fandomhigh | Heroes v Villains | Period 1 | Wednesday

Loki was waiting for the students to file into the classroom, feet up on the desk and magazine opened on his lap. When they got there, they got there and he'd start class whenever he damn well pleased. They could wait and sit and stare at him for a bit. Eventually, he did get up and smiled at the familiar and unfamiliar places.

"Well, it looks like we're all here. Good. Welcome to Heroes v Villains. I'm Loki and I have a lot of fucking experience with both heroes and villains and all iterations you can think of. No, I'm not going to give you my fucking resume. You'll just have to trust me. I'm probably older than every single one of you and I've seen more in my lifetime than any of you have. It's just a thing. The purpose of this class, in case you hadn't guessed, isn't to talk about fairy fucking tales or movies or shit like that. If you think you know what a hero is, I'm here to fucking tell you you're wrong. If you think you know what a villain is, I'm here to tell you, once again, you're wrong. It's never that fucking clear cut. You never know all the facts and these fucking labels are often given willy fucking nilly without any thought to them."

He stopped for a minute and glanced out at the class, trying to predict who he thought would actually be able to think outside the box and who would have a more difficult time. "Oftentimes, these labels are given to people because of one fucking thing they do. One fucking thing. Someone might run into a fire, save a kid but then they go home and beat the shit out of their wife. A dictator, someone who took power by force, might send his military into a war they can't fucking win, killing thousands, but the fact that he's both made economic and social strides in his homeland is overlooked. It's never fucking clear cut and no one seems to think it needs to be. Time to flip that on its head."

He paused and hopped up on his desk, smile wide and dangerous. He knew way too much about this subject. Way too much. "So, we'll start easy today before getting into the class. Introductions, of course. I want to know who the hell I'm talking to. So, name, age and your definition of both a hero and a villain. If you give me a dictionary definition, I'm gonna call you on it. I want to hear what you think a hero is and what you think a villain is. It'll give me a nice outline of what I need to talk about and who believes what. So, come on, go."

He went to point someone out to start them off before saying, "Oh, and I'll be choosing one of you to be my TA during this. Just whoever I want. Being a teacher is fucking fun that way. Now, go."

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"Karla, I'm sixteen, and normally I'd just say that it's a matter of perception. One witch's hero is easily another witch's villain." Hobart, for example. She pretty much considered him the scum of the earth and felt bad about insulting scum so, but she knew there were people in Glacia who were thrilled with his changes. And the same went for Uncle Saetan--there were those people who used him name to frighten their children into going to bed or eating their vegetables.

"Or that a hero honors the ways of the Darkness and a villain doesn't, but that won't mean anything to anyone here." Sorry, Loki. Karla was slowly working toward a workable answer.

"I guess I'd have to say that someone who exploits the people, animals, or land under his control or protection is a villain, and someone who defends and protects the same is a hero. The male who saved a child may be a hero to that child and family, but is a villain to his wife and his own family. And since that villainy goes on much longer, I'd say he was a villain, even if most everyone else sees a hero."

Loki was just making a habit of raising eyebrows at people in this class. This was a definition he hadn't expected even if it'd taken Karla awhile to get there.

"We'll get into this in later classes but what about religion?" Loki asked, curious about her answer. "Religion divides even the most harmonious races. What if I, as a leader of the land, decided to rule that there was one true religion? Some people would love me, say I was protecting their beliefs but others would hate me. What would I be?"

Karla always forgot about religion, since it wasn't an issue at home. "I guess I'd ask what happens to those who don't believe in your one, true religion," she said, shrugging. "If you just declared that your religion is the official one, nonbelievers had to pay a special tax and that was it, you might be a jerk and possibly a bad leader, but you're not a villain. If you decided to convert all non-believers by the sword or deny necessary rights to your own people, then you'd become a villain. As a leader, you have a duty to all your people, not just those who disagree with you."

Edited 2010-07-07 17:14 (UTC)

It was a good answer and Loki nodded. "I could probably deal with being a jerk. I've been called worse. It'd be nice if all leaders went by what you just said and believed they had a duty to all people. Some of them don't. And that probably makes them villains, doesn't it? When they take the rights of one set of persons and raise them above others? Treat other people like secondhand citizens?"

That struck a little close to home, considering the status of landens back home. Loki probably noticed Karla's slight wince and fidgeting in her chair. "Again, it's a little gray, especially if they're just doing what they've been taught is right. Especially if those people are still happy and comfortable and taken care of..."

For the first time, Karla felt a little ashamed of her culture. She hung her head and flushed "But it still isn't right. They people who continued the tradition without questioning it might not be villains, but they're not the good rulers or heroes they think they are. And if there is a leader who knows better and does it anyway...then they are a villain, even if no one else realizes it."

Loki eyed her curiously but decided not to call her out during the first class. He could save that for later classes if this reaction presented itself again.

"Change is oftentimes seen as both bad and needed," he agreed. "Those that try to change things are revered by some and hated by others. It's always going to be that way, I think. Tradition versus modernity."

"And tradition has inertia on its side," Karla agreed with a nod. "The longer certain ideas are in place, the more entrenched they are in the hearts and minds of the population and the more outcry there will be against it. It's the job of a good leader to understand when change is needed anyway, for the good of all people, and do it regardless of what names she's called."

"Of course, that's all easier said that done," Loki said, shrugging. It was easy to say there would be change then it was to put change into motion. "And a lot of people will lie in order to gain the trust of a people."

Heroes v Villains | Period 1 | Wednesday | July 7

Re: Class Activity | Introductions and Defintiions [HvV 07/07]

Re: Class Activity | Introductions and Defintiions [HvV 07/07]

Re: Class Activity | Introductions and Defintiions [HvV 07/07]

Re: Class Activity | Introductions and Defintiions [HvV 07/07]

Re: Class Activity | Introductions and Defintiions [HvV 07/07]

Re: Class Activity | Introductions and Defintiions [HvV 07/07]

Re: Class Activity | Introductions and Defintiions [HvV 07/07]

Re: Class Activity | Introductions and Defintiions [HvV 07/07]