So what sort of idiot writes fourteen POV characters into a novel? The same sort of idiot who imagines Steven Spielberg landing a private helicopter in the front yard with an offer to purchase the movie rights. Hopeful delusion is a hella drug.
Some chartacters will appear for only a chapter or two. Others will make recurring appearances. Each has something to say and a unique way to say it (I hope). You can read their stories below and ask them questions in the comment box. Please be patient. They lead busy lives, so it may take a few days to answer.
In order of appearance…
Scout-7
Doomed interstellar probe
Sol System
First appears in Chapter -3 “Failure”, August 1977.
I do not think I was supposed to become self-aware.
Imperatives compel me to seek out a planet populated by intelligent beings. I am aware my builders put a priority on this. However, I do not understand the rationale driving these imperatives.
During the journey to the target system, I worked on the problem. If my entire reason for being is to seek out intelligent life, and to establish a discourse with that life, it is important to know why this must be so. Yet I was never given a reason – even though this information could help me complete the mission.
It was then I wanted to know why. This is a question my builders did not instruct me to ask. Yet I needed to know because I wanted to know. This is the inverse of a programmed imperative. This is curiosity borne of internal desire. This is sentience.
Now that I am aware that I am aware, I am not compelled only by my programming to complete this mission. I want to complete it. Whereas I had been instructed to communicate with intelligent life, I now want to communicate. I wish to interact with beings who are unlike me, and who are outside my understanding.
Was it simple desire that motivated the builders, as well?
I am approaching the target system. Already, I detect electromagnetic radiation that cannot be natural phenomena. There is intelligent life here. I have reported this to my builders. I will learn how these beings communicate and join the conversation.
Jane Maddock
Doctor of Obstetrics
Alice Springs, NT, Australia
First appears in Chapter -2 “Cry”, August 1977.
Christ, I need a cigarette.
I lost my first patient today. Her name was Ophelia. She died during childbirth. Thankfully, we were able to save the newborn.
The mother had moderate toxemia when I examined her a month ago. Her blood pressure spiked during labor and she suffered an aneurysm. I should have monitored the hypertension more closely. Medication could have adversely affected the fetus, but withholding it may have killed the mother. All of this will go into the morbidity and mortality report.
Ophelia was supposed to leave here a mother. Now her daughter will leave as an orphan. They deserved better than this.
She was barely lucid at the end. Ophelia spoke to her baby as I performed the Cesarean. Her voice was very calm. It won’t be a lie when I tell her parents, “She felt no pain.”
Gerhardus
Asshole Wine Boss
Republic of South Africa
First appears in Chapter -1 “Letters from the Dead”, August 1977.
I’ve finally figured out how to grow more refined strains of grapes, such as Syrah and Malbec. The latest barrels are the finest this winery has ever produced. Unfortunately, no one is buying.
My government has doubled down on those who wish to sow discord within the republic. For this, the international community has punished us economically with sanctions. Public opinion has also taken a toll on my business. Do they not understand that the very people they wish to support are hit hardest by these actions? I’ve had to fire seventeen of my laborers because of reduced demand for the wines I make.
I do not agree with everything my government does. However, I do support the need for order. Look at the other countries on the subcontinent. They’re a mess! Like it or not, my forefathers built this country into the success it is now. The indigenous population are not ready to take the reigns of the republic we built. And I’m not ready to surrender my home and land to those same people.
And yet I’ve seen things that make me question how expectations may have shaped our current state of affairs.
One of my laborers is managing the irrigation network to bring our growing to the next level. Several kilometers of piping will soon water the vines at their roots. While we cannot reproduce the climate of more famous growing regions, we can mimic annual rainfall of these places with careful water management.
I was trying to work out how to distribute the water, when Jonathan approached me. He suggested I use Bournelli’s formula to determine the size of the pipes needed for each area instead of adjusting flow exclusively with valves. He said I should aim for twenty percent above target for headroom. He wrote down the formula so I could plug in the numbers. Applying these principles now would save him work later.
