Neo Kervoskia
29-09-2005, 02:30
I started this dialogue. It is a fictional account of young Benito Mussolini, who in here is a student of philosophy at an unnamed university. His teachers discuss several ideas such as pragmatism, morality, power, the ultimate good, life's purpose, reason, altruism, and cyncism. By the end of the dialogue, young Benito comes to his conclusions about politics. Here is a rough draft part of the first bit.
The Five Stages of Young Mussolini
Stage I, Morality and Power
-INT. There are two gentlemen in a large study. One of them is a young, inquisitive, student named BENTI MUSSOLINI. The other is a rather large and often drunk professor, DR. TAURENCE. Benito stands by the doctor's side and listens to Dr. Taurence, a fine orator, as he graciously shares his philosophy of life with him.
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Dr. Taurence:
-he directs himself toward Benito-
What makes the world go 'round, my boy, is not love, charity, nor is it fraternity, liberty, or any other such trifle abstract as the seemingly infinite populace of beggars and ne'er do-wells would have you accept as the truth. Concepts such as those merely pose as a barrier to progress, and progression is, of course, the highest purpose of all mankind.
Benito:
Progress? I am not quite sure I know what you mean. Could you please specify?
Dr. Taurence:
Progress? Why the only sort of progress there is!
Benito:
Which would be?
Dr. Taurence:
Effeciency, dear boy, efficiency. The ultimate goal of the human race to become the most efficient of all the species.
Benito:
Of what must we be the most efficient?
Dr. Taurence:
Power, of course. This is the solemn duty of mankind, even the lowest fo wretches is bound to it. Without this we are nothing, and thus we have made ourselves obsolete. Love and liberty are amongst the most devilish obstacles, belonging only to the idle. Underestimate them not, my boy, for they possess one admirable quality.
Benito:
What would this quality be?
Dr. Taurence:
Their power to transform the most productive of citizens into whores for their petty emotivism.Rather than labor towards the ultimate good.
-Dr. Taurence goes over to a table near the other side of the room. He looks for a glass. He fails to find one and picks a chipped glass from the floor, it is covered with dust. He ignores this and pours brandy into it until it is near the brim of the glass. He consumes this in only two gulps and pours himself another. After this he walks around the study and continues explaining his philosophy to Benito who has not moved an inch from the desk.-
Dr. Taurence CONT'D:
Where was I?
Benito:
I believe you were speaking of power and the "ultimate good", sir.
Dr. Taurence:
Ah, yes, that. On the subject of power, the emotions and the numerous concepts of dubious nature that man has contrived have power. That power is to make someone a slave to it. All of their lives they are told of charity and good will, but they are never told about the truth of it. Charity is not a matter of good-will or brotherhood, but rather it is a matter of selfishness. Behind every act of altruism, there is egosim. That is the motiviation behind every action. Emotions provide only temporary pleasure and people lust for it. They yern for it and they will not cease their search until they have obtained it. He must satisfy this and in doing so the individual abandons all reason. However, they are ignorant to the dishonor that they are bringing upon themselves.
Benito:
But sir, if he does not posses this knoweledge, or is oblivious to its existence, how does one know that it is dishonorable to act in that particular manner?
Dr. Taurence:
You see it is irrelavent whether they know of it or not, it is still counter-productive. It is the same situtation when discussing good and evil. For example I point to Adam and Eve. They partook of the sweet fruit from the Tree of Knoweledge and it was an act against God, thereby making it an evil act, and God punished them. They were not aware of morality until they experienced the consequences of acting against it.
Benito:
If they did not know that it was an act against God, how were they to know to act differently?
Dr. Taurence:
God told them not to do so, that was warning enough.
Benito:
There was no reasoning behind it. There is no logic to explain it. If people were not knoweledgeable, they could not obtain power, which you have said is the greatest good. If they cannot obtain it, then it is dishonorable. Thus, it was completely justified for Adam and Eve to partake of the fruit from the tree, at least according to your standards, sir.
