Unless I'm completely mistaken, it's commonly seen to be polite to offer to help someone when you see them struggling or working on something. For example you might offer to hold up a door for someone who's got their arms full, or if you're tall you might help a short person reach something from the top shelf.
Maybe you've been to a friend's place for a meal and you offer to help them do the dishes afterwards (you may not want to, but you're offering anyway, because it's the polite thing to do).
In my current WiP I'm trying to tinker with this a little bit.
Instead of offering to help, you avoid doing it, as offering your help might put into question the abilities of the person you're helping*.
In addition to that, it's considered a compliment to be asked to help out. If someone asks you for help, it means they're confident enough with your friendship that they're prepared to cause you the added inconvenience of helping out.
Another example.
When my character arrives with the horses in a new village, her first priority is to seek out a representative of the village. She's doing that, not to ask for help or for somewhere to stable the horses, but to give the village a chance to offer their hospitality (including caring for the horses etc).
These are small details, but I'm hoping that they'll help to add a little bit of depth to the culture my story is taking place in. There aren't any humans in the story, and there's little reason for the characters to observe the visual non-human characteristics of the race, so I'm hoping to put in a little bit of cultural differences instead.
Is this something you're doing in your stories, and how? What's your thought on it and what are your experiences? Do you have any advice on pitfalls to try and avoid?
EDIT: *Footnote.
Apparently this is something that often happens to people with various forms of visual disabilities. They're offered help with things they're perfectly capable of doing on their own, just because they look like they might have difficulties. Sometimes even without asking.
I've heard more than one story from people in wheelchairs who have had strangers start pushing them up hills they're perfectly capable of getting to the top of on their own. It becomes humiliating and a bit awkward.
Maybe you've been to a friend's place for a meal and you offer to help them do the dishes afterwards (you may not want to, but you're offering anyway, because it's the polite thing to do).
In my current WiP I'm trying to tinker with this a little bit.
Instead of offering to help, you avoid doing it, as offering your help might put into question the abilities of the person you're helping*.
In addition to that, it's considered a compliment to be asked to help out. If someone asks you for help, it means they're confident enough with your friendship that they're prepared to cause you the added inconvenience of helping out.
Another example.
When my character arrives with the horses in a new village, her first priority is to seek out a representative of the village. She's doing that, not to ask for help or for somewhere to stable the horses, but to give the village a chance to offer their hospitality (including caring for the horses etc).
These are small details, but I'm hoping that they'll help to add a little bit of depth to the culture my story is taking place in. There aren't any humans in the story, and there's little reason for the characters to observe the visual non-human characteristics of the race, so I'm hoping to put in a little bit of cultural differences instead.
Is this something you're doing in your stories, and how? What's your thought on it and what are your experiences? Do you have any advice on pitfalls to try and avoid?
EDIT: *Footnote.
Apparently this is something that often happens to people with various forms of visual disabilities. They're offered help with things they're perfectly capable of doing on their own, just because they look like they might have difficulties. Sometimes even without asking.
I've heard more than one story from people in wheelchairs who have had strangers start pushing them up hills they're perfectly capable of getting to the top of on their own. It becomes humiliating and a bit awkward.
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