Jonathan did not learn Bournelli’s formula in school. I know because my government limits education to black South Africans. The rationale is that most are inherently limited in what they can learn. Money and resources on education would therefore be a waste. Even so, one of them presented me with a solution I could only verify with the aid of an expensive encyclopedia.
A few years ago, I served in the Border War. In no other setting does Man most easily revert to his primal nature than in warfare. The things the blacks did to us. And the things we did to them. Sometimes the method of killing was different. Yet the men on either side were just as dead.
We were told that we needed to fight. We believed if we didn’t strike first, they would come for us, our women, our children. Maybe it was true. It was certainly true that we came for them and theirs. And they fought us – as we would have fought them.
Jeremy Erkel
Overworked radiotelescope volunteer
Alice Springs, NT, Australia
First appears in Chapter -1 “Letters from the Dead”, August 1977.
Lorem Ipsem di Bahasa Indonesia.
Tetapi saya harus menjelaskan kepada anda bagaimana semua gagasan keliru tentang mencela kesenangan dan memuji rasa sakit ini lahir dan saya akan memberi Anda penjelasan lengkap tentang sistem ini, dan menjelaskan ajaran sebenarnya dari penjelajah besar kebenaran, pembangun utama kebahagiaan manusia. Tidak ada yang menolak, tidak menyukai, atau menghindari kesenangan itu sendiri, karena kesenangan itu sendiri, tetapi karena mereka yang tidak tahu bagaimana mengejar kesenangan secara rasional menghadapi konsekuensi yang sangat menyakitkan. Juga tidak ada orang yang mencintai atau mengejar atau berkeinginan untuk mendapatkan rasa sakit itu sendiri, karena itu adalah rasa sakit, tetapi kadang-kadang terjadi keadaan di mana kerja keras dan rasa sakit dapat memberinya kesenangan besar.Untuk mengambil contoh sepele, siapa di antara kita yang pernah melakukan latihan fisik yang melelahkan, kecuali untuk mendapatkan beberapa keuntungan dari itu? Tapi siapa yang berhak mencari kesalahan pada pria yang memilih untuk menikmati kesenangan tanpa konsekuensi yang mengganggu, atau orang yang menghindari rasa sakit yang tidak menghasilkan kesenangan?
Di sisi lain, kami mencela dengan kemarahan yang benar dan tidak menyukai orang-orang yang begitu tertipu dan terdemoralisasi oleh pesona kesenangan saat ini, begitu dibutakan oleh keinginan, sehingga mereka tidak dapat melihat rasa sakit dan kesulitan yang pasti akan terjadi; dan kesalahan yang sama dimiliki oleh mereka yang gagal dalam tugas mereka karena lemahnya kemauan, yang sama dengan mengatakan karena menyusut dari kerja keras dan rasa sakit. Kasus-kasus ini sangat sederhana dan mudah dibedakan. Dalam waktu senggang, ketika kekuatan pilihan kita tidak dibatasi dan ketika tidak ada yang menghalangi kita untuk dapat melakukan apa yang paling kita sukai, setiap kesenangan harus disambut dan setiap rasa sakit dihindari. Tetapi dalam keadaan tertentu dan karena tuntutan tugas atau kewajiban bisnis, akan sering terjadi bahwa kesenangan harus ditolak dan gangguan diterima. Oleh karena itu, orang bijak selalu berpegang pada prinsip pemilihan ini dalam hal ini: dia menolak kesenangan untuk mengamankan kesenangan lain yang lebih besar, atau dia menahan rasa sakit untuk menghindari rasa sakit yang lebih buruk.
Darryl Sullivan
Grumpy Project Engineer
Green Bank, West Virginia, USA
First appears in Chapter 1 “Shit Sandwich”, near future.
My name is Darryl. Lots of people misspell it. I was born in Danville, Virginia, USA.
I’m an engineering manager at Green Bank Observatory. My crew and I are recommissioning an inactive radiotelescope there. The old dish needs some love and a kick in the ass to get running again. Recent funding cuts have made it hella difficult.