Dr. Taurence:
You see, good and evil exist. They are indepdent of our wills and are not changable. Law exists and whether or not one is aware of it does not change the fact that it exist. If they disobey the law, they will be punished. The same applies to morality, which is a higher form of law.
Too be continued...
The Five Stages of Young Mussolini
Stage I, Morality and Power
-INT. There are two gentlemen in a large study. One of them is a young, inquisitive, student named BENTI MUSSOLINI. The other is a rather large and often drunk professor, DR. TAURENCE. Benito stands by the doctor's side and listens to Dr. Taurence, a fine orator, as he graciously shares his philosophy of life with him.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Dr. Taurence:
-he directs himself toward Benito-
What makes the world go 'round, my boy, is not love, charity, nor is it fraternity, liberty, or any other such trifle abstract as the seemingly infinite populace of beggars and ne'er do-wells would have you accept as the truth. Concepts such as those merely pose as a barrier to progress, and progression is, of course, the highest purpose of all mankind.
Benito:
Progress? I am not quite sure I know what you mean. Could you please specify?
Dr. Taurence:
Progress? Why the only sort of progress there is!
Benito:
Which would be?
Dr. Taurence:
Effeciency, dear boy, efficiency. The ultimate goal of the human race to become the most efficient of all the species.
Benito:
Of what must we be the most efficient?
Dr. Taurence:
Power, of course. This is the solemn duty of mankind, even the lowest fo wretches is bound to it. Without this we are nothing, and thus we have made ourselves obsolete. Love and liberty are amongst the most devilish obstacles, belonging only to the idle. Underestimate them not, my boy, for they possess one admirable quality.
Benito:
What would this quality be?
Dr. Taurence:
Their power to transform the most productive of citizens into whores for their petty emotivism.Rather than labor towards the ultimate good.
-Dr. Taurence goes over to a table near the other side of the room. He looks for a glass. He fails to find one and picks a chipped glass from the floor, it is covered with dust. He ignores this and pours brandy into it until it is near the brim of the glass. He consumes this in only two gulps and pours himself another. After this he walks around the study and continues explaining his philosophy to Benito who has not moved an inch from the desk.-
Dr. Taurence CONT'D:
Where was I?
Benito:
I believe you were speaking of power and the "ultimate good", sir.
Dr. Taurence:
Ah, yes, that. On the subject of power, the emotions and the numerous concepts of dubious nature that man has contrived have power. That power is to make someone a slave to it. All of their lives they are told of charity and good will, but they are never told about the truth of it. Charity is not a matter of good-will or brotherhood, but rather it is a matter of selfishness. Behind every act of altruism, there is egosim. That is the motiviation behind every action. Emotions provide only temporary pleasure and people lust for it. They yern for it and they will not cease their search until they have obtained it. He must satisfy this and in doing so the individual abandons all reason. However, they are ignorant to the dishonor that they are bringing upon themselves.
Benito:
But sir, if he does not posses this knoweledge, or is oblivious to its existence, how does one know that it is dishonorable to act in that particular manner?
Dr. Taurence:
You see it is irrelavent whether they know of it or not, it is still counter-productive. It is the same situtation when discussing good and evil. For example I point to Adam and Eve. They partook of the sweet fruit from the Tree of Knoweledge and it was an act against God, thereby making it an evil act, and God punished them. They were not aware of morality until they experienced the consequences of acting against it.
Benito:
If they did not know that it was an act against God, how were they to know to act differently?
Dr. Taurence:
God told them not to do so, that was warning enough.
Benito:
There was no reasoning behind it. There is no logic to explain it. If people were not knoweledgeable, they could not obtain power, which you have said is the greatest good. If they cannot obtain it, then it is dishonorable. Thus, it was completely justified for Adam and Eve to partake of the fruit from the tree, at least according to your standards, sir.
Dr. Taurence:
You see, good and evil exist. They are indepdent of our wills and are not changable. Law exists and whether or not one is aware of it does not change the fact that it exist. If they disobey the law, they will be punished. The same applies to morality, which is a higher form of law.
Too be continued...