Harvard Professor Explains What the Avengers Can Teach Us About Philosophy
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Date: 2022-07-06
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Comments and reviews: 10
Vaeldarg
I might be a bit late on this, but after seeing Avengers: Infinity War recently it became clear fairly quickly that Thanos simply views himself as the stereotypical hero.
He believes that it is his destiny to complete some epic quest to save the universe by gathering together 5 ancient artifacts that will grant him the power to do so. The gauntlet is his Excalibur, his Master Sword, etc. He makes a warped version of a heroic sacrifice that tests his resolve, and when it is all said and done rather than using his power to conquer he goes into retirement.
The trope of -the chosen one-, the hero that must overcome obstacles only they are capable of doing so tends to cause chaos during their journey without staying around for the consequences. Thanos's genocide on each planet will likely play out in the same way: short-term peace and happiness, followed by a breakdown of society after being destabilized (a hero defeating a despot ruler, or the leader of an organization. Remove a spoiled/corrupt nobleperson, and a power-vacuum becomes created that other entities tend to then rush in to fill.
All throughout the MCU, the trend is to turn tropes on their head. With Thanos, the very concept of a hero itself is done so. (Edited to fix line spacing)
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I might be a bit late on this, but after seeing Avengers: Infinity War recently it became clear fairly quickly that Thanos simply views himself as the stereotypical hero.
He believes that it is his destiny to complete some epic quest to save the universe by gathering together 5 ancient artifacts that will grant him the power to do so. The gauntlet is his Excalibur, his Master Sword, etc. He makes a warped version of a heroic sacrifice that tests his resolve, and when it is all said and done rather than using his power to conquer he goes into retirement.
The trope of -the chosen one-, the hero that must overcome obstacles only they are capable of doing so tends to cause chaos during their journey without staying around for the consequences. Thanos's genocide on each planet will likely play out in the same way: short-term peace and happiness, followed by a breakdown of society after being destabilized (a hero defeating a despot ruler, or the leader of an organization. Remove a spoiled/corrupt nobleperson, and a power-vacuum becomes created that other entities tend to then rush in to fill.
All throughout the MCU, the trend is to turn tropes on their head. With Thanos, the very concept of a hero itself is done so. (Edited to fix line spacing)
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Rui
i totally agree with captain marvel. it makes sense of her cockiness and the idea that she might not have realized how easily manipulated and corrupted her power can be. The Kree thought it was a power worth protecting, and suddenly shes used that power to protect their rivals. What influence will there be on the Skrull to have a such a powerful ally all of the sudden? There are also great arcs left for Dr. Strange and how he argued in his movie that there should always be another way to protect others, but in the end he sold out half the universe for the end result of beating Thanos and it resulted in the loss of a lot of life. which his rival hating sorcery and Strange's use of his power, it will be interesting to see if Dr. Strange develops guilt despite his gifts and the good he does.
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i totally agree with captain marvel. it makes sense of her cockiness and the idea that she might not have realized how easily manipulated and corrupted her power can be. The Kree thought it was a power worth protecting, and suddenly shes used that power to protect their rivals. What influence will there be on the Skrull to have a such a powerful ally all of the sudden? There are also great arcs left for Dr. Strange and how he argued in his movie that there should always be another way to protect others, but in the end he sold out half the universe for the end result of beating Thanos and it resulted in the loss of a lot of life. which his rival hating sorcery and Strange's use of his power, it will be interesting to see if Dr. Strange develops guilt despite his gifts and the good he does.
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Colonial
I think if real think in these lines will always end up in ideology and that always seems to have to have a bad and good in the long run and the murder of millions and like always people aren't made or were they created to be God, nature corrects itself and so will everything else cause that's how it was created, when man tries to do that, theyve fone beyond what the are, and I'd you look at it, mankind has started down that road in like murdering unborn babies by law, like mankind can give life, or has any authority over it, or hospitals would be empty and no one would be getting buried anymore, so we dont have dominion over life and we shouldn't have it over death, if we cant give it.