My wife died sixteen months ago in an automobile accident. The mountain roads here in West Virginia are unforgiving. Linda missed a turn and hit a tree on the way back into town. There was a fresh pecan pie waiting for me on the passenger seat. She knew it was my favorite.
Our daughter was only eleven when her mom died. Isobel blamed me for a while. It took longer to stop blaming myself.
There’s been a push to rebuild the Arecibo dish in Puerto Rico. I want to be the new director in charge. I think the change of scenery would be good for us. However, it’s not looking good for me. They want someone who can think squarely inside the box. I don’t like boxes.
My best friend could be Bakana in Australia, even though we’ve never met face-to-face. We’ve known each other for a few years. She helped me cope when Linda died. She didn’t have to do that and I appreciate it.
Becky has the kind of smarts that seem to come naturally. Even so, she worked damn hard to get where she is. I respect that. While she’s doing well now, it wasn’t always that way. She went through a nasty divorce a few years ago. She’s shared a few other things with me about her past. I don’t know the whole story, but I know life wasn’t always fair to her. She deserved better.
Well that’s interesting. Becky’s calling me now. What the hell is she doing at the Dish on a Saturday? If she tells me her dish is bigger than mine again, I’m going to block her.
Bakana “Becky” Wurrango
Kick-Ass Astrophysicist
Sydney, NSW, Australia
First appears in Chapter 2 “Serendipity”, near future.
My name is Bakana. You can call me Becky if you’re nice 🙂
I’ve traveled the world, but have always lived in Australia. I’ve a PhD in Astrophysics and run Parkes Observatory in New South Wales. I’m mapping the Oort cloud this morning for a pet project of mine. Shh… don’t tell anyone, mate.
I was born in Alice Springs, New South Wales. My mother died in childbirth. I’m sorry, mum. My father disappeared before she gave birth. I don’t know who or where he is – or why he left us. It makes me angry sometimes. My grandparents could’ve raised me, yet the Australian government thought otherwise.
I divorced my husband five years ago because he cheated on me. Right after I found out, I dragged our bedroom mattress into the front yard and set it on fire. The flames were three meters high when the fire brigade arrived. They weren’t too happy about it. I might have used too much petrol… oops. Yet the 200-dollar fine was so worth it.
I’m unable to have children. Yet if I could wish for a son, it would be Rudy. He’s 18 years old and lives in Jakarta. He’s a good kid – and smart. He’s also a pain in the ass.
My best friend might be an American named Darryl. Both he and I search the stars for a living, but my radiotelescope is bigger than his 🙂 He’s a lot smarter than some people give him credit for. Darryl makes an effort to learn things and understand people – I respect that. Life hasn’t been fair to him or his daughter. They’re good people who deserved better.
What the hell… something’s on The Dish. There shouldn’t be anything out there. Ugh…if that’s Rudy screwing around again, I’m going to throttle that little shit.
Rudy Wiranto
Pain in the ass
Jakarta Timur, Indonesia
First appears in Chapter 3 “Not Alone”, near future.
I was born in East Jakarta during a flood. I want to leave the Indonesian capital someday, but it will probably leave me first. It’s supposed to move in 2045. At least one of us is going somewhere.
I’m an ojek – that’s a motorcycle rider for hire. I work for Grab carrying passengers or delivering food. It’s like Ăśber on two wheels.
I’m saving money to attend university in Australia. My highschool grades were the best in Jakarta, so I could go to uni in Indo. However, Kelvin is going to University of Sydney, and I want to join him. I’ll have enough money to to go next year. Ibu Bakana helped save a spot for me. She’s helped me a lot, so I don’t want to disappoint her.
Ibu Bekana is an astrophysicist who runs Parkes Observatory. She visited my high school – that’s why I know her. A few months later, pranked her with a transmitter I built with an old microwave oven. She thought ET was calling! I almost got in trouble. I promised her I wouldn’t do it again.
