Meerkat Prompts: Sci-Fi Quotes
A lot of people might take a rather glib view of science fiction, and the messages contained therein. Some people simply see ‘pew pew, lasers!’ I guess that’s fair – this meerkat cannot find meaning or relevance in soap operas, whereas others can – but there is a lot of nuance in science fiction, a lot of heart, and a lot of soul-searching.
With that in mind, I thought I would share some sci-fi quotes that also offer up what I believe to be good philosophies to live by, or at least strive for.
“You cannot explain away a wantonly immoral act because you think that it is connected to some higher purpose.” – Captain Jean-Luc Picard.
The context of this quote, from the sixth season TNG episode Man of the People, is that a man named Alkar, an ambassador, has been using an artefact of his people to channel unwanted thoughts and desires into others, without their knowledge or consent, so that he may be calm, serene, and do his work. Alkar believes his work for the greater good outweighs the cost, though the price is usually the death of his conduit. Picard’s message is pretty clear: can you justify despicable acts, in the name of the greater good? If you cannot achieve what you need or want to achieve in the right manner, is it worth achieving?
“How much blood will spill before everybody does what they were always going to have to do from the very beginning: Sit down and talk!” – The Doctor.
The Zygon Inversion features the 12th Doctor, and his companion Clara, unravelling a plot by renegade shape-shifting Zygons to usurp both the human race, and their fellow Zygons, and rule the world. They are prepared to go to war, so the Doctor makes his plea, having shaped a test for both the Zygons and humanity. In a powerful, passionate speech, easily one of the best Doctor Who has offered, the Doctor points to the futility of war, how all the death, all the pain and loss, all of it can and should be bypassed, so that everyone comes back to the place they were always heading to: the negotiating table.
“…..Calm. Kindness. Kinship. Love. I’ve given up all chance at inner peace. I’ve made my mind a sunless space. I share my dreams with ghosts. I wake up every day to an equation I wrote 15 years ago from which there’s only one conclusion, I’m damned for what I do. My anger, my ego, my unwillingness to yield, my eagerness to fight, they’ve set me on a path from which there is no escape. I yearned to be a savior against injustice without contemplating the cost and by the time I looked down there was no longer any ground beneath my feet. What is my sacrifice? I’m condemned to use the tools of my enemy to defeat them. I burn my decency for someone else’s future. I burn my life to make a sunrise that I know I’ll never see. And the ego that started this fight will never have a mirror or an audience or the light of gratitude. So what do I sacrifice? Everything!…” – Luthen.
Luthen (from the Star Wars show Andor) is fully aware that he has given his life to the Rebellion. He knows he will never see it come to fruition; that rests with others who will outlive him. He knows he will have to do things that can be as bad and cruel as anything the Empire does, in order for others to rise up. His is a lifelong dedication, one that will take him to some bleak places, but he is prepared to do it, for the sake of freedom.
Of course, what we have here is an interesting difference of approach. Picard’s quote speaks to sticking to one’s principles. Luthen speaks to sacrificing them for the greater good. Can both concepts be true? Meanwhile, the Doctor is a fascinating character for this sort of thing, given they refuse to wield a weapon, yet their actions have often led to destruction, and led to others giving their lives for them.
So, as you can see, sci-fi presents a lot to think about. It is a lot more than ‘pew pew’, and that’s after only three quotes from three franchises.
