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[Column] General: When Evil = DNA
SBFord
Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129
Evil is an integral part of every MMO we play. Whether it's gnolls or trolls or demons, there is evil afoot in every game. In our latest Fair Game column, we take a look at the notion of evil. See if you agree before heading to the comments to chat it up.
When one is writing a book, a series, or, for our purposes, an MMO, it’s pretty darned difficult to come up with justifiable reasons why our Hero can cut a bloody swath of destruction across the landscape and still remain a Hero. But not only does our protagonist manage to remain a Hero, but a Hero who gains strength and wisdom (in the form of XP) and wealth (from looting the bodies) as a reward for all that killing. So, how does one spend one’s days spilling intestines and still wear a white hat? I mean, they can’t all be murderous bandits, can they? Easy, those spilled entrails were the entrails of evil. Excuse me, EEEEEEVIL!
Read more of Lisa Jonte's Fair Game: When Evil = DNA.
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Comments
Can't things just be evil?
A fantasy world is typicaly set in a middle age, where people are divided, uneducated, and superstitious. Your enemy is your enemy, and your enemy is evil.
Orcs kill humans to eat them because they are evil. We don't need to look through a progressive lense of the modern day liberal, and justify their actions. We just need to kill them.
Experience demands that man is the only animal which devours his own kind, for I can apply no milder term to the general prey of the rich on the poor.
Thomas Jefferson
Isn't evil a matter of perspective then?
To the ants outside my house, I'm evil. I'll poison/massacre them for, from their perspective, no valid reason, however, from my perspective: I don't want ants in my kitchen, and putting up a stop sign won't help, something subtle like closing some small gaps doesn't work either, so my solution is to kill the colony and be done with it, problem solved.
Like W.S. Churchill said "History is written by the victors". which makes it obvious that everything is viewed from a certain perspective.
Now i do agree that evil=dna is a very bad writing excuse, but the more complex, and arguably better good vs evil reasons in stories aren't that much more original
Enders game: a war that's caused by a misunderstanding from a hive mind. obviously stolen from insect behaviour
Starship troopers: insect expansion. no need to explain without spoiling.
All the good vs evil stories i know are not original, which is also the point of it.
The writer of this little column is revering to indoctrination on the part where certain traits can bepart of your dna. There is however a far more simple sort of indoctrination at work as well: give people choices, but only the choices you want them to have. In this case good and evil.
Or...
Christian or Muslim, or Democrat or conservative, You're either with us, or against us. How about a third option where I'm not with you, or against you, but indifferent? There are so many more options, but we're thaught to hate or love, to kill or be killed, to win or lose, and now that's all we know.
The more a writer attempts to rationalize a conflict, the more I end up thinking "there must have been a better way to resolve this than fighting".
( despite the genre of game I play, I don't fantasize about war and killing; so for me to buy into playing in such a world, you *have* to start with laying out an axiom that conflict is unavoidable or else I'm not going to focus on the orc as the enemy, I'm going to focus on the writer as the enemy for attempting to lure me into a conflict )
It was hard to make myself read that entire article because I disagreed with all of it and had stop myself from skipping straight to a response. I actually had to go back and read it again to make sure I was responding to what you wrote and not how much it annoyed me.
First, Tolkien's evil races- they aren't evil creatures for the sake of evil. You are treating them like they just evolved into evil things for no reason. Even the title of the article, Evil = DNA, seems to be trying to put some scientific understanding around a fictional race of beings, while removing them from the context they were written in. They didn't evolve, and their evil nature has nothing to do with DNA or science. They were a corruption of other beings, created by a god like power, not just because he's Evil, but because he was angry and most of all jealous of powers beyond his own.
Secondly, races in science fiction- The idea that some intelligent species that exists on another planet might have an understanding of morality at odds with our own seems not only possible but probable. The idea that they might be hostile with no interest in peaceful coexistence is as valid as anything else.
If other races in fiction must be show with human morals in a politically correct way, why even bother having them at all? If they aren't something Other, they become pointless and stale- basically the races from swtor. You say that it makes racism and bad behavior more easily justifiable? I say people can be stupid and mean and some are going to be bad behaving racists regardless, and I'm not interested in censoring everything in an attempt to idiot proof the world.
You don't think it's within the writer's artistic liscence to equate the "corruption" of a race to genetic engineering to insert an "evil" gene, showing the parallels in themes between religious-inspired fantasy and science-inspired fantasy in way they handle dehumanizing a character? (or in this case, a whole race of characters)
I don't think you can fairly complain about many of the races of evil in fantasy about them being evil. After all, they were created by an evil being/wizard/god/whatever to be evil and do evil.
So yeah, they are going to be evil. Is it possible that there will be born a non-evil member of those races? Probably, but I don't think they'll live long enough to grow up.
"Kid, grab that knife and cut up that halfling for stew meat. No, the squirming one, I like em fresth."
"But mommy, I don't wanna. That'll hurt him. I don't like hurting things."
<slice...thud> "Hey Kurggahz! Little fizzu was getting to friendly with the food so I had to kill him. Send up another one to help me in the kitchen."
