The High King - Good or Evil

I suppose the definition of the High King's involvement in The Great Sea depends on one's view of someone who has the power to do anything. Most views of such beings - real or imagined - tend to be prejudiced one way or the other.

Some would hold that, since the High King has the power to stop all evil but doesn't, the High King is himself evil. They maintain that a good being of such power would suppress all evil and keep The Great Sea at peace. But there is a problem with that which the Evil Viewers (those who see the High King as evil, not viewers who are evil) refuse to acknowledge. In order to suppress all evil, the High King (or whoever) would have to suppress all freedom, because the simple truth is - everyone tends to evil. The Evil Viewers deny this, but it is true. All beings, creatures and what have you are inclined to act out of selfish motive. Not only that, but what one being, creature or what have you considers evil, another might consider their 'right', and to be denied that right is evil. You see, it comes down to how one defines evil. Let us look at The Great Sea.

The High King created The Great Sea. It was his to give to whomever he chose. He gave it to the Children of Fire, but with the understanding it was eventually to go to Madatar and Ardora. Until Madatar and Ardora claimed their gift, Kensington was to rule and Draem and Zenophone were to support him. Fair enough.

But in Zenophone's mind, he was far better suited to rule the Sea than Kensington. Furthermore, why should the Sea be given to Madatar and Ardora when they had no part in fashioning it? After all, was it not the Children who did most of the actual work? In Zenophone's mind, it was evil for him to do all of that work and get nothing in reward. It wasn't fair that Madatar and Ardora should be given something for which they had not labored. Evil.

From Kensington's point of view it did not matter that Madatar had not been present. The Sea belonged to the High King and the High King was free to give it to whomever he wished. It could be argued that being given the regency may have influenced Kensington's thinking. Would he have thought the same had Zenophone been chosen as regent? In any case, from Kensington's point of view, refusal to abide by the High King's decision was evil.

But it goes even further than that. The concept of what is evil and what is good filters down into the very basic elements which make up life on the Sea. The mortal beings who have been given free thought - and thus named Free People - have dominion over the creatures which live out their existence by instinct. Horses, sheep, cattle and other creatures are forced to serve Men, Dwarfs and Figgits. Is that fair? What is more, some creatures live by feeding upon others. Is that fair? Some say yes and some say no.

The High King set the rules by allowing certain things to be and not others. Individual concepts of his goodness - or lack of it - derive from a selfish perspective. The free thinking beings considered actions which supported their wants and desires to be good, and those which interfered with them bad. Beasts and other creatures didn't care one way or another. They just lived until they died, and perhaps that is the pivitol point on which good and evil truly separate. There is life, and then there is death. What happens after death? Nothing? Transition? Eternity? What happens?

If, as some claimed, death was the end of whatever/whoever died, then life on The Great Sea was all important, and whatever happened on The Great Sea was all important. So to be denied a good life for no apparent reason was evil.

But what if there was more? What if life on The Great Sea was akin to living in a nursery? What if dying simply meant graduation? That changes things a bit, although there are those who would say not by much. But suddenly, life on The Great Sea becomes a school. Troubles and blessings, whether one's own or another's, are simply lessons to help prepare for what comes next. If so, then why not just say what comes next? Maybe because what comes next is entirely determined by what takes place? It changes things drastically, at least in the minds of some.

Was the High King good or bad? Each reader will make up his/her own mind regarding that, and that is as it should be. Some will express their opinion to others, and that is well and good. Others may even seek to persuade others to believe as they do, which is fine. Some will get angry when others disagree with them. That is unfortunate.

In any case, what is the Author's intent? Well, that would be me. With regard to Swords of Fire, I am the one who has the power to put a stop to anything I choose. Even the High King cannot act apart from my will. As a writer, I make the determination over what is good, what is bad - and what is simply a matter of perspective. When someone reads what I have written, the story becomes their's, and they will make these determinations.

For the record, I believe the High King is good - because he conforms to my idea of goodness. However, even I must concede that he cannot be wholly good, because my idea of goodness tends to be somewhat fluid, changing as I grow in knowledge and experience. It isn't runny, like pure water. It is more like a thick lava crawling across the ground. It will harden in time, but that is not to say a great upheaval cannot change it.

So it is with me. Many of my beliefs regarding good and bad have hardened. Not all. New experience still affects my views on many things, and in some things I have completely reversed my thinking over the years. This is especially so in areas involving punishment and forgiveness. I don't see far, but I see further ahead than I did before. My physical eyes continue to weaken, but my inner eyes, my comprehension, increase, albeit slowly. As I understand better, I can see further ahead - to a point. This is affecting how I view good and bad and punishment and forgiveness. I see myself differently, and so I see others differently. I don't always like what I see in me, but I'm realizing I am so much like everyone else - even if I am so different.

Is the High King good? Of course he is, silly. He is me. How can I see him any other way?