Easthies acts in a way that is 'selfless' in that he acts (from his perspective) for the good of the world, at personal cost (e.g. to the detriment of his personal relationships), but in a way that is ultimately also self-serving. Aside from his own interests in protecting his world and his life and the community he cares about, acting this way both defines and reaffirms his identity: as a righteous person, and as a Knight of Moralis. Especially considering how deeprooted but black and white his moral code is. Its rigud, it is not an evolving sense of what is right and wrong, itss detached from situational context. It is an unchanging code that allows him to act with little hesitation or remorse. It benefits him: he is relatively removed from having to have the difficult conversation of what is moral and right, and whether his actions are moral and right because of this way of thinking. His sense of self as moral and righteous goes relatively undisturbed.
Then contrast this with Qifrey, who you could say is aware and somewhat ashamed of his own 'selfishness'. He benefits from having apprentices, he benefits from making Olruggio forget, he benefits from the lead Coco provides on the brimmed caps. He decisions often are based on moral dubiousness. But that doesn't undo the good he does by way of this as a mentor, friend, ect., especially the inadvertant parts of just how he interacts with people regardless of his baggage. Even where repeatedly erasing Oru's memories is, uh, bad (?), its also Oru's prefered outcome. If anything, it is Qifrey's current and considered sense of morality that makes him aware and regretful of his 'selfishness', and that makes his actions also have a positive benefit to others. On a reflexive, moment-to-moment level, his decisions are driven by his kindness and seflessness, regardless of long term ulterior motive and benefit. He doesn't wake up every day and look his apprentices in the eyes and decide to be nice and helpful because he's scheming or whatever.
To believe you are selfless and be unaware of the benefit to yourself. To believe you are selfish despite the positive impact you have on other -
Selfish and selfless are themselves morally charged words that maybe create a false good/bad dichotomy here. The duty to those you care about, to the world, and to yourself- none of them are more important than the others, and none of them exist in a vacuum, just as your actions don't exist in a vaccuum. Actions are never purely selfish or purely selfless.
Olruggio 'selfishness' is that he cares more about protecting the people he cares about than he does about the 'greater good' or whatever else.
The girls, in how they use magic, sit between the ideas of 'selfishness' and 'selflessness' and how they are inseperable. Tetia wants to use magic explicitly to help people, and is aware of the sense of fufillment she also gains from it. Richeh is- intially - concerned with only her own magic and maintaining her identity and autonomy, and is uninterested in other people. Agott tries to prove herself using magic- at points struggling between helping people and using the oppurtunity to help people as an oppurtunity to prove herself. Coco longs to use magic, but when she finally can, she's only thinking about saving her mother... there's obviously a lot more depth that could be gone into.
kianamaiart
snowghoul
pixelskylines
andulkaphoto
vaporwave
gracieabrams
