Achaean News
Good/Evil
Written by: Phaestus, the Smith
Date: Sunday, July 19th, 1998
Addressed to: Jarok, Child of Chaos
You seem to think that pure Good and pure Evil litters the Garden of the Gods.
I must say, that this is an amazing revelation to myself, who spends so much more time there than you do.
Perhaps my view of my brethren is coloured by the fact that I actually know them, rather than passing broad sweeping assumptions about them. To my recollection, Jarok, you have not held much in the way of conversation with myself for instance - so which am I? Pure Good? Pure Evil?
Walking the grey line as you put is actually, quite probably, the easiest of roles for one to take. Pure good and pure evil require a tremendous amount of work to maintain - not being able to show jealousy or anger for good, not being able to say a kind word or give aid to a companion for evil - try it sometime - it is not only terribly difficult, but also terribly lonely. What you will usually find is that most all people are pro-Evil or pro-Good, but actually fit somewhere in the middle of that grey area, which gets contaminated to such an extent that at times, you can point at the staunchest supporters of Good and quite adequately build a case that they are Evil, and vice versa
A man comes across someone who is bleeding to death, and whose only hope of survival is the person who just found him. Now this injured party is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people, and, if allowed to live, will probably be responsible for the deaths of thousands of more. If healed, he has been given a chance of redemption, and his life has been treated as sacrosanct - surely a good act? Yet, saving one life costs thousands more - surely an evil act? Wether the act of healing that person was a good, or an evil act is a purely metaphysical question and is based solely upon ones perception of events.
Personally, I do not view the matter of good and evil as being one that can be related to a straight line with good at one end, and evil at the other - but rather as a circle with 4 major points, 1 of good, one of evil, one that is neither good nor evil, and one that is both good and evil.
Just as there is a fine line between love and hate, pain and joy, so there is a fine line between good and evil. To stay always on one side or the other of that line is next to impossible.
Penned by my hand on the 3rd of Scarlatan, in the year 196 AF.
�
Good/Evil
Written by: Phaestus, the Smith
Date: Sunday, July 19th, 1998
Addressed to: Jarok, Child of Chaos
You seem to think that pure Good and pure Evil litters the Garden of the Gods.
I must say, that this is an amazing revelation to myself, who spends so much more time there than you do.
Perhaps my view of my brethren is coloured by the fact that I actually know them, rather than passing broad sweeping assumptions about them. To my recollection, Jarok, you have not held much in the way of conversation with myself for instance - so which am I? Pure Good? Pure Evil?
Walking the grey line as you put is actually, quite probably, the easiest of roles for one to take. Pure good and pure evil require a tremendous amount of work to maintain - not being able to show jealousy or anger for good, not being able to say a kind word or give aid to a companion for evil - try it sometime - it is not only terribly difficult, but also terribly lonely. What you will usually find is that most all people are pro-Evil or pro-Good, but actually fit somewhere in the middle of that grey area, which gets contaminated to such an extent that at times, you can point at the staunchest supporters of Good and quite adequately build a case that they are Evil, and vice versa
A man comes across someone who is bleeding to death, and whose only hope of survival is the person who just found him. Now this injured party is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people, and, if allowed to live, will probably be responsible for the deaths of thousands of more. If healed, he has been given a chance of redemption, and his life has been treated as sacrosanct - surely a good act? Yet, saving one life costs thousands more - surely an evil act? Wether the act of healing that person was a good, or an evil act is a purely metaphysical question and is based solely upon ones perception of events.
Personally, I do not view the matter of good and evil as being one that can be related to a straight line with good at one end, and evil at the other - but rather as a circle with 4 major points, 1 of good, one of evil, one that is neither good nor evil, and one that is both good and evil.
Just as there is a fine line between love and hate, pain and joy, so there is a fine line between good and evil. To stay always on one side or the other of that line is next to impossible.
Penned by my hand on the 3rd of Scarlatan, in the year 196 AF.
