Originally Posted by
Darkthoughts
Actually, today I'm thinking the opposite
You see, it would have been unusual - in a place where hanging was the accepted capital punishment (because the gallows would be in use and it wouldn't make sense to build a new gallows everytime someone was hung) - to leave the bodies hanging indefinately. They'd probably leave them a few days (to make an example of them) and then take them down. So I'm wondering if the bread was actually to keep the crows
off the body, as Dalvo originally suggested. But that Cort's intention in asking the boys to perform this action was the sort of lesson in reflection that Brian suggested.
I totally agree, that was exactly what I was trying to say. I think the major reason was to give the boys a lession, of that I'm sure, but he could just told them to watch the hanging. So I think that there were a meaning for spreading bread below him, that meaning would be to keep the birds eating the bread and not the body, at least for time enough so the body would be taken out and buried or something like this. If you re-read the chapter where this occour you'll see that in the very ending of the chapter Roland would think something like this: "there are thousands birds here, so the bread is only simbolycal". <----- This is the major clue!!! Please if someone agree or desagree lets keep up with our discution.
PS
sorry for any English errors or anything i said wrong, I'm brazilian and I not so good in English....)