Ethics [Monday, March 11, 5th period]

[sith_happened]

Anakin was leaning against the desk as the Ethics class walked in. A crumpled version the syllabus was in his hand.

"I hope you all stayed dry this weekend and kept your fish throwing to a minimum," he said. "The syllabus says that we're supposed to begin a discussion of the seven deadly sins today, but I want to get to know you a little bit first."

He was supposed to be a new instructor, after all.

"What manner of action do you find unforgivable?" he asked, his voice and manner completely unreadable. "Treason against your country or homeworld? Stealing from the defenseless? Slavery? Murder? Let's not worry about extenuating circumstances for the moment. If I were to tell you I killed children, most of you would recoil, correct? Where do you draw that line in your head? How far does someone have to go before you say 'that's wrong and there's no getting past it'?"

He avoided John's eyes as he paced around the room, finally pointing at a student. "Go ahead."

Comments

Re: Answer the discussion question

[sith_happened]

"So you would pull up criminal records before making a decision?" Anakin countered. "Or would you go on gut instinct?"

Re: Answer the discussion question

[likethegun]

Sam gave himself a moment to think about that. "I don't know if I could go on gut instinct. My gut tends to think the best of people, even if that's not the smartest choice. I need personal evidence to be willing to act."

Re: Answer the discussion question

[sith_happened]

"Very wise of you," Anakin said. "I've seen disasters happen based on incomplete data."

And if that wasn't the biggest understatement ever, it easily cracked the top ten.

Re: Answer the discussion question

[likethegun]

Sam smiled softly at the approval. "The only experience I really have with this sort of thing is hunting with my dad," he explained. "Sometimes we come across people who are genuinely evil and destructive, and sometimes we come across people who are possessed or working under the influence of someone else. Gut instinct would probably lump all of those people together as non-innocents." He gave a little shrug. "This is probably why I have trouble drawing straight ethical lines of right and wrong."

Re: Answer the discussion question

[sith_happened]

"The straight lines are the ones that will get you in the most trouble," Anakin said. "If you're too rigid in your views, you miss out on a lot of the nuance in life."