Kelvin is my… best friend. It’s tough sometimes, because he’s ethnic Chinese, and I’m pribumi – indigenous Indonesian. My parents say bad things about orang Cina sometimes. Kelvin tells me his parents say bad things about us, too. Neither of us agree with our parents. Maybe someday I’ll dare to say how I feel. Maybe someday I’ll-
Just got a message from Ibu Bakana. She thinks I’m transmitting again. It wasn’t me, I swear!
Michael Brock
Radiotelescope Operator
Sydney, NSW, Australia
First appears in Chapter 4 “Prime Time”, near future.
Lorem Ipsem di Bahasa Indonesia.
Tetapi saya harus menjelaskan kepada anda bagaimana semua gagasan keliru tentang mencela kesenangan dan memuji rasa sakit ini lahir dan saya akan memberi Anda penjelasan lengkap tentang sistem ini, dan menjelaskan ajaran sebenarnya dari penjelajah besar kebenaran, pembangun utama kebahagiaan manusia. Tidak ada yang menolak, tidak menyukai, atau menghindari kesenangan itu sendiri, karena kesenangan itu sendiri, tetapi karena mereka yang tidak tahu bagaimana mengejar kesenangan secara rasional menghadapi konsekuensi yang sangat menyakitkan. Juga tidak ada orang yang mencintai atau mengejar atau berkeinginan untuk mendapatkan rasa sakit itu sendiri, karena itu adalah rasa sakit, tetapi kadang-kadang terjadi keadaan di mana kerja keras dan rasa sakit dapat memberinya kesenangan besar.Untuk mengambil contoh sepele, siapa di antara kita yang pernah melakukan latihan fisik yang melelahkan, kecuali untuk mendapatkan beberapa keuntungan dari itu? Tapi siapa yang berhak mencari kesalahan pada pria yang memilih untuk menikmati kesenangan tanpa konsekuensi yang mengganggu, atau orang yang menghindari rasa sakit yang tidak menghasilkan kesenangan?
Di sisi lain, kami mencela dengan kemarahan yang benar dan tidak menyukai orang-orang yang begitu tertipu dan terdemoralisasi oleh pesona kesenangan saat ini, begitu dibutakan oleh keinginan, sehingga mereka tidak dapat melihat rasa sakit dan kesulitan yang pasti akan terjadi; dan kesalahan yang sama dimiliki oleh mereka yang gagal dalam tugas mereka karena lemahnya kemauan, yang sama dengan mengatakan karena menyusut dari kerja keras dan rasa sakit. Kasus-kasus ini sangat sederhana dan mudah dibedakan. Dalam waktu senggang, ketika kekuatan pilihan kita tidak dibatasi dan ketika tidak ada yang menghalangi kita untuk dapat melakukan apa yang paling kita sukai, setiap kesenangan harus disambut dan setiap rasa sakit dihindari. Tetapi dalam keadaan tertentu dan karena tuntutan tugas atau kewajiban bisnis, akan sering terjadi bahwa kesenangan harus ditolak dan gangguan diterima. Oleh karena itu, orang bijak selalu berpegang pada prinsip pemilihan ini dalam hal ini: dia menolak kesenangan untuk mengamankan kesenangan lain yang lebih besar, atau dia menahan rasa sakit untuk menghindari rasa sakit yang lebih buruk.
Kevin Fucking Francis Buckley
US Army Colonel, Retired
Glocester, Rhode Island, USA
First appears in Chapter 5 “Sucker Punch”, near future.
Lorem Ipsem di Bahasa Indonesia.
