re: my aforementioned wrong-adhd-med-induced clone culture rabbit hole (the fruits of which may or may not ever see the light of day (I was about to say "idk what I was on" but well it was meth lol) but that is where this post came from btw)
But one of the things I tried to think about was obviously the impact of the clones' enslavement and the ways that would show up in their culture and such
I kept thinking of Night Riders in Black Folk History by Gladys-Marie Fry (a very interesting read from my American Folklore class) since admittedly it's one of the few sources of slave culture studies I'm familiar with.
The main idea Fry talks about is slave owners' efforts to control their slaves with fear, specifically in this case by influencing and utilizing certain folk beliefs and legends (ex: dressing up as ghosts to keep them inside at night, stories of ghosts/witches along escape routes or meeting places, and later post-emancipation spreading rumors of 'night doctors' kidnapping and experimenting on black people to dissuade migrating away to cities.)
And applying this to clones, there's certainly a LOT of ways the Kaminoans and trainers controlled them by influencing their beliefs, values, and fears, especially since they have complete control over their education and information exposure. But thinking specifically of escape and desertion: beyond general purpose indoctrination and cowardice-shaming, and practical issues (fear of punishment/death if caught, utter lack of resources/support outside the GAR), I think the thing that controls the clones the most here is actually their loyalty and brotherhood.
Which I think is very fascinating. Bc I often see the idea in fanon that the Kaminoans discouraged the clones' loyalty to each other, or even took steps to prevent and punish the development of those bonds, usually so the clones couldn't band together and start an uprising. And I think that makes a lot of sense. And yet...
Cut leaves only after his brothers have all been killed and there's nothing left tying him to the war. Slick is shamed not for the ideological differences between the Separatists and the Republic, but for the morality of putting his brothers at risk. Any clone who disagrees with the Republic and what they are fighting for has no way to protest or switch sides without also betraying his own people. Any clone who wants out would have to leave his family behind, knowing they'd still be risking their lives without him by their side.
So idk... I do think there's a lot of reasons for the Kaminoans to discourage it, but it's also one of the most influential things keeping the clones so trapped, and idk if it makes sense for the Kaminoans to pass up on that control either
(side note: it's always kinda annoyed me how easy both the decision and act of leaving the Empire was for the Bad Batch. but admittedly it does make sense for them, as they are disconnected from the other clones and the only people they cared about were right there. So I guess it is in-character for them, but a prime example of exactly why they made for boring main characters in a supposedly clone-centric show)
