Monday, June 3, 2013

Nihilism and Walter White

The question of whether Walter White is or is not a nihilist was well discussed in class, and rightly so, as it is quite hard to definitively prove one way or the other. While he may have many characteristics that we would call nihilistic, or have made judgements that appear to us reek of nihilism, this is usually something we tend to see more in the most recent episodes as opposed to the beginning of the series. The character we meet at the start of the series, diagnosed with cancer, would appear to not be nihilistic in the least, hence our quandary.

Is Walter truly a nihilist by the time we see him in the most recent episodes, perhaps, but to me he still possess' certain moral and boundaries that even he will not cross, some of which are quite normal, such as trying to protect your family and keeping them out of trouble. These aren't odd things that he has to try to justify, as many nihilist may do with their moral codes, and cast doubt in my mind whether he is a nihilist through and through, or rather he has evolved into someone who happens to have many nihilistic pieces, but isn't wholly so.

It was an intriguing discussion, and look forward to them continuing in the class.

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