Themes
From The Great Machine
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[edit] Themes
Through its ongoing story arc, Babylon 5 found ways to portray themes relevant to modern social issues.
[edit] Authoritarianism vs. anarchy; light vs. dark vs. gray
The central theme in Babylon 5 is the conflict between order and chaos, and the people caught between.
The Vorlons and the Earth Alliance Government both represent oppressive, authoritarian philosophies: you will do what we tell you to, because we tell you to do it. Who are you? Are you willing to sacrifice yourself for a greater cause, or are you merely serving your own petty interests?
The Shadows represent chaos. Their belief is that by creating conflict, a stronger generation is born. Pure "survival of the fittest". To accomplish this, the Shadows encourage conflict between other groups, who choose to serve their own glory or profit. What do you want? Money, territory, fame, power?
The Rangers, composed mainly of Minbari and Humans with a scattering of other races, represent a third way; their unwavering commitment to compassion and self-sacrifice, epitomised by the character of Marcus Cole, opposes both the emotionless war of the Vorlons and the chaotic brutality of the Shadows.
Ultimately, the main characters strike a balance: sometimes selfish, sometime self-sacrificing, making many mistakes along the way. Sometimes they impress us, and sometimes they horrify us. Do you have anything worth living for? Do you love? Do you have a true calling?
[edit] Bigotry and forgiveness
The Babylon 5 timeline includes numerous major armed conflicts:
- The first war between the Narn and Centauri, which ends forty years before the series.
- The war between the Dilgar and the League of Non-Aligned Worlds (aided by the Earth Alliance), which takes place thirty years before the series.
- The war between the Humans and the Minbari, which ends ten years before the series starts.
- The second war between the Narn and Centauri, which takes place during the series.
- The eons-old conflict between the Vorlons and the Shadows.
- The civil war between the Minbari religious caste and warrior caste.
- The civil war between President Clark's corrupt EarthGov and the Babylon 5-led resistance.
- The war between the new Interstellar Alliance and the Centauri Republic.
- The war between the Earth Alliance and the Drakh.
- The conflict between Human telepaths and mundanes (non-telepathic Humans), the major part of which takes place shortly after the series.
- The battle to free Centauri Prime from Drakh occupation, which takes place a decade and a half after the series.
- The Great Burn, a civil war between factions of the Earth Alliance that takes place five centuries after the series.
The naïve viewer might see Babylon 5 as a television show about space ships blowing each other up. In fact, most of the above conflicts end when the side with superior firepower gives in to the side with the superior understanding. Every conflict has a forgotten "third side," people crushed beneath the feet of the powerful. Usually a single individual willing to sacrifice himself is more powerful than the greatest army, while an individual willing to sacrifice everyone else to serve his own objectives can turn worlds into ashes, yet still be defeated.
After all is done, we find members of the opposing sides working together to forge a new future. (Examples: the Rangers, Delenn and Neroon, Delenn and Sheridan, Londo and G'Kar, Garibaldi and Lochley.)
Ultimately, every violent conflict is born out of self-interest, perpetuated by prejudice and ideology, and resolved by the realization that each side needs the other to survive. Hatred is associated with stupidity, forgiveness is associated with pragmatism, and wisdom follows conflict.
[edit] Love and true seekers
Unrequited love may be the source of all pain in Babylon 5. Ivanova loses everyone she loves. Lennier is the ultimate victim of unrequited love, but also of his own foolishness. Sheridan and Delenn know true love; Sheridan comes back from the dead for love. Marcus says, "Sometimes love is funny, sometimes very sad." Garibaldi has trouble figuring it out. Vir knows what true love is from the beginning; his problem is getting to "number six."
But there are a few who have forsaken physical desire for a greater calling: finding the holy grail, all the names of God, or the fulfillment of a thousand-year-old prophecy.
The only alternative to having love or a true calling is to be insane, addicted to some petty need, a tool for some other power, or to be adrift among the stars. Although it must be said: most everyone in love or walking a true path is insane.
Straczynski's recurring message is to always accept passion when it calls.
An interesting bit of trivia is that in the B5 universe, every intelligent species in the galaxy has, apparently on its own, developed the food that we call Swedish meatballs.
(Note: the Narn have a similar dish called "Breen," that G'Kar served to one of his guests. Flarn, one of the dishes Lennier and Delenn served to Sheridan, is green.-- StarChild)
Each species has a different name for it (the Minbari call it "flarn"). This is reminiscent of a phenomenon reported in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: every intelligent race has a drink called "gin and tonic" - but only the name is the same, and the actual drink is unique to each species.
[edit] Addiction
Addiction plays a recurring role in the saga of Babylon 5. Power as an addiction, work as an addiction, violence as an addiction and hatred as an addiction all play out repeatedly. Several major characters have a history of substance abuse: Garibaldi is a recovering alcoholic; Londo Mollari is a heavy drinker; Dr. Franklin is addicted to "stims"; and Lochley went though a period of hard drug abuse in her younger years. Abuse of "dust", a telepathic drug, also plays a recurring role in the story.
Obsession as a related theme occurs numerous times too. Sheridan is willing to break all rules to learn the fate of his wife after discovering the connection between her and Morden. The Narn and Centauri hate each other to the point of obsession and addiction.
