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Oct. 9th, 2017 09:21 pm
Reads:
There was a young man
From Cork who got limericks
And haikus confused
Reads:
There was a young man
From Cork who got limericks
And haikus confused
I recently read a meta that raises an interesting point. What the monks did in creating Dawn, foisting a complete personality on her, is exactly what Topher does to the dolls in The Dollhouse. It's ethically problematic at best, if not downright evil. (Example: Dawn doesn't even have enough free will to choose her favorite color; it comes pre-programmed.)
I don't believe that the ethics of it are ever questioned in BtVS. Dawn was made into a human girl in order to prevent an apocalypse. Period. Sort of like Buffy sent Angel – now resouled – into Hell to prevent an apocalypse. So where is the line? It's okay as long as it does enough good? I don't have much more than questions so I'll go into a few examples.
Faith, in Consequences, about stabbing Alan Finch: "Buffy, I'm not gonna *see* anything. I missed the mark last night and I'm sorry about the guy. I really am! But it happens! Anyway, how many people do you think we've saved by now, thousands? And didn't you stop the world from ending? Because in my book, that puts you and me in the plus column."
Willow is also an interesting example when she's changing people's minds. Willow, because she's so convinced she is in the right, does not see the ethical issues of changing memories.
Anya as a vengeance demon. Notice that it's vengeance and not justice. Also notice how often the women making the wishes are harmed by them, for example the woman almost devoured after her ex has been turned into a giant worm demon. Are there any cases where the wishes that Anya granted didn't hurt the wisher?
The Initiative plays nicely with this theme as well. Soldiers such as Riley just assume their work is going toward the greater good. Military secrecy makes it easier to hide the less than ethical aspects of what's going on.
This secrecy aspect is played for comedic effect when Buffy thinks the Doublemeat burgers are made from demon bodies.
I think I'm getting away from any kind of a point, assuming I ever had one. Maybe the point is that BtVS shows us examples of things that should raise red flags. Maybe the point is that we're supposed to look more closely, not only at Buffy, but at our own lives.
I don't believe that the ethics of it are ever questioned in BtVS. Dawn was made into a human girl in order to prevent an apocalypse. Period. Sort of like Buffy sent Angel – now resouled – into Hell to prevent an apocalypse. So where is the line? It's okay as long as it does enough good? I don't have much more than questions so I'll go into a few examples.
Faith, in Consequences, about stabbing Alan Finch: "Buffy, I'm not gonna *see* anything. I missed the mark last night and I'm sorry about the guy. I really am! But it happens! Anyway, how many people do you think we've saved by now, thousands? And didn't you stop the world from ending? Because in my book, that puts you and me in the plus column."
Willow is also an interesting example when she's changing people's minds. Willow, because she's so convinced she is in the right, does not see the ethical issues of changing memories.
Anya as a vengeance demon. Notice that it's vengeance and not justice. Also notice how often the women making the wishes are harmed by them, for example the woman almost devoured after her ex has been turned into a giant worm demon. Are there any cases where the wishes that Anya granted didn't hurt the wisher?
The Initiative plays nicely with this theme as well. Soldiers such as Riley just assume their work is going toward the greater good. Military secrecy makes it easier to hide the less than ethical aspects of what's going on.
This secrecy aspect is played for comedic effect when Buffy thinks the Doublemeat burgers are made from demon bodies.
I think I'm getting away from any kind of a point, assuming I ever had one. Maybe the point is that BtVS shows us examples of things that should raise red flags. Maybe the point is that we're supposed to look more closely, not only at Buffy, but at our own lives.
