An argument about Moral Systems
In a warrior society, the best fighter is usually made leader. Although sometimes brute strength can allow a fool to gain leadership, usually a smaller, more mobile person will be able to use his mind, and agility to beat such a brute. It does not take much to avoid the giant swing of a claymore, but to be able to decide whether to duck beneath the swing and strike at your opponent while momentum requires him to continue the blow requires a clear mind and decision making capability. If the leader is too reckless, he is likely to make a mistake in these judgment calls and be defeated in battle. Therefore, in a warrior society, good leaders, chosen on their ability to fight are usually capable of making good decisions for the entire tribe. This is the case in historic places such as Sparta, and in Fictional places such as Herbert's Dune, and Jordan's Aiel Waste.
These are case studies into the workings of fighting societies. Alex lives in such a society in the first part of the book. Here, anarchy reigns the streets at night, because the police cannot maintain the law. Here, warriors live by warrior's rules, because they claim power. Sadly, their warrior's code is less chivalrous than the one we learn about during the Middle Ages, although that code was probably followed as well as the nasdats follow the milicents' code. The code basically comes down to this:
1. If you can take it, it is yours.
Alex leads us to believe that if you can defeat an enemy, they should respect you. This idea, however is not followed, as Dim proves when he chains Alex in the eyes and leaves him for the police. Alex's idea is a common one from history and fable, but in this novel, it is known that you can never trust people to have the same ethical code as you.
It is important to realize that although Alex does not respect the laws placed down by society in the first part, mainly because they are unable to enforce them, he does have his own set of rules. Whenever he "teaches" someone their place, he is telling us about his moral code. He does not believe that 10 year old girls should try and act older. He teaches two pre-teens this lesson by treating them like he would treat them if they were actually as old as they act like: he drugs and rapes them. This is a sentiment I also share, though my response is nothing like his. I have a major issue with "Proste-tots," young girls who dress far more maturely than they actually are. It sickens me that these girls are so eager to grow up that they start putting on makeup at ten, and put on skirts that are 6 inches above their knee when there are only 12 inches between their knee and their waist.
Alex also believes that the world belongs to the young. Whenever he beats up someone older than him, he is showing this disgust. This is a foolish mistake, because Alex refuses to learn from them. The place of the elderly in many warrior societies is to pass on history and provide wisdom. The best moment in Ender's Game is when young Ender, 14, tries to attack the sixty year old Mazer Rackam. He has his butt handed to him; because he underestimates his opponent-Rackam is like a lightning bolt. After Rackam has asserted his ability to defeat Ender, he teaches him everything he knows and Ender goes on to save the world. Alex would do well to learn from those who have more knowledge around him, such as the prison Charlie.
Alex's moral code is different from ours, as are the Hindus who do not eat beef, or the Islamists who believe in Polygamy, or the Aztecs who sacrificed a man every day to make the sun rise, but every society has something to teach us, as long as we can remove our own preferences and preconceived notions of how the world turns. Objectivity is the only way to garner any knowledge from a sociopath, if you allow for a different system of warrants than your own; your understanding of a text will grow exponentially.
Let's watch as Alex, hopefully, learns more about the world and grows from schoolboy to soldier, and beyond, for it is in learning that we change ourselves, and better ourselves. Let us give Alex the benefit of the doubt, perhaps he won't end up dead in a ditch, perhaps he will learn when to trust others and when to follow the rules. Perhaps, just maybe, he will decide that regular society might have it right. I can only hope.
These are case studies into the workings of fighting societies. Alex lives in such a society in the first part of the book. Here, anarchy reigns the streets at night, because the police cannot maintain the law. Here, warriors live by warrior's rules, because they claim power. Sadly, their warrior's code is less chivalrous than the one we learn about during the Middle Ages, although that code was probably followed as well as the nasdats follow the milicents' code. The code basically comes down to this:
1. If you can take it, it is yours.
Alex leads us to believe that if you can defeat an enemy, they should respect you. This idea, however is not followed, as Dim proves when he chains Alex in the eyes and leaves him for the police. Alex's idea is a common one from history and fable, but in this novel, it is known that you can never trust people to have the same ethical code as you.
It is important to realize that although Alex does not respect the laws placed down by society in the first part, mainly because they are unable to enforce them, he does have his own set of rules. Whenever he "teaches" someone their place, he is telling us about his moral code. He does not believe that 10 year old girls should try and act older. He teaches two pre-teens this lesson by treating them like he would treat them if they were actually as old as they act like: he drugs and rapes them. This is a sentiment I also share, though my response is nothing like his. I have a major issue with "Proste-tots," young girls who dress far more maturely than they actually are. It sickens me that these girls are so eager to grow up that they start putting on makeup at ten, and put on skirts that are 6 inches above their knee when there are only 12 inches between their knee and their waist.
Alex also believes that the world belongs to the young. Whenever he beats up someone older than him, he is showing this disgust. This is a foolish mistake, because Alex refuses to learn from them. The place of the elderly in many warrior societies is to pass on history and provide wisdom. The best moment in Ender's Game is when young Ender, 14, tries to attack the sixty year old Mazer Rackam. He has his butt handed to him; because he underestimates his opponent-Rackam is like a lightning bolt. After Rackam has asserted his ability to defeat Ender, he teaches him everything he knows and Ender goes on to save the world. Alex would do well to learn from those who have more knowledge around him, such as the prison Charlie.
Alex's moral code is different from ours, as are the Hindus who do not eat beef, or the Islamists who believe in Polygamy, or the Aztecs who sacrificed a man every day to make the sun rise, but every society has something to teach us, as long as we can remove our own preferences and preconceived notions of how the world turns. Objectivity is the only way to garner any knowledge from a sociopath, if you allow for a different system of warrants than your own; your understanding of a text will grow exponentially.
Let's watch as Alex, hopefully, learns more about the world and grows from schoolboy to soldier, and beyond, for it is in learning that we change ourselves, and better ourselves. Let us give Alex the benefit of the doubt, perhaps he won't end up dead in a ditch, perhaps he will learn when to trust others and when to follow the rules. Perhaps, just maybe, he will decide that regular society might have it right. I can only hope.