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Post by Isadora on Feb 27, 2010 21:16:42 GMT -5
Okay so when Olaf leans over the edge of the boat (in the beginning) the Baudelaires contemplate whether or not to push him over. In the end, the decision is made for them, but if they had truly been able to make their own choice, what would they have chosen? Well, we have no way of knowing that, but if you were the Baudelaires, what would you have done?
I would not have pushed Olaf over (as much as I would have wanted too!) because, as the Baudelaires thought, that would be a very evil thing to do. Also, as they were already struggling so much with the thought that they might be evil, I wouldn't want to add that onto the list of things to give me a headache. Any thoughts?
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Post by Dante on Feb 28, 2010 4:00:24 GMT -5
This is a really good question. Thanks for posting it, Isadora Q.
I think the fact that they didn't do it is your answer. They'd just have hesitated and prevaricated until the opportunity was lost. No matter how scared and cornered they are, the Baudelaires, at heart, aren't bad people. They wouldn't have been able to do it.
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Post by MyKindEditor on Feb 28, 2010 4:37:19 GMT -5
I wouldn't push him off either, I know he is supposed to be evil but there is always something comforting having an adult when you don't know what to do. By the last book (in the bit where he kisses kit) I felt kind of sorry for him.
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Post by Isadora on Feb 28, 2010 7:02:54 GMT -5
They'd just have hesitated and prevaricated until the opportunity was lost. Yes, I agree. It's like they were stalling with themselves... |
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Post by Christmas Chief on Feb 28, 2010 7:20:02 GMT -5
The Baudelaires are like Olaf in the sense that they both commit evil acts. The difference is, the Baudelaires feel remorse and guilt which prevents them from doing these things if they have any other choice, and certainly less often, where as Olaf feels no remorse or guilt, and if he does there's very little. The Baudelaires not pushing Olaf off the boat is either a result of fear (of what may happen if Olaf somehow managed to climb back on the boat), or just because it wasn't the right thing to do.
An interesting question would be, that if the situation was reversed, and it was the Baudelaires leaning over the boat, would he have pushed them off? Or one of them off? Probably not, because that seems a little extreme even for Olaf, and like Violet says he needs them to row. Except in this situation, Olaf probably wouldn't not out of fear or morals, but for himself. He wants the fortune, and he needs manual laborors. He probably wouldn't even had contemplated it very long.
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Post by Isadora on Feb 28, 2010 8:24:18 GMT -5
An interesting question would be, that if the situation was reversed, and it was the Baudelaires leaning over the boat, would he have pushed them off? Well, like you said, Olaf needed them to man the boat, but if he didn't need them for boat duty, if there was a motor or real oars or something, I think he would push two of them off, being that he only needs one. |
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Post by Christmas Chief on Feb 28, 2010 8:57:40 GMT -5
I don't think he would. Throwing one Baudelaire overboard would mean the remaining Baudelaires would go in after the one that was immersed into the sea. He could hold the other two still on board in his grasp and not let them escape, but he'd have to let go at some point, and even if it seemed suicidal, I think that the remaining Baudelaires would go after the one that was tossed over. Or get revenge on Olaf somehow. In any case, the Baudelaires still on board wouldn't take it lightly.
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Post by Dante on Feb 28, 2010 9:06:28 GMT -5
I'm inclined to agree. At this point, Olaf has nothing left. He needs the Baudelaires as his servants, and he's probably canny enough to realise that, as Sherry said, if he shoves one overboard, the others'll probably follow.
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Post by MyKindEditor on Feb 28, 2010 13:07:04 GMT -5
I'm inclined to agree. At this point, Olaf has nothing left. He needs the Baudelaires as his servants, and he's probably canny enough to realise that. I think they also need him, so either way, neither of them would be able to make it without the other. |
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Post by Christmas Chief on Feb 28, 2010 13:33:28 GMT -5
I think they'd be able to make it physically, but mentally there'd probably be varying degrees of remorse. I don't really think they necessarily need each other, in the sense of survival, but it's probably easier to have them along.
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Post by Isadora on Feb 28, 2010 15:08:43 GMT -5
Sherry's right on the part about them jumping in after each other. Also, after all they've been through together - not to mention they're siblings! - they wouldn't want to let one of their siblings go.
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Post by Chipper Coathanger on Mar 18, 2010 17:07:35 GMT -5
I don't think they would have thrown him overboard, even if the storm hadn't come. The Baudelaires never do things without a reason (unlike certain/ most adults in the series) and they would have had little to gain, except perhaps a few more bean rations.
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Post by wasabi20 on Jan 1, 2011 19:39:12 GMT -5
As I have said in another thread, about what book wasn't my favourite. I said The End. I mean, we find out, despite Olaf being after their fortune, that he's a good guy. As Dante says, I don't think that the Baudelaires would have saved Olaf, because they're not bad people. Unfortunately, in true LS style, their decision had been already made for them. I'm sure they would have felt guilty about that, but also glad that they're finally off the island and be able to start a new life for themselves. But then again, we don't know if there would be an Olaf protegee to carry on his evil deeds and keep the Baudelaires running which would make another series quite nice for Lemony and keep up guessing.
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Post by korovamilkbar14 on Jan 13, 2011 2:24:26 GMT -5
Agreed in a way. While I wouldn't say outright that Olaf is a good person, discovering some good aspects about his personality was one of the major reasons the series became bittersweet for me.
Also with the consensus. I highly doubt the Baudelaires would've pushed him in, there is still something fundamentally good in their guts.
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