Socratic Seminar Journal

Rama is inclined to sympathize with Sugreeva because he too lost his wife to a creature so arrogant he believes nothing can stand in his way. Both Vali and Rama make compelling arguments as whether or not Rama’s actions were right. Vali believes that by hiding in the bushes and striking him down while unarmed, Rama has lost all his judgment after losing his wife and now his morals are null and void, a perfectly logical assumption considering everything. Rama did in fact disregard tactical warfare and went ahead and killed Vali amidst a fight he was having with his brother. The general rule of thumb is to not use a weapon against an unarmed man nor gang up on a person in a fight. Point to Vali. Rama then pointed out that what Vali did to Sugreeva was none too righteous either. He vowed to murder him or usurping the throne –though he did no such thing—chased him out of the kingdom and stole his wife. My personal philosophy is that even though I’m seething with rage, I listen to the other person’s side. It’s only right because more often than not, there is more to it than meets the eye. Vali calls out Rama on that though and says “In our society there is no such thing as wedlock” and that he was just protecting her while Sugreeva was out. He was just doing what his society has dictated as okay, but Rama points out that any being with the ability to think and reason knows better than to take someone who is committed to another for your own. That’s called cheating and I’m against that with every fiber of my being. There is never a time when that is ok. Rama ultimately convinced Vali of his actions, because in the end he was honoring all that he had promised and doing it in a way that everything would work out.

Politics and international relationships are a lot like this. People promise to do things without really weighing all the options. (Rama) Relationships with allied countries can get strained, and can get bloody if one side feels like the other is trying to one-up them (Sugreeva and Vali) once “brothers” can turn on their kin for power. This happens with politicians seeking election and again with allied countries. Governments can do things that are alright in their country, but seem downright wrong in another. In warfare, as seen in more modern wars, traditional tactics are completely forgotten. Take Vietnam for example, they fought dirty much like Rama did with Vali. This chapter characterizes to government so well, that I can’t help but think it’s maybe written to emulate it.