Of course, maybe the evil you have to deal with is a cultural thing you can't ever accept. Think cannibal tribes for example. They do something as a regular thing that is absolutely abhorrent to you. You can't abide by it, no sane person could, so therefore they must all be irredeemably evil. Of course, the young children might be saved, but few cultures would take on the orphans of the hated enemy just on the chance they may someday be respectable people. Heck, few people will take on the orphans of those from their own culture.
Is this stuff fair? No. Is it absolute? No. But stories are written to the viewpoint of the main characters, and games are written for fun. Neither one is going to go into massive detail and moralizing of the cannon fodder.
Lost my mind, now trying to lose yours...
The how isn't the point, scientific gene splicing, mythological fantasy, or whatever is fine and comparing them would also be fine. Labeling it automatically "really, really bad writing," taking it out of its context, ignoring any larger points the original writer might have been making? that's what I have a problem with. If you look at Tolkien's orcs and see only evil for evil's sake then I think you are missing a lot.
Even people we consider truly evil (Hitler, Pol Pot, Vlad Tepes and so on) all had motivations and few indeed are the ones considering themselves evil.
The world is not black and white and the only people saying so are justifying their own deeds by it.
Orcs are truly evil if you play a human, but humans are evil for an orc as well. Good games and good books set things up like that even if they tell the story out from a specific persons view.
What annoys me is when people bring in modern perspective into a historical or fantasy setting (unless they have very good reason for it).
Like the movie "Kingdom of heaven". In the real history the hero was leading the knights templar into the huge battle, in the movie however the hero instead hated templars and had a speech about freedom, glory and the American dream and decided to not be in the battle, something completely against what people at the time would have done. Both sides saw eachother as evil.
A MMO can actually tells the story from the view of your character and it should. But the story shouldn't be the same if you play an orc as if you play a human. It is totally fine to brainwash the human players into saying orcs just are plain evil but some small hints at times on how the orcs see things is still a good idea. Maybe there is a huge painting of humans killing orc children at the orc temple as example.
Every coin has 2 sides and people havn't changed that much in the last 1000 years even if most people like to think that.
Then you can add some beings that actually are truly evil, like insane members of any race, demi gods and demons who live on power from sacrifices and so on, but even most of them should try to justify themselves in some way or another.
You can not have a living breathing world without actually adding motivations to both players and NPCs, and "they are just evil" is hardly a motivation.
Vlad Tepes tried to keep the Ottomans out of his country while still having independence from Austria, Pol Pot had a vision of the perfect society and Hitler surely believed he was creating a great empire that would live for a thousand years.
A good enemy in MMOs should have a similar vision as well. It makes the world feel alive instead of just full with bots you can kill.
"In the end, the idea of an Evil Race of Evil has had its day. It’s a dinosaur, a lazy cliché."
So very true. A discussion more for a table top game than MMORPGs but still great mental acrobatics. IRL it's never so cut and dry. I prefer living creatures being shades of moral gray while undead and extra planar (angels/demons) being good or evil.
You should take your own advice. First the Nazis and al Queda are organizations people join, they are not races. Second the Mongols weren't really evil. The nation was warlike and ruthless and did evil things but you could still take a mongol child and raise him differently to become a different person. They weren't going to freak out and stop lopping heads one day.
Second, your post has nothing to do with the topic at hand, namely the trope of making entire races of people innately evil with neither cause nor chance to change. You were an orc ergo you were evil and a slave to your nature. That's just lazy writing and dangerous thinking in a modern world where we have to live with a lot of people who are different than you.
I don't know of any liberal/progressive lens that would try and justify killing people just to eat them.
Having something just being evil for the sake of just being evil is lazy. Most people see themselves as good, or at least not evil. To have a whole race of people that is innately evil is an insultingly obvious attempt to play into the author's stereotypes and prejudices.
On a side note, I don't think of Vlad Tepes as evil. He is revered as an hero of his own country.
I personally don't believe in moral evil. Morals are rules set from the ruling class to tie the hands of the lower classes and indoctrinate them into not doing what the ruling classes already do.
Now, applying that to online games, its true that i don't play a hero. I play a genocide, someone like Gengis Khan, Vlad Tepes or Adolf Hitler that labels another races as the scum of the earth and uses that labeling as justification for a bloodshed crusade. I kill lots of beings of intelligent races and species, and loot their corpses. Yeah, I'm evil.
And I'm totally okay with that.
Oh right, the mongols weren't evil lol, spend some time read about how they conquered, they made Al Qaeda look like angels. Races, groups of various persuasions, however you want to classify them. Lots of MMO's have factions that don't like each other, it is part of the design, nothing wrong with that. Orcs in Tolkien's world were evil because they did not like other races, they did things to the other races that were highly objectionable, hence they fit the evil definition from any perspective other than the orcs. The dodo would classify part of the human race evil.
So yes, I understood the article, maybe you did not. Evil is inherent in the world, so why would it not be in a MMO?
