Pedendang, I agree with you that this whole "no looking, no touching" thing seems to be something that is reserved for the nobles. Ordinary people on New Krypton may well have the sort of marriages that we consider normal, with normal, ordinary intimacy.
Then again, you wonder why the nobles would agree to it. Why would they not have sex with their wives? Presumably, a noble is supposed to have offspring with his wife. It seems probable that he would accomplish it through some sort of birthing matrix. Unless Kal is different somehow? Maybe other nobles do have sex with their wives?
And why doesn't Kal have any offspring yet? Maybe there is an upcoming ceremony waiting in the wings where Kal really is supposed to have real sex with his wife and make her pregnant? But then, why hasn't this ceremony happened already, considering the fact that Kal and his wife have been married for ten years?
And what about the concubines? Why do the nobles have concubines, unless it is for sex? What else would the nobles get out of it? They get to protect their concubines and feel important that way? Hmmmm. That does not sound like enough of a reward to me.
One more thing - Lois speaks the language of New Krypton, but she doesn't know how to read and write this alien tongue. Given the fact that Lois doesn't know ho long she will be forced to stay on New Krypton, but it could be forever, it seems like a good idea for her to master the written language of the world where she is presently stuck. I wonder if the New Kryptonian Ministry of Education gives any classes in reading and writing to illiterate alien concubines?
Ann
