The
episode "White Bear" opens with a setting where it seems an attempt
of suicide was made. As the story unravels, pictures and fragmented memories
make us, the viewers, believe the main character has woken up in a place where
almost everybody is controlled by a television signal. At the end, we are more conscious
of what is actually happening. It turns out that Victoria was the accomplice in a horrible
murder of a child. She accompanied and filmed her husband in killing a girl
they abducted. Since, her accomplice committed suicide, Victoria is tortured
every day before a paying audience at “White Bear Justice Park”. She repeats the
scenario time and time again and undergoes a torturous memory-wiping process
that ends the night, which prepares her to repeat the same day once again.
After
analyzing the episode, I found it interesting how the writers and producers of
the show made us, the viewers, sympathize with Victoria and made us believe the
episode was about her struggles in a post-apocalyptic setting. As the story
developed and came in to an end, it was clear Victoria was being “punished” for
a crime she had committed. In my opinion, the people participating in the act
of punishing the criminal are no better than the criminal, in this case Victoria.
If we compare both Victoria and the onlookers, it is obvious both enjoyed
watching someone else suffer. The only difference is that one is considered
legal and one is illegal.
It
seems like the people who participate and support this type of punishment justify endorsing this “justice park”
because they believe it is justice. I believe the staff who work the “justice
park” do not have apathy for Victoria because, they believe that her pain is
nothing but an act because it is performed every time. It also seems that the staff workers want her to experience the
terror of running for her life and not knowing what is going on, and then the
realization that she is a monster and have her plead for her own death, only to
force her to relive that over and over. Even if she didn't recall her crime at
the end, I don't think any of the onlookers would really care from a spectator
point of view, as they know she is guilty of it and are probably fine with
seeing her completely confused and terrified.
3 comments:
I like your analysis and especially your gif. Would you attend a justice park?
Do you think this justice park could ever become true?
Do you think if her husband was still alive he would be punished the same way Victoria was?
Post a Comment