Selfishness & hypocrisy in WALKING DEAD
One recurring theme I've picked up in Telltale's WD is human egotism in the midst of the zombie apocalypse, and how "love" (or at the very least, the drive to protect those closest to us at all costs) inadvertently brings out the worst in people.
Kenny doesn't give a rat's ass about the fate of others unless they directly affect his family; Lily doesn't care about anything beyond her father and his medication; Christa is so caught up with keeping Omid from death's clutches, she's oblivious to her own callousness; Molly is too busy being enraged at the people of Crawford to realize her "look out for number one" philosophy is dangerously similar to Crawford's; the Stranger hunts down and torments Lee on account of what he feels was done to his family; the St. Johns preserve themselves at the cost of their basic humanity; and Vernon betrays Lee's group strictly because he put the needs of his own group first.
There are precious few characters in the game who could be called genuinely selfless. Whether Lee becomes just another contributor to the state of the world around him, or tries to "go against the grain", is entirely up to the player. I hope this concept of self vs. selfless is carried over to S2.
Comments
Elegantly put. I hope that Telltale gives an interesting twist on this by allowing us to be exposed to these sides of people from Clementine's perspective.
I agree. Though i hope that TT toned that down a notch. Only because sometimes the reactions didn't make alot of sence. I wont name examples because its only going to start an argument, but it did seem to be that Clem and Lee were the most selfless by far.
This being a story about survival, I can't imagine themes of selfishness and selflessness not being explored. When normal people are pushed to extremes, they tend to fall back on their most primal instincts and there are few instincts more primal than looking out for yourself and those you care about. Some of the more moral ones will try to struggle against those instincts but there's only so much you can do when things are so dire. I'm sure Clem will meet plenty of selfish assholes like Kenny and Lilly during her adventures in the apocalypse.
Personally, I find myself being drawn to the more abnormal characters--characters whose actions are driven by more than just egoism or selflessness. Characters like Chuck or Nate or Roman or even Danny St. John each have their own distinct code of ethics or philosophy that they follow, apart from the basic drive to protect themselves and their loved ones. I'd like to see more of these kinds of characters in Season 2.
I believe if I were to find myself in a Zombie Apocalypse I would be extremely selfish and guarded of me and mine, I think compassion and focusing on doing "the right thing" are what get people killed, Now I realize playing this game, we have to follow the story and make decisions based on what we are given, but each of us plays our game based on what we believe to be our own right or wrong. I believe in the safety in numbers and would hope to be in with a fair sized group, each one watching the other's back and such, but when it comes down to basic survival I will do "anything" I need to survive. During season one, I said I would do anything I can, even risk my life to protect Clem, but I would not sacrifice my life for her or anyone else.
Reminds me of an episode of Doomsday Preppers.. Was a husband and wife who were working to grow all sorts of crops. Their plan was, in case of an apocalypse to trade and barter what they had. To work with people and try to create a community where everyone worked together to survive. Granted that would be the ideal way if everyone were fair and just. They also added that they have no guns and wouldn't allow them in their community. I think that is foolish.
Realize that in today's world, we do horrible things to each other and we still have our civility and law's. People commit crimes and face the law's and punishment. Now imagine if we were in an apocalypse, where there would be no law's or protection or justice. Those people who fight to retain their humanity and civility would be among the first casualties. The first group of rogues would simply kill them and take everything.
That is my whole point.. I think the survivors will be the selfish and hard. The one's who look out for themselves first and planned and protect their own. I consider myself a moral person, but I know if faced with some of these situations, I would do whatever I needed to survive.. I may feel bad about some things, but I'm still alive. That's the way I play TWD and if put in any situation that task's my morality I will always choose on what's best for me and mine!