How do Reavers pilot ships, them being insane cannibals and such?

POSTED BY: chrisisall
UPDATED: Thursday, December 2, 2021 20:06
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CHRISISALL

Tuesday, October 11, 2005 6:17 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Static:
Nothing has ever said that the reavers were made unintelligent. . .just HYPER agressive. Their neo-primitive (like that? I just made it up!)

Why, how neo-creative of you!

Yeah, hyper agressiveness does not rule out intelligence, I think.

Chrisisall, wondering if Citizen is reading this...

SPINLAND

Tuesday, October 11, 2005 6:31 PM

Something that occurred to me:

Select to view spoiler:

1. The Pax isn't still around: evidence the crew of Serenity not being affected. They don't even seem stressed about the possibility when they learn it exists, which leads me to believe it's not just a matter of being exposed to it for long enough.

2. Given point 1 above, the effects of the Pax are permanent. Something got changed that stays changed; it's possible those changes are somehow contagious? People don't tend to survive long-term (or large-scale) "exposure" to reavers, so it's not something that comes up often, but the Bushwhacked episode makes a case. Maybe more was going on in that poor bastard's head than just reaction to what he saw.

The negative evidence for point 2 is River was in the midst of a sea of them and still seemed okay afterwards--not to mention in contact with lots of blood and bloody by-products. Maybe something in her make-up renders her immune?

Just some fanwanking while at work.

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I don't know what your problem is, but I bet it's hard to pronounce.

CHRISTHECYNIC

Tuesday, October 11, 2005 7:13 PM

I don't think that Reaver's attitude is genetic at all, I think Reavers probably breed like crazy and allow only those that are strong or otherwise useful to survive, I think someone raised into that society would act as a member of that society.

My cousin is black, genetically she is half-African, quarter-Indian (from India) and quarter-Vietnamese. Her sister is Korean. Legally they are both French and American. Personality-wise they are French, they were raised as French girls and they act like French girls. If they were raised as Americans they would be American girls, if they were raised as Israelis they would be Israeli girls. Were they raised as cannibals they would be cannibals.

That’s the way things work. People act like the culture they are raised in and change is very slow in an isolated culture. As far as we know Reavers are not engaged in commerce, slavery, diplomacy, or any of those other things that allow new memes to be introduced. That makes change slow. It is much slower if those that disagree are killed off very, very quickly. I think Reavers would do that.

As for the thing from the movie:

Select to view spoiler:

I know very little about medicine, but I do know about the paradoxical effect. Some medicines, perhaps even most, have the exact reverse effect on a small portion of the population. If they make most people sleepy they make others insomniacs, if they make some people numb they make others sensitive, so on and so forth.

One thing to note is that some drugs to cure schizophrenia can push people deeper into it. Antidepressants can drive some people into deeper depression. Things don’t need to alter DNA to alter mood.

I have a feeling after being a Reaver you can’t go back. You can’t deal with what you have done enough to admit that it is wrong, and if by chance someone can what do you think their odds of survival are?

CHRISTHECYNIC

Tuesday, October 11, 2005 7:27 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Hjermsted:
Probably closer to pirates on PCP than pirates on acid. People on PCP are impervious to pain and the Reavers do tend to disfugure themselves which has got to hurt a little.

I got the impression that they liked pain. They were really the ultimate example of someone taking joy from living. Any sensation, pain or pleasure, is something they strive for. I got the impression that anything that didn’t kill or cripple them, but did make them feel something, was good to them.

On the other hand there are a hell of a lot of other reasons for doing it too. One is to dehumanize themselves. They’re obviously intelligent, but they don’t seem to fight each other and they clearly work together. How do they make the distinction between what they can kill, eat, or rape, and what they can’t?

Everyone makes these distinctions, be they, “I can’t eat anything but a plant,” or, “I can’t eat a member of my tribe.” The Reavers have put themselves apart from humans, and it might be easier on their very screwed up psyche if they no longer think of themselves as humans.

If you make something very different from yourself it isn’t as hard to hurt it, when was the last time you saw someone have a fit of guilt because they hurt a blade of grass? Reavers may well think of humans on that level, but they can only do that if they do not think of themselves as human.

It makes sense for Reavers to think of life in terms of, “Us and Them,” and that’s a lot more effective if you think of Us as a different species.

SMAUG

Tuesday, October 11, 2005 7:29 PM

Sorry don't know yet how to do the invisible text thingy..

Spoiler:
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But the problem with PAX still being around or it being passed on like a virus or disease.. I like many of the thoughts in this thread, but it seems that everyone is assuming as fact that anyone who continues to be exposed to PAX (in whatever manor) becomes a Reaver. But wouldn't only 10% of the people how would be exposed to it become a Reaver? Wouldn't the other 90% of the people exposed just bore themselves to death like the others on Miranda? If that is the case.. the 9-1 ratio doesn't help much in how the Reaver population is maintained/grown.

Smaug..

SPINLAND

Tuesday, October 11, 2005 7:35 PM

Good point, Smaug ... very good point!

To hide spoiler text put the word "spoiler" (replace the quotes with square brackets) in front of that text, and the word "/spoiler" (again, use square brackets) after the hidden text (to turn off the effect again).

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I don't know what your problem is, but I bet it's hard to pronounce.

TERAPH

Tuesday, October 11, 2005 7:37 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Spinland:
Something that occurred to me:

Select to view spoiler:
1. The Pax isn't still around: evidence the crew of Serenity not being affected. They don't even seem stressed about the possibility when they learn it exists, which leads me to believe it's not just a matter of being exposed to it for long enough.

I assumed that it was something that only affected people after a long exposure -- possibly years.

CHRISTHECYNIC

Tuesday, October 11, 2005 8:13 PM

To Smaug:

Select to view spoiler:

I thought it was a tenth of a percent (.1%), not ten percent (10%).

Either way I agree that it makes the idea of infecction by the PAX unlikely.

SMAUG

Tuesday, October 11, 2005 8:40 PM

christhecynic,

Yes.. you may be right.. I hate to admit I have only seen the movie once so far..

But yes.. if that is true then I think that makes my point about PAX even more valid..

CHRISTHECYNIC

Tuesday, October 11, 2005 9:28 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Smaug:
christhecynic,

Yes.. you may be right.. I hate to admit I have only seen the movie once so far..

We can only do what we can do, and if you hate to admit it I'm sure you have good reason for seeing it only once.

Just spread the word if you can and I shall be happy with you.

Quote:
But yes.. if that is true then I think that makes my point about PAX even more valid..

Exactly.

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