fandomhigh | Ethics [Thursday, September 9, 2nd period]

"As you might remember from the syllabus I handed out last week," Anakin said as he leaned against his desk, "today's topic is lying. In Fandom, where multiple timelines meet and mingle, lying can be a terribly complex subject."

He gazed around the room. "We have students here from different centuries who by stepping foot onto the island learn immediately about electricity, electronics and reality television. Depending on societies they arrive from, they could learn about guns--or even the very concept of war--and change their worlds irrevocably."

Anakin began pacing. "Sometimes the situation is even more specific. Several years ago, a student arrived here who I knew--but I knew him as a Jedi Master I'd met when I was a small child. I also knew that his death, at least in my timeline, had been a violent one. A teacher I had used to say that the future is constantly in motion, but my experience with multiple timelines seems to show that certain large, galaxy changing events tend to stay constant. Did I have an obligation to tell this student about his future? Or do I respect his timeline and his ability to make his own decisions?"

He sat back down. "The questions today are these: if you have knowledge of the future, what parts would you lie about--even through omission--from someone further behind in the timeline? And if you met someone from your future, would you want to know anything about what you might face someday? Would you respect them for not telling you everything? Or even anything?"

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Marvel at the linguistic gymnastics Anakin used to torture the English language in order to talk about the future in hypothetical!

Oh, Cassidy was beginning to see more and more why this class was a favorite of both Karla's and Raven's. Professor Skywalker certainly made you think of more than just how things affected you personally. He would definitely probably fit in well if he visited Kaeleer.

She started taking notes again, but this time there was a line down the middle of the page. REASONS FOR and REASONS AGAINST were the headers on either side of the line.

The topic of Anakin's lecture had Cara automatically bracing herself for Richard's speech on how he didn't believe in letting destiny or prophecy rule his or anyone else's life. She slouched lower in her seat when she remembered he wasn't actually here to give it.

Edited 2010-09-09 14:01 (UTC)

The entire lecture was really a big helping of food for thought, for Jonothon. He'd met people through Fandom that were from his own past, after all. And he was certain that eventually, he'd stumble across one or two who knew his future, as well. For whatever reason, this island seemed to like picking on people from different corners of his reality, or at least ones that were disturbingly like it.

Rosalind was... well, it was entirely unfair to Professor Skywalker, it was, but she was beginning to hate this class as it hit far too close to several things she spent far too much time not-thinking-but-thinking about.

Zatanna had been...bitchslapped by her future. It didn't sound good, but dammit, it was pretty much what had meant it. Now, if someone could tell her when and when -and how- she was going to find her dad...or if she was going to, actually...

Oof, verb tense hell. That was a little confusing, and this was all starting to trend way too close to sci-fi nerd, Return from the Past territory, so Kennedy was... not too inclined to take it all that seriously.

She got that it was a problem for other people-- Beka came to mind there, for one-- but that was other people's crazy worlds, right? Hers had to make more sense.

Elphaba had no idea, but the topic was very relavent to her. She pondered, though, thinking how it would apply to those who could see visions of the future.

There seemed a lot of responsibility. Both to let people know of potential dangers, but also to protect them from the pain of knowing, as well.

William could certainly relate to the topic at hand- he was one such student from another century, who'd been spending nearly all of his free time learning about the advances in technology since his own time.

James pondered.

It was a conundrum: should he want information as to what would possibly happen so as he could work to avoid it or bring about a better result, or trust that time would stay immutable?

Ethics [Thursday, September 9, 2nd period]

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