fandomhigh | So You Say You Want a Revolution: Week 6, Period 3

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So You Say You Want a Revolution: Week 6, Period 3

"Good to see you all survived the weekend and the, ah, parental invasion," Aly said with a bit of a grin as she surveyed the class. "I enjoyed speaking with your visitors and can promise I didn't give away too many of the school's secrets." She rolled her eyes a little at the idea of accidentally giving any secrets away at all.

"First up, let's have a chat about last week's topic - flirting and making friends. I asked you to try to use some of the techniques over the weekend as you met your friends' family and friends. If you did and you found them helpful, horrifically not, or something in the middle, let's hear how it worked out."

When everyone was done talking, Aly pulled everyone's attention back to her. "Now we're moving on to talk about another side of that same coin - mass communication. When you're starting a revolution - or any movement - you're going to have to distill your message to something people can understand without thinking about it too much. Long heartfelt debates are good for some things, but most people don't have the patience or brainpower to actually sit there and consider every aspect of the situation."

"So you need to get a message out - something short and to the point. But that's not necessarily the difficult part. The difficult part is getting everyone in your group to agree on what that message should be - and what it means." She took a moment to observe the class and make sure everyone was following. "Today, I want you to divide up into your groups. Each group has been assigned a quote from a writer or revolutionary that I want you to decide - as a group - what it means and then restate it into a message that could be used for the people."

Nico's Group
"In a revolution, as in a novel, the most difficult part to invent is the end."
~Alexis de Tocqueville

Rinoa's Group
"You cannot make a revolution with silk gloves."
~Joseph Stalin

Percy's Group
“Every revolution was first a thought in one man's mind”
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ino's Group
“When liberty comes with hands dabbled in blood it is hard to shake hands with her.”
~Oscar Wilde

Aly read each of the quotes on the whiteboard out loud for the class, assigning them to their groups. "Everyone have a handle on what you need? Questions? Then go to, I'll be wandering around if any questions come up."

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"Today, I want you to divide up into your groups. Each group has been assigned a quote from a writer or revolutionary that I want you to decide - as a group - what it means and then restate it into a message that could be used for the people."

"In a revolution, as in a novel, the most difficult part to invent is the end."
~Alexis de Tocqueville

"It means it's easy to start a revolution, but much harder to carry it through to success," Elphaba said. "Which... I don't know if that's a message you'd want to give to potential allies."

"You cannot make a revolution with silk gloves."
~Joseph Stalin

"Silk is supposed to be for rich people, isn't it?" Kyle asked the others.

"It is," Rinoa agreed. "It's also very delicate. It tears easily. It's soft and it looks pretty, but it isn't very practical."

"He's pointing out that if you attempt revolution through force of arms, your hands are going to get dirty," Cara said. "People will die on both sides, probably horribly."

"You have to decide what cost you're willing to pay," Rinoa agreed, reflecting on the discussion about blowing up the President's train. "What lines you want to cross, and which ones you don't. You can't keep your hands clean and have a successful revolution."

“Every revolution was first a thought in one man's mind”
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

This sounded a straightforward to Percy but he was thinking about it while he waited for others to join him.

Cally scooted her desk over and folded her hands lightly atop it. "It seems a positive message for those who are afraid that lack of numbers or resources makes even starting such a plan impossible."

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking," Percy said, nodding. "Sure the biggest revolutions started as some small lark of an idea somewhere. It only grew when the idea got voiced. Most of the time, it's not just one person having that thought."

Cally nodded. "But until one person has the courage to voice it, no one will know they're not alone."

“When liberty comes with hands dabbled in blood it is hard to shake hands with her.”
~Oscar Wilde

"I think," she mused, "that it's telling us to watch out for the cost of what we're going ahead and doing. People won't take peace if that peace has come at too high of a cost for them to accept your victory, maybe?"

"I agree," Karla said with a nod. "There are definitely certain actions that aren't justifiable, no matter how great the stakes."

For a list of them, please see Current Glacian Policies.

"But, at the same time, I feel like this saying is a little too glib and easy to manipulate by the other side, too. There are very few revolutions that can be won while remaining completely bloodless. But with this saying, even the death of a tyrant can be used against our side."

"Well...it says it's hard, not impossible to accept liberty when it costs what could be considered too much by some." But sometimes you couldn't really pick the way you wanted to do things, so sucking it up was the only way to go.

"I don't think it would be weird to have a revolution born out of another revolution, if the means to reach the end crossed a line for a number of people. Or just the right people." The ones with power, of course.

"Well, we could change the saying a little," Karla said, trying to come up with something good. "Something that's...I dunno. A little more forgiving about certain activities while still saying others are wrong?"

She was quiet for a minute and then suggested, "What worth is liberty if it costs one's humanity?"

It was the first thing that popped into her head, honestly.

Somehow Cloud could relate to that. Had it really been worth all he and AVALANCHE had done? For what end? After all, life under Shinra's management was not perfect by a long shot, but it was life, after all. Sephiroth was going to make his move anyway, claimed a voice at the back of his head. It all had fall into place, and at the end of it, Cloud felt free, sure, but maybe destroying Midgar and seeing how people fell sick around him, not to mention to have helped with pretty much killing his planet...it seemed like a cost a little to big.

Cloud seemed lost in his own thoughts for a while there.

"It's...complicated", said at last. "You can attain liberty, keep your humanity intact, and still alienate all around you. So it's not your humanity, but other's humanity that will pay the price." A sigh. "You can't have a revolution and expect everyone will be happy with how it goes, or what it takes to end." He leaned a bit on his chair. "There is always a price, right?"

"If there wasn't a price then there'd be no point," Ino said, glancing at the two of them. "It's the very price people pay that makes their succeeding precious and something to strive to maintain rather than allowing themselves to slump into what came before."

"Everything has a price," Karla agreed. "But it's possible that it the price can grow far higher than anyone expected going in. Some prices are worth paying. Others aren't."

"The question is, what decides that price?" Shira wondered aloud. "Because just thinking about the situation I come from... some people would agree that any cost would be fine as long as it gained us our freedom."

She tucked her hair back behind her ears. "But it's harder for us to decide what's enough because we have lost so much already. What's there to lose when you've already lost it all, y'know?"

"Not only what, but who", pointed out Cloud, a bit gravelly, even. "What I'm trying to say is that standards vary a lot. Where you wouldn't do something, there would be someone willing to do it, and vice-verse." It only left people discontent and feeling like the signed up for the wrong cause in the end.

Cloud gave took glance at Shira. "Your soul, I guess. They can take all they want, but you will always be your own master unless you accept it otherwise."

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So You Say You Want a Revolution: Week 6, Period 3

Group Work [Rev 10-06]

Nico's Group [Rev 10-06]

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Rinoa's Group [Rev 10-06]

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