Pariah & Parvenu is a Hannah Arendt-inspired Honey Heist hack
A social commentary on cultural assimilation
Pariah & Parvenu by W.H. Arthur is a Hannah Arendt-inspired TTRPG using the mechanics of Honey Heist, drawing influence from Mörk Borg and Edward Said's Orientalism.
Pariah & Parvenu
This game is inspired by the writings of Hannah Arendt, on how members of a marginalised group have to choose between the role of a pariah (social outcast) and a parvenu (social climber). A society gives little room for a minority to be “average”; they either get discriminated against or have to work hard (usually through education) to prove that they are not like others of their kind.
This game is a social commentary on cultural assimilation, but the core themes also apply to neurodivergent masking and LGBTQ respectability politics.
Exoticism and "Magic"
Ethnic minorities are often exoticised in the media, and they are often portrayed as "magical". There is a page for every ethnic minority as some kind of "wizard" on TV Tropes.
In Pariah & Parvenu, the player is an Orc Shaman whom the humans believe to be "magical". The player character may play into the Humans' racism, exoticise their own ethnicity to gain entry to high society, while perpetuating harmful stereotypes against their minority group in the long run.
The "game" is PWYW on itch.io, and you can find it by clicking the button below:
