No, it's courage when it's *self*-sacrifice.

[green_dreams]

So. Catching up on reading and chatting with people (thank you, Ben), and generally finding that, in the way themes tend to clump up, there was a common theme to some stuff I'd been reading lately.

Oh, for the record? This post contains spoilers.

But anyway; Elizabeth Bear's Hugo-winning[1] "Shoggoths in Bloom", Ursula K. LeGuin's also Hugo-winning "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas" (wiki entry, also contains spoilers, does not have the story), and an entry on the weirdly engaging SCP-wiki[2] describing how people deal with SCP-231-7 (free fun fact: anything requiring a high score on the Milgram Obedience Examination is probably going to be highly problematic).

As you may have guessed if you've read any two of the three, the common theme I'm talking about is the exploitation/torment of the innocent as a means to morally desirable ends. I think the strength of all the stories is that they actually do present the end as distinct from the means as attractive and desirable. They never say that it's good to do what they're doing to the children (or what they could be doing to the shoggoths); but what they present as alternatives...

Stopping the Nazis. Preventing the end of the world. Creating a perfect, lovely, joyful, meaningful city...

Dammit. I'd be tempted. Like to think I wouldn't do it, but I'd be tempted. Kudos to the authors for making the gain actually tempting, rather than something shallow.

Wish I had something more articulate to say; as is, I just wanted to make a note of the stories.
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[1] Agh I didn't know that was Elizabeth Bear I would *so* have gotten her to sign something when she was hanging around in the halls!
[2] Seriously, I love this site. Between the cognitohazard tag (often quite evocative of NWoD) and the random SCP page, I could spend hours here.

Comments

[jagash]

Very nice, I listened to a reading of Shoggoths in Bloom and it was a beautiful piece like all of Elizabeth Bear's works. I must complement this level of moral complexity within works, it is a mark of quality which is still unfortunately rare.

[dagibbs.livejournal.com]

The SCP pages are quite addictive, aren't they?

I haven't read the Bear story, but I find the LeGuin to be a very disturbing story. I think that, in some ways, all of us that live in the western world live in Omelas.

[sarari.livejournal.com]

Heya, I'm visiting Ottawa with Sam (boyfriend) for a few days and am having another 1000 Sushi Islands dinner on Sept 2nd at 7pm. Thought I'd give you a heads up in case you wanted to come. :)