Even putting aside larger philosophical dilemmas, like if there is any truly 'correct' way to navigate life. What your culture taught you doesn't serve to your benefit anymore. Had Alternia persisted, your friendships definitely would have gone down as a weakness. And you would faced the choice of continuing to do things that made you unhappy while adhering to social mores, or look for a way to deviate from them and subsequently increasing the likelihood of your own culling. So maybe you weren't the perfect troll you always thought you wanted to be. But Alternia didn't persist, and had Mindfang been in your place, the species would likely have died out entirely. It's not my place to condone or condemn what you did during your session. Though obviously your friends have grievances. But objectively speaking, you were almost certainly better at the role you played than your ancestor would have been. Which goes back to how do we surpass our ancestor's without actually trying to be them, or ignoring their own flaws and failures. Your trials aren't going to be the same as Mindfang's, and your solutions won't be either. I personally think not responding to all problems with threats of murder is a pretty great step. But regardless of methods and values, you're both basically trying to get what you want out of life while working within the society you're a part of. And frankly, it sounds like the current setting probably suits you better in the long run than Alternia did anyway. Maybe it was just holding you back.
no subject
What your culture taught you doesn't serve to your benefit anymore.
Had Alternia persisted, your friendships definitely would have gone down as a weakness. And you would faced the choice of continuing to do things that made you unhappy while adhering to social mores, or look for a way to deviate from them and subsequently increasing the likelihood of your own culling.
So maybe you weren't the perfect troll you always thought you wanted to be.
But Alternia didn't persist, and had Mindfang been in your place, the species would likely have died out entirely.
It's not my place to condone or condemn what you did during your session. Though obviously your friends have grievances.
But objectively speaking, you were almost certainly better at the role you played than your ancestor would have been.
Which goes back to how do we surpass our ancestor's without actually trying to be them, or ignoring their own flaws and failures.
Your trials aren't going to be the same as Mindfang's, and your solutions won't be either.
I personally think not responding to all problems with threats of murder is a pretty great step.
But regardless of methods and values, you're both basically trying to get what you want out of life while working within the society you're a part of.
And frankly, it sounds like the current setting probably suits you better in the long run than Alternia did anyway.
Maybe it was just holding you back.