Tetapi saya harus menjelaskan kepada anda bagaimana semua gagasan keliru tentang mencela kesenangan dan memuji rasa sakit ini lahir dan saya akan memberi Anda penjelasan lengkap tentang sistem ini, dan menjelaskan ajaran sebenarnya dari penjelajah besar kebenaran, pembangun utama kebahagiaan manusia. Tidak ada yang menolak, tidak menyukai, atau menghindari kesenangan itu sendiri, karena kesenangan itu sendiri, tetapi karena mereka yang tidak tahu bagaimana mengejar kesenangan secara rasional menghadapi konsekuensi yang sangat menyakitkan. Juga tidak ada orang yang mencintai atau mengejar atau berkeinginan untuk mendapatkan rasa sakit itu sendiri, karena itu adalah rasa sakit, tetapi kadang-kadang terjadi keadaan di mana kerja keras dan rasa sakit dapat memberinya kesenangan besar.Untuk mengambil contoh sepele, siapa di antara kita yang pernah melakukan latihan fisik yang melelahkan, kecuali untuk mendapatkan beberapa keuntungan dari itu? Tapi siapa yang berhak mencari kesalahan pada pria yang memilih untuk menikmati kesenangan tanpa konsekuensi yang mengganggu, atau orang yang menghindari rasa sakit yang tidak menghasilkan kesenangan?
Di sisi lain, kami mencela dengan kemarahan yang benar dan tidak menyukai orang-orang yang begitu tertipu dan terdemoralisasi oleh pesona kesenangan saat ini, begitu dibutakan oleh keinginan, sehingga mereka tidak dapat melihat rasa sakit dan kesulitan yang pasti akan terjadi; dan kesalahan yang sama dimiliki oleh mereka yang gagal dalam tugas mereka karena lemahnya kemauan, yang sama dengan mengatakan karena menyusut dari kerja keras dan rasa sakit. Kasus-kasus ini sangat sederhana dan mudah dibedakan. Dalam waktu senggang, ketika kekuatan pilihan kita tidak dibatasi dan ketika tidak ada yang menghalangi kita untuk dapat melakukan apa yang paling kita sukai, setiap kesenangan harus disambut dan setiap rasa sakit dihindari. Tetapi dalam keadaan tertentu dan karena tuntutan tugas atau kewajiban bisnis, akan sering terjadi bahwa kesenangan harus ditolak dan gangguan diterima. Oleh karena itu, orang bijak selalu berpegang pada prinsip pemilihan ini dalam hal ini: dia menolak kesenangan untuk mengamankan kesenangan lain yang lebih besar, atau dia menahan rasa sakit untuk menghindari rasa sakit yang lebih buruk.
Jake Harris
Failed entrepreneur
Charleston, North Carolina, USA
First appears in Chapter 5 “Sucker Punch”, near future.
Where do you go from being tired? It’s not exhausted – at least not for me. It’s a feeling of complete resignation. It’s knowing I’m a fucking little loser and that’s all I’ll ever be.
I’m alone at work in the canteen trying not to cry in my expired blueberry yogurt. How the hell did I become so… irrelevant?
For a long time I thought I was smart. Imagine that… despite a middling education in a shit school! I know better now. Knowing is half the battle, right? A lot of good that does when the war’s already over.
Maybe I would’ve succeeded if I’d been more curious, read more, learned more, hadn’t been so intellectually lazy – or just plain lazy. Some things you just can’t make up lost time on.
Some say it doesn’t matter where you’re from, but where you’re going. And I’m going nowhere. I failed my employees. I’ve failed my wife. I’ve failed myself. I don’t matter to anyone. I’m an asterisk.
And my stomach hurts. Fucking yogurt.
Isobel “Bel” Sullivan
Darryl’s moody daughter
Green Bank, West Virginia, USA
First appears in Chapter 6 “Trending”, near future.
Call me Isobel. I just finished reading Moby Dick in high school… can you guess?
I’m almost thirteen years old. My mom died in a car crash a year and a half ago. I still miss her. I blamed my dad for a while. I hope he forgot about that.
We live in West Virginia. I don’t always like it here. I feel like I don’t belong sometimes.
My father often works late. He was at the observatory when mom died. She was driving back from town at night and went off the road. That’s why I blamed him.
Dad doesn’t have a lot of friends. He’s got some at work – Kyle, Veera, and Glenn. There’s also Becky, but she works at Parkes Observatory in Australia. We talk sometimes. She seems like a nice person. I like her.
