There is an interesting philosophical literature on whether it is appropriate to punish someone who has amnesia with respect to the wrong they have done.
It has just occurred to me (and it would be surprising if it’s not somewhere in that literature) that it is obvious that rewarding someone who has amnesia with respect to the good they have done is appropriate. To make the intuition clear, imagine the extreme case where the amnesia is due to the heroic action that otherwise would cry out for reward.
If amnesia does not automatically wipe out positive desert, it also does not automatically wipe out negative desert.
3 comments:
Please watch "Kubo and the two strings" First of all because it's a visual delight but then you can tell me if you think justice is served at the end. It's directly related to your post today
I fear the movie has too much music in it.
Ah, certainly background music. I don't recall any actual songs, so I'll give away the ending in an AI summary but it seems accurate. I dwell on is the mercy Kubo shoes his grandfather in the end but a paragraph summary steals the power of the original
🏯 Kubo and the Two Strings: Plot Summary
Kubo is a young boy in ancient Japan who cares for his ailing mother in a cave. He earns money by dazzling the villagers with magical origami and captivating storytelling, using his shamisen (a three-stringed instrument) to bring his paper creations to life.
He learns that his mother, Sariatu, was a celestial being who fell in love with a mortal samurai named Hanzo (Kubo's father). Their union enraged her father, the Moon King (Raiden), and her sisters (The Sisters), who sought to make Kubo immortal by taking his remaining eye—the Moon King already took his left eye as an infant.
The Journey
Kubo accidentally stays out after dark, summoning The Sisters, who attack. His mother sacrifices herself to protect him, transforming her spirit into a talking snow monkey named Monkey. Monkey and Kubo begin a quest to find the three pieces of his father's invincible armor to defeat the Moon King. They are soon joined by Beetle, an amnesiac man-sized beetle warrior who believes he was Hanzo's apprentice. Throughout their journey, they face various dangers and form a deep, loving bond.
They eventually learn the truth: Monkey is the reincarnated spirit of Kubo's mother, and Beetle is the amnesiac spirit of his father, Hanzo, whose memories were taken by the Moon King. After a final confrontation, Monkey and Beetle are killed by The Sisters, leaving Kubo alone for the climax.
🌙 Emphasis on the Ending: Kubo vs. The Moon King
Kubo finds the last piece of the armor, which is the Bell, and realizes he has been led to the village graveyard. His grandfather, the Moon King, appears in his human form, revealing his monstrous intentions: he transforms into a gigantic, serpent-like beast to strip Kubo of his eye and his memories of the mortal world.
The True Power: Kubo realizes the magic needed to defeat the Moon King isn't in the armor (which he sheds), but in his memories and stories.
The Two Strings: He repairs his shamisen, using the two strings that give the movie its title:
One string is his mother's hair (Monkey).
The second string is his father's bowstring (Beetle).
He uses a strand of his own hair for the third.
The Ancestors: Kubo plays his shamisen, telling the final, complete story of his parents' love and sacrifice. This act of powerful, loving remembrance summons the spirits of all the deceased villagers and ancestors—the "strongest magic."
The Moon King is Defeated: Kubo's love and the memories of the community envelop the Moon Beast. The creature is defeated, and it transforms back into Kubo's elderly, human grandfather, who is now mortal and has no memory of who he was or the terrible things he did.
A Fresh Start: The villagers—who had just seen the monster destroy their homes and desecrate their graves—approach the confused old man. Showing extraordinary compassion and forgiveness, they gently lie to him, telling him that he is "the kindest, most generous man in the village" and a good neighbor.
The film ends with Kubo accepting his family's loss, giving his grandfather a chance for a peaceful, good mortal life, and finally communicating with the spirits of his parents, whose stories will live on forever through his music.
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