"You have some serious mental issues you may need to seek some help for. There are others who post things, but do not post them in the way you do. Out of every person who posts crazy shit in this forum, you have some of the craziest and scariest" -FarReach
A problem the Lisa does not cover is that the more time you devote to explaining why a race is evil, the more spotlight in the story they get. When you give a character spotlight they are the good guy, look at Dexter, it does not matter what they do, we read ourselves into the protagonists.
So the only way to do this would be as a dry history and a history based on humanity it would seem. The basis of this article depends on all "sentient" beings being inherently good. All are redeemable, all traits of "evil" are negative stereotypes. You see where this comes from right? Lisa is insisting her views about humanity are reproduced in races which are not human. In the real world we have no idea that other sentients would be like us, but in the world of fantasy she insists we can assume they will be like us. Not just like us, but her version of what we are and should be. Why? Because we have problems like racism and so need to mould our creations so they are a testament to a politically correct view of humanity.
It was pointed out that Tokien's evil races were the result of the twisted desires of an evil god. It was not "in their DNA", and this is obvious if you read LotR. So saying Tolkien gave no explanation of their evil is simply wrong. I guess evil god's are not a good enough reason when you have our human race to worry about.
Other posters have pointed out how the historical setting of MMO's points to a time when we were not so politically correct. I am sure these and other arguments will not matter, the cause being advocated means we need to turn our logic off and just accept that all fantasy needs to be written with social engineering in mind.
No thank you.
Tolkien's Orcs were captured Elves who were imprisoned, tortured and corrupted by Morgoth and turned into Orcs: Hating themselves and hating Elves because of the primal recognition of what they had been and what they had become = Tragedy.
Alternatively the dead eyes of a shark, fatal sting/bite of scorpion, spider, snake or terror of the predatory stalking feline or malaria mosquito = Monsters.
http://www.gdcvault.com/play/1014633/Classic-Game-Postmortem
I disagree with your entire permise on writers taking the path of least resistance by making entire races evil because most of them don't. Using your example of Tolkien supports this because he gives us enough information that the culture of Orc's is evil compared to what the average person considers "good". And if an Orc was born and wanted to reject that culture they would be killed and eaten by their own kind thus insuring there are no "good" Orc's.
Your argument that these writers also reinforce "racism" is actually lazy. Racism is a choice, it is not taught or learned, we all are exposed to it and either choose embrace or reject it. To view it any other way eliminates personal responsiblity and although I realize current liberal dogma states that nobody is responsible for their actions I choose not to follow the path of socialists.
Honestly the one guys quote about the Drow is silly too. The notion that an evil race cannot exist in a fantasy world is silly. Its like arguing which super hero would beat which super hero in a nerd fight.
Not to get too picky but the "Drow" society exists because a GOD imposes her will physically and spiritually through her priests. He says something about it collapsing under the weight of refugees and murder. Hes wrong. Survival of the fittest is an excellent doctrine for a society to live by.
Low birthrate is a problem for Elves. While cousins, I don't ever remember reading in any of the lore that they suffer from the same problem. In fact, their "schools" seem adequately populated. It would take merely a word from their godess "Lloth" to lower the murder rate or increase the birthrate. They have incredible access to magic...
Ultimately your flawed logic is turned aside by that last bit... Magic can solve any problem in the Forgotten Realms setting. Any problem. Lloth was turned into a medium-tier diety in the last story arc, and the upcoming one will see her elevated yet again. I'm pretty sure she can hold together a society designed to serve her will.
I don't think you used the best examples. A lot of 'evil' creatures are actually just savage. Tusken Raiders, for example, are raiders. They survive and advance in society by raiding/fighting. If you read up on them, or play the first KotoR, you'll see that they have families, culture, and valuables; all things that they want to protect. They aren't so much evil, as they are just an opposing society.
Tolkien orcs on the other hand, are born into a kind of aggressive society. You don't see orcs farming, or talking even. They mine, smelt, chop, blacksmith, and do all sorts of tasks that help them achieve their aggressive goals. Does that necessarily make them evil? No, but it makes them very easy to be controlled by an evil character ie Sauron or Saruman. (The exception might be Uruks, which appear all too glad to be killers and sadists)
In short, I wouldn't say some races are predisposed to evil, but rather they are more easily manipulated by truly evil or power-mongering antagonists.
It's fine to have evil the way D&D stories have evil, where the alignment system essentially redefines evil to just mean willing to hurt others to advance your own interests. It is entirely conceivable to have a society that thinks that way. But using the "classic" understanding of evil, it is always bad to include in any non-supernatural character in a story, because it simply isn't believable. Classic evil consists of people doing things they believe are wrong, simply because they are wrong, and the character exists to do wrong. Like the original presentation of most Marvel Comics villains back in the 60s. That is bad writing. Every well written (mortal) character, at his core, thinks his beliefs are the right beliefs, and that following those beliefs is "good," or at least not evil. In either the real world, or well written fiction, evil is simply a label we attach to people whose concept of good we violently disagree with.
Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion, I gain strength.
Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.
Through victory, my chains are broken.
The Force shall free me.