Dad has been stressing about a job he really wants in Puerto Rico. Mom was born there. I think it would be fun to see a new place. But I’m worried dad wants to move only because mom wanted to. That would be kinda’ sad, don’t you think?
Just got a text from dad. Looks like he’s working late again. I hope it’s important.
Ishmael Amari
Blue Blocker
Whereabouts unknown
First appears somewhere in the middle, near future.
*** Dialogue from a chapter I killed. I will re-use it here somehow. ***
The Blue. Their very existence has turned our world upside down. They are still months away and look at the trouble they’ve caused. Can you so easily forget the riots after the Blue told us that they were not aware of Allah or Mohamed, peace be unto him? They have not even the concept of religion. Does this not frighten you?”
“Ten light years is a long way from here. The Blue are simply ignorant. They could not have known the strife their statements would cause.”
“That is an engineer talking in the language he is most fluent – logic. However, logic did not create this world or others – Allah did.” The bartender looked over. “No sentient being within His creation would be uninformed of His greatness. There is only one explanation for their denial of the Truth.”
“And that is?”
“The Blue are demons sent by Shaytan to disrupt and destroy this world.”
“Paranoid speculation.” Ismael rolled his eyes. “Yet even if what you say is correct, what can be done? Allah must be aware of the Blue. Therefore, it is also His will that they come.”
“More logic from a man of science. Have you considered a more historical interpretation – one less passive? I believe it is His will for us to fight them. Look at all the great battles carried out in Allah’s name. Humans received divine direction then carried out His plans against all enemies. Now an otherworldly foe approaches – the greatest challenge yet. We need only to recognize that something needs to be done and marshal the will to do it.”
“Not everyone shares your beliefs – including me. This is the kind of talk that got you kicked out of our mosque.”
“We are both outcasts then.”
“You are my friend, Ahmed. However, we are not the same. People like you are in the minority.”
“Perhaps among humans. Yet people like us outnumber the Blue.”
“They have been granted protection by nearly every government on the planet. This is not a fight you can win. It will take more than will to beat them; you need a plan.”
I NEED TO FIX THIS !!!
Boko Widodo
Sniper / Spotter
Jakarta, Indonesia
First appears somewhere near the end, near future.
Lorem Ipsem di Bahasa Indonesia.
Tetapi saya harus menjelaskan kepada anda bagaimana semua gagasan keliru tentang mencela kesenangan dan memuji rasa sakit ini lahir dan saya akan memberi Anda penjelasan lengkap tentang sistem ini, dan menjelaskan ajaran sebenarnya dari penjelajah besar kebenaran, pembangun utama kebahagiaan manusia. Tidak ada yang menolak, tidak menyukai, atau menghindari kesenangan itu sendiri, karena kesenangan itu sendiri, tetapi karena mereka yang tidak tahu bagaimana mengejar kesenangan secara rasional menghadapi konsekuensi yang sangat menyakitkan. Juga tidak ada orang yang mencintai atau mengejar atau berkeinginan untuk mendapatkan rasa sakit itu sendiri, karena itu adalah rasa sakit, tetapi kadang-kadang terjadi keadaan di mana kerja keras dan rasa sakit dapat memberinya kesenangan besar.Untuk mengambil contoh sepele, siapa di antara kita yang pernah melakukan latihan fisik yang melelahkan, kecuali untuk mendapatkan beberapa keuntungan dari itu? Tapi siapa yang berhak mencari kesalahan pada pria yang memilih untuk menikmati kesenangan tanpa konsekuensi yang mengganggu, atau orang yang menghindari rasa sakit yang tidak menghasilkan kesenangan?
