starts raiding the merchant district and is definitely a threat to both Behlen and Harrowmont) and the Bolshevik/Menshevik Revolution of 1917.
Finally, there is the fact that one of the dwarven casteless is named
Nadezda, the beggar who greets you when you enter Dust Town and gives you info about Jarvia. Her name is similar to, and reminiscent of, Nadezhda Krupskaya - who was a Russian Bolshevik revolutionary, a politician (she served as the Soviet Union's Deputy Minister of Education from 1929 until her death in 1939), and the wife of Vladimir Lenin. Granted, Nadezda the dwarf simply gives information and stays out of your way, but the similarity in the names is certainly suggestive!
Comments?
