rainsometimes (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
rainsometimes) wrote2012-08-12 01:02 pm
rainsometimes) wrote2012-08-12 01:02 pm
What makes a true pirate in One Piece, a.k.a another rambling post
I posted a rambling Plurk about this yesterday, then thought it would be cool to hear my f-list's thoughts about this, too, should anyone be interested in sharing.
I was having some vague thoughts about common fan speculations about the future of One Piece, and that led to thinking about how Oda tends to write child characters, and that led to more general ponderings about how a "true pirate" should act according to Luffy. (And probably also according to Shanks, Gol D. Roger, Whitebeard and perhaps other non-evil pirates in the story.)
True pirate, that is, not a true pirate captain which is a different subject, though I wouldn't mind rambling about that too. And since the Strawhats* are the only crew where we know about all the members in detail, and Luffy's by far the captain we know the best about, this largely comes from observing our main characters.
So - what are the essential requirements to be a "true pirate"?
1. Being willing to stake your life on your dream
A pirate in the OP world could be said to be an adventurer who has declared himself/herself outside the law. Not only does this mean they can't appeal to legal authorities if they are injured, but they also must accept that the Marines, bounty hunters and various local governments will attack them on sight. Raising the Jolly Roger is a crime that can be punished with death, or with gruesome lifelong imprisonment. The Drum arc makes it clear that for Luffy, raising a pirate flag also means you are proclaiming your determination to the world.
Children can't meet this requirement not because they can't be courageous - they frequently are, in canon, sometimes desperately so - but because they don't yet have the emotional maturity to realise what it truly means to stake your life on something.
Arguably, neither do all adults. In order for this determination to be as meaningful as it should be, you need to put real value on your life in the first place. Which leads us into the second point.
2. Being able to live your life fully, to seize the day wholeheartedly with all your emotions
And perhaps there is also an unspoken addition: being able to do this in spite of having sad parts in your past - to leave your past behind, while not forgetting it. Children are good at living in the moment, but either they haven't been through really hard stuff yet (less common for the poor children in the tough world of One Piece), or it's more that they've survived those dark moments rather than fully getting past them. Wounds scabbed over more than healed, to use a metaphor. (I'm generalising a lot, but it's all directed towards One Piece, not the real world.)
It's interesting to note that most of the Strawhats were held back from following their dream in the first place or to comply with point 1 and 2 here because of something in their past holding them back. (Robin did still work for her dream, but she didn't put the right value on her own life due to her past; she was also held back from truly being able to trust in herself and in the strength and love of her crew for the same reason.) Luffy and Zoro and arguably Usopp are exceptions to this - similar to Robin yet different, Usopp also found it hard to fully commit himself as a Strawhat due to distrust in himself and his own strength (including his emotional strength). But it wasn't really due to wounds of the past in his case, was it? - Though it should still be noted that he only got over the hurdle after the departure of Going Merry, Usopp's strongest link to his home island.
Luffy and Zoro, on the other hand, never seem to have held themselves back from going wholeheartedly for their life goals. Thematically it would perhaps be nice to have a clear distinction between them, putting Luffy, captain and main character, in the more unique spot on the crew; but I'm finding it hard to make out such a distinction. Sure, Zoro is a more reserved person than Luffy, but he's still fully capable of living in the moment from the get-go, it seems.
3. The capacity for deep loyalty to your crewmates - and to your captain, if you're not a captain yourself
At first I was going to write "Having deep loyalty..." but then I changed that, because I think the canon implies that while you can't live the life of a true pirate without a good crew to help you, you can still have the outlook of one. A true pirate is a pirate even if he or she is temporarily without a crew.
Thoughts?
* Though now I keep wondering why Oda has made a point of saying the crew never refers to themselves as "the Strawhat Pirates", only as "the Strawhats". Hmmm. So far I have no clue what he means.
I was having some vague thoughts about common fan speculations about the future of One Piece, and that led to thinking about how Oda tends to write child characters, and that led to more general ponderings about how a "true pirate" should act according to Luffy. (And probably also according to Shanks, Gol D. Roger, Whitebeard and perhaps other non-evil pirates in the story.)
True pirate, that is, not a true pirate captain which is a different subject, though I wouldn't mind rambling about that too. And since the Strawhats* are the only crew where we know about all the members in detail, and Luffy's by far the captain we know the best about, this largely comes from observing our main characters.
So - what are the essential requirements to be a "true pirate"?
1. Being willing to stake your life on your dream
A pirate in the OP world could be said to be an adventurer who has declared himself/herself outside the law. Not only does this mean they can't appeal to legal authorities if they are injured, but they also must accept that the Marines, bounty hunters and various local governments will attack them on sight. Raising the Jolly Roger is a crime that can be punished with death, or with gruesome lifelong imprisonment. The Drum arc makes it clear that for Luffy, raising a pirate flag also means you are proclaiming your determination to the world.
Children can't meet this requirement not because they can't be courageous - they frequently are, in canon, sometimes desperately so - but because they don't yet have the emotional maturity to realise what it truly means to stake your life on something.
Arguably, neither do all adults. In order for this determination to be as meaningful as it should be, you need to put real value on your life in the first place. Which leads us into the second point.
2. Being able to live your life fully, to seize the day wholeheartedly with all your emotions
And perhaps there is also an unspoken addition: being able to do this in spite of having sad parts in your past - to leave your past behind, while not forgetting it. Children are good at living in the moment, but either they haven't been through really hard stuff yet (less common for the poor children in the tough world of One Piece), or it's more that they've survived those dark moments rather than fully getting past them. Wounds scabbed over more than healed, to use a metaphor. (I'm generalising a lot, but it's all directed towards One Piece, not the real world.)
It's interesting to note that most of the Strawhats were held back from following their dream in the first place or to comply with point 1 and 2 here because of something in their past holding them back. (Robin did still work for her dream, but she didn't put the right value on her own life due to her past; she was also held back from truly being able to trust in herself and in the strength and love of her crew for the same reason.) Luffy and Zoro and arguably Usopp are exceptions to this - similar to Robin yet different, Usopp also found it hard to fully commit himself as a Strawhat due to distrust in himself and his own strength (including his emotional strength). But it wasn't really due to wounds of the past in his case, was it? - Though it should still be noted that he only got over the hurdle after the departure of Going Merry, Usopp's strongest link to his home island.
Luffy and Zoro, on the other hand, never seem to have held themselves back from going wholeheartedly for their life goals. Thematically it would perhaps be nice to have a clear distinction between them, putting Luffy, captain and main character, in the more unique spot on the crew; but I'm finding it hard to make out such a distinction. Sure, Zoro is a more reserved person than Luffy, but he's still fully capable of living in the moment from the get-go, it seems.
3. The capacity for deep loyalty to your crewmates - and to your captain, if you're not a captain yourself
At first I was going to write "Having deep loyalty..." but then I changed that, because I think the canon implies that while you can't live the life of a true pirate without a good crew to help you, you can still have the outlook of one. A true pirate is a pirate even if he or she is temporarily without a crew.
Thoughts?
* Though now I keep wondering why Oda has made a point of saying the crew never refers to themselves as "the Strawhat Pirates", only as "the Strawhats". Hmmm. So far I have no clue what he means.