Thinking about Candor (from Divergent)
Jan. 21st, 2015 07:14 pmI've written previously about Candor and how I think the potential of the faction was wasted in the Divergent books, but today I was thinking about it in a slightly different way.
Here's what I was thinking about: if Candor requires that you tell the truth all the time, is it also a utopian paradise where you can tell the truth without getting judged/shamed, or is it a freakish hellhole where you're continually humiliated because you're not allowed to lie or hide your thoughts?
For example: What's Candor's attitude towards LGBTQIAP+ people? If you're homosexual, bisexual, pansexual, asexual, and/or trans or nonbinary, presumably you'd *have* to tell people at some point, because (under Candor's definition) otherwise you'd be lying. But that assumes that not being cis-heterosexual is Not A Big Deal in Candor; otherwise, if Candor's attitudes are more like early 21st century American attitudes, lots of kids are going to be traumatized by being forced to come out of the closet and such. And if not being cis-heterosexual is Not A Big Deal in Candor, that...seems like something that should really have been capitalized on in the book.
(While we're at it, what are all the factions' attitudes towards LGBTQIAP+ people?)
Has Candor managed to get rid of all kinds of biases and stereotypes (be they racial, gendered, ableist, etc.)?
Are romantic relationships stable in Candor? Do you have to blurt out every time you're somewhat attracted to a different person or you're having marital difficulties? Or is Candor into open relationships or polyamory? ???
How does Candor handle things like comforting people? Oftentimes people say things like "Everything's going to be okay," even if that's not true, because it makes people feel better. Is that not allowed in Candor? Do people have high rates of unhappiness and/or depression? (There have been several psych studies showing a correlation between depression and more realistic perception.)
I mean, based on its premise, Candor has a really good chance of becoming a freakish hellhole, but it's interesting to think about because, like I said, if it's actually a working, stable, psychologically healthy society, it would solve a lot of problems. Crime would always be punished because no one can get away with lying. Sexual assault would always be punished because people would have to accept that the victim is telling the truth.
Then again, there are a lot of complications with the truth. For example, people can believe things that are clearly wrong. You can't tell if they're lying because they believe they're right. And what if someone's perception of reality is messed up, whether that be through drugs, alcohol, or hallucinations? Or—less dramatically, but no less importantly—what about things like the negative feedback loop for a depressed person, who will (presumably) have to talk about how they think they're a worthless, unlovable person—and that's true from their perspective, but not from other people's. How does Candor deal with these kinds of things?
Does Candor not believe in history textbooks, because history is always colored by the person who's recounting it and there's no real objective truth?
And how does Candor deal with issues that are highly relevant in our lives but have no absolute "truth" to them, like religion and existential questions such as whether life has a meaning?
...
Wow, this is actually really complicated.
Here's what I was thinking about: if Candor requires that you tell the truth all the time, is it also a utopian paradise where you can tell the truth without getting judged/shamed, or is it a freakish hellhole where you're continually humiliated because you're not allowed to lie or hide your thoughts?
For example: What's Candor's attitude towards LGBTQIAP+ people? If you're homosexual, bisexual, pansexual, asexual, and/or trans or nonbinary, presumably you'd *have* to tell people at some point, because (under Candor's definition) otherwise you'd be lying. But that assumes that not being cis-heterosexual is Not A Big Deal in Candor; otherwise, if Candor's attitudes are more like early 21st century American attitudes, lots of kids are going to be traumatized by being forced to come out of the closet and such. And if not being cis-heterosexual is Not A Big Deal in Candor, that...seems like something that should really have been capitalized on in the book.
(While we're at it, what are all the factions' attitudes towards LGBTQIAP+ people?)
Has Candor managed to get rid of all kinds of biases and stereotypes (be they racial, gendered, ableist, etc.)?
Are romantic relationships stable in Candor? Do you have to blurt out every time you're somewhat attracted to a different person or you're having marital difficulties? Or is Candor into open relationships or polyamory? ???
How does Candor handle things like comforting people? Oftentimes people say things like "Everything's going to be okay," even if that's not true, because it makes people feel better. Is that not allowed in Candor? Do people have high rates of unhappiness and/or depression? (There have been several psych studies showing a correlation between depression and more realistic perception.)
I mean, based on its premise, Candor has a really good chance of becoming a freakish hellhole, but it's interesting to think about because, like I said, if it's actually a working, stable, psychologically healthy society, it would solve a lot of problems. Crime would always be punished because no one can get away with lying. Sexual assault would always be punished because people would have to accept that the victim is telling the truth.
Then again, there are a lot of complications with the truth. For example, people can believe things that are clearly wrong. You can't tell if they're lying because they believe they're right. And what if someone's perception of reality is messed up, whether that be through drugs, alcohol, or hallucinations? Or—less dramatically, but no less importantly—what about things like the negative feedback loop for a depressed person, who will (presumably) have to talk about how they think they're a worthless, unlovable person—and that's true from their perspective, but not from other people's. How does Candor deal with these kinds of things?
Does Candor not believe in history textbooks, because history is always colored by the person who's recounting it and there's no real objective truth?
And how does Candor deal with issues that are highly relevant in our lives but have no absolute "truth" to them, like religion and existential questions such as whether life has a meaning?
...
Wow, this is actually really complicated.