tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-641772231027884900.post3695328633510070098..comments2021-08-21T05:06:13.768-07:00Comments on The Unapologetic Apologist: Who is in BioShock’s sights? Part I of III: Ayn RandSeraph the apologisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01679163685701581437noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-641772231027884900.post-36429322964088370602012-02-13T18:13:36.896-08:002012-02-13T18:13:36.896-08:00One more point, much of the game's story is to...One more point, much of the game's story is told through tapes you find laying around. A lot of the critisism I have for this first installment stems from dialogue found on those tapes, a lot of which is racist, sadistic, and also going back to the plasmoids, the idea that Ayn rand promoted Eugenics... That is a huge misunderstanding of what she actually advocated...w hich is reproduction period. All she did was observe that the rich and intellectual classes usually didn't have many kids. She didn't understand why and that was it. The idea that she (like her Progressive counterparts) promoted genetic experimentation, modification or eugenics as it is traditionally understood as implied by this game would have sickened her.Seraph the apologisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01679163685701581437noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-641772231027884900.post-10964154536594606842012-02-13T18:07:48.808-08:002012-02-13T18:07:48.808-08:00Also part of my critique is levied at the upcoming...Also part of my critique is levied at the upcoming third installment in the series where they clearly are targeting the relatively harmless Tea Party. I have a lot of dealings with the Tea Party, they are not racists, and are not fanatics who "worship" the founding fathers. I feel some of the art in the background suggests a white supremacy world view of the inhabitants of the cloud city or whatever it will be called. I will get more into that after the game comes out and I've had a chance to analyse it, but that is my impression of the game so far. I hope I am wrong as to go after the Tea Party while ignoring Occupy Wall Street and Radical Islam is hypocritical, especially since the media failed to accurately report on what the tea party really is and who they are. All they are are a group of people who want government spending to be brought under control and taxes kept reasonable. That's it. Yet they have been unfairly portrayed as radical nut cases and racists as opposed to the OWS who have been portrayed as heroes as they burn down Oakland CA... Like I said, I hope I'm wrong but that is my impression of the game so far.Seraph the apologisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01679163685701581437noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-641772231027884900.post-34921775794981642812012-02-13T18:01:21.186-08:002012-02-13T18:01:21.186-08:00You could be right, as with anything else in liter...You could be right, as with anything else in literature and art much is left to interpretation. I personally just felt that the ideas of Ayn Rand were not well articulated or well understood and so to refer to them as extreme, to me, seems a bit unfair considering as a society we haven't had a totally free market since 1913 and the more we move away from it the harder it is for the average person to get by. You may be right about Andrew Ryan and perhaps another way to look at this is a good man having his good dream crushed by the greed of Mr Fountaine. It's an excellent counter point. Sorry I took so long to reply.Seraph the apologisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01679163685701581437noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-641772231027884900.post-70789185598350986892011-10-30T01:20:40.463-07:002011-10-30T01:20:40.463-07:00I do believe that Bioshock has a lot of inspiratio...I do believe that Bioshock has a lot of inspiration from literary and film works, but I highly doubt its an attack on each of their philosophies. The game may have been an inspired setting, but it exists in its own context, and the context is simply an extremist free society. I really do feel its that simple, not a statement of racist philosophies, or how every entrepreneur is motivated by greed (which doesn't even make sense because Andrew Ryan certainly wasn't motivated by greed). I think its only point it tries to make is that the extreme and absolute end in failure. This does not mean capitalism is bad, or socialism is good or anything of that nature. Now if I missed any point of your article, do tell me, but that all is basically the impression I got from what you wrote.VexedPBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16647274653760407545noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-641772231027884900.post-15759132911862498752011-10-30T00:40:40.234-07:002011-10-30T00:40:40.234-07:00You make a point that the Atlas shrugged was about...You make a point that the Atlas shrugged was about those not motivated by greed, but by those motivated by having their rights to create and achieve taken from them and that in contrast, everyone in Rapture is motivated by greed. But your forgetting one central character who was not motivated at all by greed, and he is by far the most important character. Andrew Ryan, he built and created Rapture because he truly believed in the free man, the chance to pursue and achieve as you desire. Your choice is your choice, and he even died to demonstrate the intensity of his belief. However, his belief of the free man is what lead to rapture's collapse. I feel the point bioshock makes is that its simply not in our human nature to have an absolute free society. Sure, Atlas shrug's characters may have been people not motivated by greed but most people are just not like that. Ryan was not like that either, he tried to build society on his beliefs, opening it to those who share his philosophy. But instead, he attracted those motivated by greed. Cause that's the nature of humanity, most of us simply are not that pure. I do not feel the point of the story was not necessarily that believing in hard work, free market is bad. The point is just that we tragically can't. Also, I'm confused as to why you always point that the developers were doing this, or doing that, or trying to make this or that point. I've read a lot of developer's comments on this game, and they were never really intending for this game to even truly be a torpedo on Objectivism. And how you managed to tie in that Capitalism is bad, and how you managed come up with them throwing out accusations of racism when you yourself said that the story has been laid out so thinly is beyond me. Oh and just a personal pet peeve of mine, "its message to the youth is that if anyone is advocating hard work and free market shoot em!" Why in the world would anyone take this as the message its trying to present? Just cause an absolute free society sitting on the edge of the spectrum has collapsed and your shooting things now doesn't mean the message is that capitalists need to be shot. This is just silly.VexedPBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16647274653760407545noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-641772231027884900.post-83597625076778012272011-10-30T00:01:52.970-07:002011-10-30T00:01:52.970-07:00Well I'd like to respond to thisWell I'd like to respond to thisVexedPBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16647274653760407545noreply@blogger.com