Here's a game you can play along to on your own blog or social media platform of choice. Which fictional character (or group of characters) from book or film epitomises you understanding of each alignment? Go.
Lawful Good - Jean-Luc Picard
Lawful Neutral - Javert from Les Miserables
Lawful Evil - The Dark Judges from Judge Dredd
Neutral Good - Gandalf
True Neutral - the Laputans from Gulliver's Travels
Neutral Evil - Aila Woudiver
Chaotic Good - Tom Bombadil
Chaotic Neutral - Raoul Duke
Chaotic Evil - Judge Holden from Blood Meridian
Oooohhh...yeah, Judge Holden...that's good.
ReplyDeletenine-pronged alignment classification is a travesty against well-rounded character development as well as general understandings of morality. come on, man, I come to this place for high-quality content and insightful discourse, not whatever this shit is. I believe in you. you can do better than this. tease us more of that fucking Northumberland Yoon-Suin project, I need that shit in my veins yo
ReplyDeleteWell-rounded character development? I thought this was D&D...
DeleteYou might be surprised at how much overlap can be found between AD&D alignment and actual psychological research:
Deletehttps://rolesrules.blogspot.com/2010/09/e-gary-gygax-social-psychologist.html
The gauntlet has been laid down - I'm going to write a post on real-world historical figures and their alignments next.
DeleteHmmm I have to think about this, your examples are too good. I would pick JLP for lawful good as well!
ReplyDeleteBandwagon leapt onto!
ReplyDeletehttps://worldbuildingandwoolgathering.blogspot.com/2020/02/alignment-embodiments.html
Bartleby the Scrivener is a good call for TN.
DeleteI also like Asterix as CG.
My supplementary LN, who had occurred to me, but got lost en route to the blog, would be Barquentine from Gormenghast.
DeleteMade a go of this with a few extra restrictions (no media/franchises predating 1979, no more than 2 characters from a single source) to avoid picking the same characters over and over:
ReplyDeleteLG: Alex Murphy, from RoboCop
LN: Magos Darioq, from the Word Bearers novel series (WH40K)
LE: Alejandro Sosa, from Scarface (1983)
NG: Kamille Bidan, from Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam
NN: Ciaphas Cain, from the Ciaphan Cain series (WH40K)
NE: Paptimus Scirocco, from Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam
CG: Vash the Stampede, from Trigun
CN: Raven, from The Black Company and Shadows Linger
CE: The Limper, from The Black Company original trilogy
https://www.ashadler.com/single-post/2020/02/15/Alignment-Embodiments
Are there any LG WH40K characters?
DeleteI'd say there are, but not among major characters. When I think LG, the main things I'm looking for are belief in the virtue of institutional leadership, willingness to self-sacrifice, and self-driven commitment to good morality. The problem with finding LG among the setting's major characters is they almost always either get involved in clashes over different ideas of "good" that lead to crossing into grey morality, are absurdly racist against aliens they could potentially get along with, or are so deep into war (or tech, for the Mechanicus) that it becomes an end in itself rather than a means of achieving something positive.
DeleteRank-and-file imperial guardsmen who're really doing their best to make the galaxy a better place and who've only taken action against unambiguously non-good factions (tyranids, necrons, dark eldar, CSM/daemons) would qualify as LG, in my mind. I think that's part of why there seems to be more imperial guard literature than loyalist marines despite the Horus Heresy being such a key event (though my view may be skewed by Abnett and Mitchell focusing on Inquisition/IG stories, since they're my favorite WH40K authors). LSM are so indoctrinated into radical extremist beliefs that they can't be good. IG leadership can't, either, but the troops trying to hold back hordes of xenomorphs and terminators using flashlights can (up until they're slaughtered, but hey, that's the GRIMDARK future of the 41st millennium).
I'm hardly an expert in WH40K lore, though, so there might be major blind spots I'm overlooking in this comment.
"Are there any LG WH40K characters?"
DeleteAbnett has definitly characters, I would describe as Lawful Good.
Let's take Commisar Gaunt. He deeply beliefes in the Imperial Law and it's apperatus, but he tries use the rules and the priviliges given to him, to make the world he is living in a better place for the people under his command, and civilians impacted by the constant war of the setting.
OK, sounds fun. Here’s some thoughts:
ReplyDeleteLawful Good – (Classic) Superman, Aragorn II (arguably any of “The Wise” and most good guys from LoTR)
Lawful Neutral - Javert from Les Miserables (universal consensus)
Lawful Evil – Darth Vader
Neutral Good – Samwise Gamgee, Atticus Finch (To Kill a Mockingbird)
True Neutral – Play it differently, no opinion
Neutral Evil – Belloq from Raiders of the Lost Ark
Chaotic Good – Harry Potter, Batman, possibly Robin Hood? (Arguable)
Chaotic Neutral – Jack Sparrow (Pirates of the Caribbean)
Chaotic Evil – Toht (Gestapo Agent) also from RotLA, The Joker (esp. Heath Ledger incarnation)
Most good guys in LoTR are LG, but I wonder if the hobbits quality as NG or possibly even CG. They have no government or authority structure of any kind...but they also do seem to have an intrinsic sense of order.
DeletePossibly. Though I've always felt that most of them are more neutral, holding to certain laws and traditions and costumes rather passionately, while also willing to bend the rules for the greater good.
DeleteMy preferred candidate for Neutral Evil would probably be the eponymous Dwarf in the novel by Pär Lagerkvist, to the point where it's up for interpretation whether he is an actual character or just an embodiment of the psychopathic traits of his Prince.
ReplyDeleteBandwagon successfully jumped onto as well
ReplyDeletehttps://haecastravera.blogspot.com/2020/02/alignment-spread.html
Lawful Good: Superman
ReplyDeleteNeutral Good: Paladin (Have Gun – Will Travel)
Chaotic Good: The Tick
Lawful Neutral: Ebenezer Scrooge
Neutral: ?
Chaotic Neutral: Q (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
Lawful Evil: Captain Beatty (Fahrenheit 451)
Neutral Evil: King Gorice XII (The Worm Ouroboros)
Chaotic Evil: Morgoth (The Silmarillion)
Captain Beatty is an excellent choice.
Delete