04 March 2011

Would I have it in me ?!

I recently watched Gerard Butler’s movie ‘Law Abiding Citizen’. His character watches his wife being slashed to death & his little daughter being taken away to be killed, by two robbers who force themselves into his house one night. The murderer, the main accused, escapes with just 5 years in prison & his accomplice, who was only a witness to the gory crime, gets death row. It’s the deal struck by Butler’s lawyer with the murderer.

10 years later.

Butler butchers him by hacking him to death, limb by limb. He kills the judge who presided over the case; he kills the lawyer’s assistant who worked on the case. He kills each & everyone connected with the case, one at a time. The best part? He carries out all the murders while being kept captive in a prison cell!!


Hypothetically speaking, if I were to witness such gruesome murder or violence, my family being slaughtered to death in front of my eyes; what would I do? I’d no doubt hate the man with every cell in my body. I would want to kill him too. I would pray he suffers in hell. But would I wait for TEN years to get back at him? Would I be able to put my life on hold to get justice? To teach my lawyer not cut any deals with the accused? They say revenge is best served cold. Could I wait that long – 10 years to avenge my pain & grief? Would I have it in me?

It’s not a spur of the moment reaction. For any delayed vengeance, the anger has to be kept alive. The sorrow needs to be relived. The pain needs to be felt like it was still fresh. The instinct that drives such passion needs to be raw. And at the same time, one needs to plan the entire revenge. Strategize on tools, methods, dates & means of achieving that perfect murder. A well-executed plan of revenge demands great intellect with extreme unbridled passion coupled with a love that knows no boundaries. The agony has to be stroked & justice pursued with a single minded devotion & an all encompassing purpose.

Would I have it in me?

This is not a question of right or wrong. Hatred & love do not always lend themselves to the norms of morality. All I know is extreme love can give way to extreme hatred. One emotion can easily sustain the other. Hypothetically again, do I love my husband & daughter enough to want to avenge their deaths, if ever? Would I have it in me to see their tormentor being scorched to death?

Would I want to do it? YES. But more importantly, would I be able to do it? I am not really sure. Losing a loved one is an extremely traumatic experience. What one does at such situations no one really knows.

7 comments:

  1. To foster that kind of anger and keep your cool to make clear judgements,I think is a capability of a very few.Most of us cannot think through anything when we are hit with this kind of pain.Would I have it in me to avenge the death of my loved one,actually depends on the people involved and the resources I have.

    ReplyDelete
  2. yeah i guess so. to keep the anger going, one must keep one's cool. ironical.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Loved Gerard Butler in the movie.. He carried it off well. No comments on the anger part though.

    ReplyDelete
  4. The passion for revenge lasted several years. Ultimately he succeeded in getting the blood. I doubt: Whether his anger and agony increased or decreased after his revenge? I am sure, he faced more pain after the revenge! Then what is good? Revenge or Forgiveness?

    ReplyDelete
  5. @Farila: yes Butler did justice to the role

    @sibi: some points to ponder on there Sibi :) thanks for stopping by my blog & penning ur views

    ReplyDelete
  6. In my opinion adopting anger and raised him to kill somebody is not justified, but adopting anger and raised him to get justice and change the mindset of criminal is purely justified. I think this kind of investment in anger will not only help indivisual but help to whole society.

    ReplyDelete
  7. @Mithlash: thanks for your comment Mithlash. that movie disturbed me a lot & the way he takes revenge for his wife & daughter's death

    ReplyDelete