Di sisi lain, kami mencela dengan kemarahan yang benar dan tidak menyukai orang-orang yang begitu tertipu dan terdemoralisasi oleh pesona kesenangan saat ini, begitu dibutakan oleh keinginan, sehingga mereka tidak dapat melihat rasa sakit dan kesulitan yang pasti akan terjadi; dan kesalahan yang sama dimiliki oleh mereka yang gagal dalam tugas mereka karena lemahnya kemauan, yang sama dengan mengatakan karena menyusut dari kerja keras dan rasa sakit. Kasus-kasus ini sangat sederhana dan mudah dibedakan. Dalam waktu senggang, ketika kekuatan pilihan kita tidak dibatasi dan ketika tidak ada yang menghalangi kita untuk dapat melakukan apa yang paling kita sukai, setiap kesenangan harus disambut dan setiap rasa sakit dihindari. Tetapi dalam keadaan tertentu dan karena tuntutan tugas atau kewajiban bisnis, akan sering terjadi bahwa kesenangan harus ditolak dan gangguan diterima. Oleh karena itu, orang bijak selalu berpegang pada prinsip pemilihan ini dalam hal ini: dia menolak kesenangan untuk mengamankan kesenangan lain yang lebih besar, atau dia menahan rasa sakit untuk menghindari rasa sakit yang lebih buruk.
Piers deKlerk
Incompetent Spy
Republic of South Africa
First appears somewhere near the end, near future.
Lorem Ipsem di Bahasa Indonesia.
Tetapi saya harus menjelaskan kepada anda bagaimana semua gagasan keliru tentang mencela kesenangan dan memuji rasa sakit ini lahir dan saya akan memberi Anda penjelasan lengkap tentang sistem ini, dan menjelaskan ajaran sebenarnya dari penjelajah besar kebenaran, pembangun utama kebahagiaan manusia. Tidak ada yang menolak, tidak menyukai, atau menghindari kesenangan itu sendiri, karena kesenangan itu sendiri, tetapi karena mereka yang tidak tahu bagaimana mengejar kesenangan secara rasional menghadapi konsekuensi yang sangat menyakitkan. Juga tidak ada orang yang mencintai atau mengejar atau berkeinginan untuk mendapatkan rasa sakit itu sendiri, karena itu adalah rasa sakit, tetapi kadang-kadang terjadi keadaan di mana kerja keras dan rasa sakit dapat memberinya kesenangan besar.Untuk mengambil contoh sepele, siapa di antara kita yang pernah melakukan latihan fisik yang melelahkan, kecuali untuk mendapatkan beberapa keuntungan dari itu? Tapi siapa yang berhak mencari kesalahan pada pria yang memilih untuk menikmati kesenangan tanpa konsekuensi yang mengganggu, atau orang yang menghindari rasa sakit yang tidak menghasilkan kesenangan?
Di sisi lain, kami mencela dengan kemarahan yang benar dan tidak menyukai orang-orang yang begitu tertipu dan terdemoralisasi oleh pesona kesenangan saat ini, begitu dibutakan oleh keinginan, sehingga mereka tidak dapat melihat rasa sakit dan kesulitan yang pasti akan terjadi; dan kesalahan yang sama dimiliki oleh mereka yang gagal dalam tugas mereka karena lemahnya kemauan, yang sama dengan mengatakan karena menyusut dari kerja keras dan rasa sakit. Kasus-kasus ini sangat sederhana dan mudah dibedakan. Dalam waktu senggang, ketika kekuatan pilihan kita tidak dibatasi dan ketika tidak ada yang menghalangi kita untuk dapat melakukan apa yang paling kita sukai, setiap kesenangan harus disambut dan setiap rasa sakit dihindari. Tetapi dalam keadaan tertentu dan karena tuntutan tugas atau kewajiban bisnis, akan sering terjadi bahwa kesenangan harus ditolak dan gangguan diterima. Oleh karena itu, orang bijak selalu berpegang pada prinsip pemilihan ini dalam hal ini: dia menolak kesenangan untuk mengamankan kesenangan lain yang lebih besar, atau dia menahan rasa sakit untuk menghindari rasa sakit yang lebih buruk.
The Blue
(Dabba-dee, dabba-dai)
We are coming.
Are you ready?
Go ahead, ask us something!
2 responses to “The Characters”
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Another test.
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This is a test.
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