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I think if real think in these lines will always end up in ideology and that always seems to have to have a bad and good in the long run and the murder of millions and like always people aren't made or were they created to be God, nature corrects itself and so will everything else cause that's how it was created, when man tries to do that, theyve fone beyond what the are, and I'd you look at it, mankind has started down that road in like murdering unborn babies by law, like mankind can give life, or has any authority over it, or hospitals would be empty and no one would be getting buried anymore, so we dont have dominion over life and we shouldn't have it over death, if we cant give it.
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freesk8
Harvard professor does not understand America. Not surprising. America is not about democracy. America is about individual rights. Capt America is about honor, bravery, duty and love of country. Principles. He is an American soldier born out of WW2. But Harvard professors are about socialism, consequentialism, minority group power struggle, and the dictatorship of the proletariat. So the Harvard professor is surprised when Capt America is about duty and principles and honor and honesty and loyalty instead of democracy. Well, the US is not a democracy. It is a republic.
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Harvard professor does not understand America. Not surprising. America is not about democracy. America is about individual rights. Capt America is about honor, bravery, duty and love of country. Principles. He is an American soldier born out of WW2. But Harvard professors are about socialism, consequentialism, minority group power struggle, and the dictatorship of the proletariat. So the Harvard professor is surprised when Capt America is about duty and principles and honor and honesty and loyalty instead of democracy. Well, the US is not a democracy. It is a republic.
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likeconfetti
I was so conflicted while watching Civil War, because generally, I would've sided with Tony in the argument that there absolutely must be oversight when it comes to the access and use of such great amounts of power. BUT, I found myself siding with Steve because I knew that as long as he was at the helm of things, all other oversight would actually be unnecessary or counterproductive. But that's just because I trust this one person's judgement and righteousness.
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I was so conflicted while watching Civil War, because generally, I would've sided with Tony in the argument that there absolutely must be oversight when it comes to the access and use of such great amounts of power. BUT, I found myself siding with Steve because I knew that as long as he was at the helm of things, all other oversight would actually be unnecessary or counterproductive. But that's just because I trust this one person's judgement and righteousness.
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Edward
At the end, when he says that the MCU hasn-t really talked about what happens when good people with power still do untoward things, I think he is wrong. We see that over and over again with Iron Man. He tries to do something good, but sometimes that action, done with his greatest strength, his brilliance, leads to disaster. Like with Ultron.
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At the end, when he says that the MCU hasn-t really talked about what happens when good people with power still do untoward things, I think he is wrong. We see that over and over again with Iron Man. He tries to do something good, but sometimes that action, done with his greatest strength, his brilliance, leads to disaster. Like with Ultron.
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Christopher
I need a psychological analysis of other great MCU villains, Ultron & Green Goblin.
Oh, and you guys kind of predicted the corruption of power, not with Captain Marvel but with the Scarlet Witch.
#MultiverseOfMadness
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I need a psychological analysis of other great MCU villains, Ultron & Green Goblin.
Oh, and you guys kind of predicted the corruption of power, not with Captain Marvel but with the Scarlet Witch.
#MultiverseOfMadness
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Macky
Looooved it, loved it loved it. I love that every time people is more and more interested in the 'philosophical' lawyers of movies. Specially with action films, since they've been quite neglected over the years. Great chat -
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Looooved it, loved it loved it. I love that every time people is more and more interested in the 'philosophical' lawyers of movies. Specially with action films, since they've been quite neglected over the years. Great chat -
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khumlao1
The corrupting influence of power has been somewhat explored in the Spider-Man series with the introduction of the black goo that gives rise to -dark spider-man-. Maybe not overtly so but a little IMHO.
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The corrupting influence of power has been somewhat explored in the Spider-Man series with the introduction of the black goo that gives rise to -dark spider-man-. Maybe not overtly so but a little IMHO.
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Cabal
I love how they try to push this idea that him being a Harvard professor somehow gives him better insight into the story and the characters. It's beyond ridiculous but you have to admire the audacity.
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I love how they try to push this idea that him being a Harvard professor somehow gives him better insight into the story and the characters. It's beyond ridiculous but you have to admire the audacity.
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