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The needs of the many
Rules and laws matter, and they often matter even more when we don’t like them — because they protect the needs of the many against attacks by the powerful few
The works of William Shakespeare are often quoted to illustrate the rich and complex nature of human life. Moral dilemmas and judgements are central to many of the bard’s plays, and he has been called one of the first and greatest psychologists. But good more modern drama, too, goes to the heart of humanity in depicting the choices its protagonists face.
A personal favourite of your correspondent is Star Trek, the science fiction show in which Spock, the science officer on the starship Enterprise, is perhaps the most rewarding character when it comes to describing decision-making. He has a human mother and a Vulcan father, which gives him both the emotional characteristics we humans are familiar with, and the Vulcans’ aspiration to live by logic and reason, with as little interference by emotion as possible.
The laws of logic
At the end of the 1982 Star Trek movie, The Wrath of Khan, the Enterprise and its crew are about to be obliterated, as the damaged propulsion mechanism prevents it from escaping disaster. Spock enters the highly radio-active engine…
