Buffy Season 2: Living with Consequences (early access)
The moral case for making sure you can take on the consequences of your actions.
Actions have consequences.
It's something you hear a lot, especially when you're a kid. That just because you want to take an action doesn't mean that it's the right one. If you do take it, you might end up making things worse. Or at least get someone hurt, either emotionally or physically. You might even run the risk of getting them killed. Such an action is likely to have even worse results. Having to live with the fact that you harmed someone ends up changing your own view of the world in many ways. You're less likely to take risks. To make decisions that would otherwise hurt the people around you. Of course the problem with thinking in those terms is they have their own consequences. Not acting can hurt someone too. Especially if you have been chosen to make the world safer for other people. Why would anyone want to live in such a lose-lose scenario?
Previously in this space, we looked at the importance of accepting responsibility. What it means to take on the burden of knowing that there are people depending on you. In season 1, Buffy learns that she can accept the weight of this problem if she has people she can rely on. With Willow, Xander and Giles to give her support, this isn't as hard as it otherwise would be. She can be the kind of responsible person who can take on demons, vampires and the other forces of darkness. However, the story doesn't end there. As soon as you accept this responsibility, you have to live with the consequences of allowing others to help you. The danger you put them in.
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