Monday, February 27, 2006
I'm Losing My Religion
The BSG writers seem to enjoy flipping common conceptions on their ear. What we typically think about religion, especially, gets decidedly unexpected treatment in the new series. Who would have thought that a machine intelligence could seek justification for its actions through belief in a unitarian god? Or that a pantheistic culture would be able to rise to such technological heights?
I think it's fair to say that there are three distinct views on religiosity in the BSG universe: evangelism, fundamentalism, and tolerance. The evangelists are the Cylon, with their (well, six's) frequent references to the conversion of humanity (specifically, Gaius Baltar) to their monotheistic worship of the "one, true god." The fundamentalists and tolerants are represented by humanity, mainly by the Gemonese in the former and everybody else the latter. Undeniably, the most interesting are the Cylon, so I'll focus on their spirituality.
The Cylon are almost the avenging angels of their faith. I imagine that they felt, if "feeling" is a meaningful term, highly persecuted by their human creators. A particular group that is singled out of society for oppression often turns to religion to act as a glue for the collective to sustain them through solidarity and hope. The belief system allows the group to turn the particular aspects that cause it to be tortured by a culture into praiseworthy attributes in their deities' eyes.
It makes sense that the Cylon might develop a faith that is the antithesis of the pervading doctrines in the culture that victimized them... but why would a machine intelligence develop a faith in the first place? I think it's interesting to consider a few questions:
Did the Cylon come to their belief before or after the human models were developed?
The new series reduces the role of the mechanistic Cylons (the insurgents' "bullet-heads") to mere shock troops, soaks useful for simple tasks only. Do the mechanicals participate in the monotheism professed by the human models? I get the impression that this isn't the case - modern BSG silverbacks are truly robots, without the motivation that even infused the original series tin cans. Does this mean that the human models are the only deep-thinking force behind the Cylon culture?
As faiths have done here on Earth for millennia, newer, expansionistic religions tend to overwhelm and push out older, more tolerant beliefs. Younger theology tends to include a strain of developing black-and-white comparisons that can be used to separate out people of the faith from the general population. It's that "besiged" mentality again. This is playing itself out in the BSG universe as well, with humanity continuing what was already an ancient religion/culture (Hellenism) for more than two thousand years, being pushed aside by the Cylon.
During that time, it seems that humanity became very comfortable with the various worship of the twelve deities. Some of the cultures seem open and practically secular (Caprica), while some have tenaciously clung to their beliefs and developed their faith into a blueprint for a rigid, theocratic society (Gemonon). This variety and tolerance is a hallmark of highly developed, older religions. Are the writers trying to draw this striking contrast between human culture and the Cylon culture?
The last episode (#218: Downloaded) definitely upends some of the moral rectitude with which the Cylon justify their genocide. There are more questions asked than answered, unfortunately. For example, if the Cylon actions are in direct contravention of their religious precepts... then what is providing the prod and justification to keep their plans in motion?
And, Sharon's final words make me wonder if there isn't some other entity within the Cylon that is using religion as a rallying cry and rationale for "unspeakable acts". If so... what is this entity?
In closing, I'll say that the writers have challenged themselves to make sense of this spiritual soup pot they've stirred. While these faiths add new dimensions and layers of meaning to the stories, making it all seem organic and inevitable will be quite a feat. I hope they have it in them!
Good hunting.
I think it's fair to say that there are three distinct views on religiosity in the BSG universe: evangelism, fundamentalism, and tolerance. The evangelists are the Cylon, with their (well, six's) frequent references to the conversion of humanity (specifically, Gaius Baltar) to their monotheistic worship of the "one, true god." The fundamentalists and tolerants are represented by humanity, mainly by the Gemonese in the former and everybody else the latter. Undeniably, the most interesting are the Cylon, so I'll focus on their spirituality.
The Cylon are almost the avenging angels of their faith. I imagine that they felt, if "feeling" is a meaningful term, highly persecuted by their human creators. A particular group that is singled out of society for oppression often turns to religion to act as a glue for the collective to sustain them through solidarity and hope. The belief system allows the group to turn the particular aspects that cause it to be tortured by a culture into praiseworthy attributes in their deities' eyes.
It makes sense that the Cylon might develop a faith that is the antithesis of the pervading doctrines in the culture that victimized them... but why would a machine intelligence develop a faith in the first place? I think it's interesting to consider a few questions:
Did the Cylon come to their belief before or after the human models were developed?
The new series reduces the role of the mechanistic Cylons (the insurgents' "bullet-heads") to mere shock troops, soaks useful for simple tasks only. Do the mechanicals participate in the monotheism professed by the human models? I get the impression that this isn't the case - modern BSG silverbacks are truly robots, without the motivation that even infused the original series tin cans. Does this mean that the human models are the only deep-thinking force behind the Cylon culture?
As faiths have done here on Earth for millennia, newer, expansionistic religions tend to overwhelm and push out older, more tolerant beliefs. Younger theology tends to include a strain of developing black-and-white comparisons that can be used to separate out people of the faith from the general population. It's that "besiged" mentality again. This is playing itself out in the BSG universe as well, with humanity continuing what was already an ancient religion/culture (Hellenism) for more than two thousand years, being pushed aside by the Cylon.
During that time, it seems that humanity became very comfortable with the various worship of the twelve deities. Some of the cultures seem open and practically secular (Caprica), while some have tenaciously clung to their beliefs and developed their faith into a blueprint for a rigid, theocratic society (Gemonon). This variety and tolerance is a hallmark of highly developed, older religions. Are the writers trying to draw this striking contrast between human culture and the Cylon culture?
The last episode (#218: Downloaded) definitely upends some of the moral rectitude with which the Cylon justify their genocide. There are more questions asked than answered, unfortunately. For example, if the Cylon actions are in direct contravention of their religious precepts... then what is providing the prod and justification to keep their plans in motion?
And, Sharon's final words make me wonder if there isn't some other entity within the Cylon that is using religion as a rallying cry and rationale for "unspeakable acts". If so... what is this entity?
In closing, I'll say that the writers have challenged themselves to make sense of this spiritual soup pot they've stirred. While these faiths add new dimensions and layers of meaning to the stories, making it all seem organic and inevitable will be quite a feat. I hope they have it in them!
Good hunting.
Sunday, February 26, 2006
Welcome to The Pilot's Locker!
Welcome to the inauguration of The Pilot's Locker, where I muse on the "re-imagined" Battlestar Galactica. This show has captured my fancy like little else in my last 20 years of TV watching. I recognize that my attraction borders on the obsessive; being married to a soap-opera-addicted wife makes it particularly hard to avoid this realization.
The "pilot's locker" is a private retreat on a battlestar where the fighter pilots sleep (home to their "racks"), joke, and otherwise bleed off the stress associated with flying dangerous missions every day. In my universe, this pilot's locker is a place for me to reflect on and appreciate this wonderful drama.
Good hunting.
The "pilot's locker" is a private retreat on a battlestar where the fighter pilots sleep (home to their "racks"), joke, and otherwise bleed off the stress associated with flying dangerous missions every day. In my universe, this pilot's locker is a place for me to reflect on and appreciate this wonderful drama.
Good hunting.
