Monday, March 9, 2009

Aaarrgghhh [like a pirate]: There be spoilers here!

It was inevitable, but the issue of the ending of Watchmen has come up...

If you have read the graphic novel and want to make a comment on the ending, here's your chance.

If you haven't read it yet...AVOID THIS LIKE THE PLAGUE!

9 comments:

detecktive said...

Heather made an interesting comment about utilitarianism - is that the way to go?

When looking at Ozymandias' plan, I thought it had way too many variables for him to be able to predict the outcome.

I know he fervently watched world trends and manipulated markets etc. but even so, the scale of his plan, I thought, meant there was no way you could tell if it would work. It that case, how is it possible to justify what was done?

Which of course begs the question - does the end justofy the means?

And of course, I think he felt the burden of what he had done as well, when Jon tells him that it never ends. For all his scheming and planning, it may not last. His legacy may be no better than Alexander's - a legacy left in the past.

Nic said...
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Lauviah said...

Aarrgghh, shiver me timbers! Thar be a code of some kind here, me heartys!
Oh, woops, that's why - wrong blog...

Lauviah said...

Oh, and I'll be able to discuss the graphic novel ending in, say, 5 years time when I actually finish reading the thing!

Nic said...

And yet you read the spoiler section - good thing you are seeing the movie tomorrow, Miss Monkey!

I removed my earlier post because I thought, in retrospect, I had been quite depressing, but Heather asked, so I'm going to put up an abbreviated, hopefully cheerier version :)

So starting with the depressing part, I thought that if that's what you have to do to save humanity, are we worth saving? Where do you draw the line on what's acceptable and who do you trust to do so? Even Ozymandias, the smartest man in the world, doubts himself in the end. I'm with Rorschach - never compromise. Our choices make us what we are.

But in a moment of sheer hypocrisy, if it was my life, I'm pretty sure I'd want to do anything to prolong it.

Ok, so it wasn't cheerier.

detecktive said...

I thikn Ozymandias' motives were highly questionable as well. His plan came from the fact he saw himself as some sort of visionary and saviour that would outdo the conquerors of the past he so idolised.

While I'm sure he believed it was some great altruistic gesture to act as a 'messiah' (and as a result pariah for he would have to carry the pain of his actions...as if he really would when he felt like he was serving a greater good) for a world destroying itself, at the end of the day I thought he was just as self motivated and self serving as those he was trying to save.

爱书 said...
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爱书 said...

I agree wth Ben - Ozymandias was simply self serving. All dictators have a 'higher purpose for the good of all' that just translates to 'what the hell I want!'.

Hitler thought he was doing the right thing, Mugabe(Zimbabwe) thinks he is doing the right thing now. That certainly doesn't make them heroes

It's not enough to say that you planned to create a utopian society through your actions when those actions destroy a way of life or a value system. I personally think humanity is doomed and that even an external threat wouldn't cause us to band together, there'd still be fighting about who would lead the charge etc

As for Ozymandias realising the truth and consequence of his actions, I'm not sure that he did. The dictator mindset would just mean that he kept trying to create HIS version of the world, one where he was the ultimate ruler
(just as Alexander planned in BC really)

Hmmmm, that's all very on one cup of coffee. Will have to read over it again after my 2nd ;-)

爱书 said...

After my second coffee I feel the need to add that I don't think utilitarianism can work and that the end doesn't justify the means.

Your ends is not my ends, your means are not my means so, ultimatley, utilitarianism is simply a dictatorship under another name