OUTLINING THE MORAL ARGUMENT

Designing Principle

Start by turning the designing principle of your story into a theme line. The theme line is your view about right and wrong action, in this story, stated in one sentence. As you look again at the designing principle, focus on its key actions and their moral effects.

What one thinks is right is not always the same as what others think is right; no one can be always right.  You can only do what you think is best.

Theme Line Techniques

Look for any techniques, like symbols, that can condense your moral statement to one line or can encapsulate the unique structure you will give to your story.

Right and wrong is defined by your person and can vary between people and is perhaps comparable to the weather.  The weather is objectively the same for everyone caught in it, but is perceived and interpreted differently.

Moral Choice

Write down the key choice the hero must make near the end of the story.

Save himself and his friends or save his friends and their people.

Moral Problem

After reviewing your work on premise, state in one line the central moral problem your hero will confront throughout the story.

When is taking a life justifiable, and when is it just murder?  Is taking a life ever justifiable or is that just naïve to think so?

Who is responsible for the world?

Characters as Variations on a Theme

Starting with the hero and the main opponent, describe how each major character approaches the central moral problem of the story in a different way.

Ilyas: Killing is inherently wrong, but occasionally necessary.  Humans are responsible for the planet.

Petra: Taking life so long as it serves a purpose is justifiable.  Humans are responsible for the planet.

Einar: Killing is a last resort, period.  The world runs and heals itself.

Ava: Taking life to protect others is justifiable.  The world runs and heals itself, but humans have the power to change it, and must take some of the responsibility for it.

Kymil: Taking a life is never justifiable, all life is sacred.  Every being is responsible for the planet.

Qwin: Killing in self defense is justifiable.  The world runs and heals itself, but humans have the power to change it, and must take some of the responsibility for it.

Dean: Trusting those in charge to make the right decision is the best on can do.  The world runs and heals itself.

Values in Conflict

List the key values of each of the major characters, and explain how those values will come into conflict as each character tries to reach the goal.

Ilyas, Ava, Kymil and Einar will come into the most conflict by the end of the story when it comes to the fate of Petra.  Ava’s is the only goal that differs, as she wishes to just take Ilyas back home, she feels he has no responsibility for this woman, and it is not his problem.  Ilyas feels he must kill her to stop this (after a lot of internal battle), Einar feels they can talk her down and Kymil just does not wish her dead, but is conflicted due to the amount of destruction she has caused.

MORAL ARGUMENT

Hero’s Beliefs and Values

Restate your hero’s essential beliefs and values.

When there is a problem, he wants to quickly understand the underlying cause and implement some type of solution.  He is practical until it comes down to the lives of those close to him, in which he will throw his normal decision making out the window to help.  He believes life shouldn’t be taken unnecessarily, like in the case of hunting for fun, but is a supporter of hunting if the animal is made use of after.

Moral Weakness

What is your hero’s main weakness when it comes to acting toward others?

Ilyas’ psychological weakness is his lack of memory, he is not sure of who he is or where he comes from, and he feels he needs to figure out who he was, but isn’t sure how.  Ilyas’ moral weakness is his lack of emotion.  He doesn’t express himself as most people do, and it makes people feel like he is apathetic or uncaring despite being the complete opposite.  He is difficult to warm up to and bottles up emotions until they spill over uncontrolled.

Ilyas, (even if he doesn’t know it in the beginning of the story) also possesses an ability to take and give heat away from people.  His body creates heat very slowly, and he could die if he doesn’t take warmth from elsewhere.  After learning of it he grows scared of it’s danger, and struggles to keep himself alive.

He also takes on struggles that other people would be better suited for, and occasionally puts himself in unnecessary danger.

Moral Need

What must your hero learn by the end of the story about the right way to act and live in the world?

Ilyas must come to terms that he will never be the same person he was, and it’s okay to change.  That is is okay to help others, but he must take care of himself before doing so.

First Immoral Action

Describe the first action your hero takes that hurts someone else in the story. Make sure it is an outgrowth of your hero’s great moral weakness.

Ilyas accidentally kills someone in an early scuffle/ first encounter with Petra to help himself escape.  After his initial shock, and a few days of convincing later, Ava gets him to practice on animals to better get used to the power

Desire

Restate your hero’s specific goal.

His overall desire is to figure out who he used to be, though it eventually takes a back burner to the problems he finds himself caught in and a temporary desire of solving the mystery of the freak weather events becomes forefront.

Drive

List the actions your hero will take to win that goal.

• Fix faulty communication lines, and survive the harsh environment
• Figure out why the environment suddenly changed, and help people adapt if possible
  • Complete previous mission
  • Talk to Rimes who may have insight about what’s going on
• Keep everyone alive
• Stop Petra from continuing her takeover

Immoral Actions 2

In what way, if any, are these actions immoral?

When he starts killing things on purpose.  You could look at it as him using other living beings to his advantage.  Which is traditionally not okay.

Criticism: For any immoral action, describe the criticism, if any, that the hero receives.

The group is uncomfortable (except Ava) with how comfortable Ilyas grows with his power, and express that he shouldn’t use it on living things

Justification: How does the hero justify each immoral action?

He needs to learn how to better control it, and he’d rather kill other beings than accidentally kill any of his friends.  (Ava’s words, Ilyas just goes along with it, but does tentatively agree with her)

Attack by Ally

Explain in detail the main moral attack that the ally makes against the hero. Again, write down how the hero justifies himself.

Most of the group agree that Ilyas shouldn’t use his power to take heat from anything anymore, despite Ava’s protests.  Ilyas grows a bit angry with their words, as it is apart of himself and he can’t change what he is.

Obsessive Drive

Describe when and how your hero becomes obsessed with winning. Put another way, is there a moment when your hero decides to do almost anything to win?

I don’t think there is a point when “he will do anything to win” at least in the super negative connotations.  I suppose his further use of his power could be an aspect of his obsessive drive though, as he is going against some of the lesser beliefs he has about not taking life unnecessarily

Immoral Actions 3

While obsessed with winning, what immoral steps does your hero take?

See Immoral Actions 2

Battle

During the final battle, how do you express which values, the hero’s or the opponent’s, are superior in this fight?

The opponent’s values are far more superior, Petra has nothing holding her back but the party, and has no moral problem with killing people in the way of her beliefs

Final Action Against Opponent

Does your hero take a final action against the opponent, whether moral or immoral, before or during the battle?

Ilyas as well as the group, realizes they will not be able to subdue, or bring Petra back to her original self.  Ilyas ends up deciding that she will need to be killed for the better of their home.

Moral Self-Revelation

What, if anything, does your hero learn morally at the end of the story? Be sure that this insight is about how to act properly toward others.

The world is greedy, and if pushed far enough people will do anything to protect themselves.

He learns he does not need to figure out who he was, he just needs to grow and become the bester version of himself he can be.

Moral Decision

Does the hero make a decision between two courses of action near the end of the story?

It’s pretty much:

• • Leave: Abandon this quest and go back home with Ava
  • Compromise: Make a deal with Petra to get her to roll back her original plans
  • Kill: Kill Petra to stop her plan in it’s tracks (he ends up choosing this one)

Thematic Revelation

Can you think of a story event in which you express your vision of how human beings should act in some other way than through the self-revelation of your hero?

Perhaps an epilogue or a meet up of all characters around a year in the future?  So that you can see how they’ve all changes a year after everything has happened with wounds healed and new lives started.