What is Freedom and who is Free?

Thoughts for consideration:

THOUGHT “A”
1905. A young cadet of the US Army undergoing his first day’s training, including a haircut, has a picture of Mozart in his tent. The ignorant Master Sergeant disapproves of the haircut and wants to know where Mozart is, in order to give him a proper military haircut. In the end, he has all the boys in his charge wear their gas masks while doing their training, in order to cover his embarrassment at his stupidity and to show the boys who the real boss of the troop is. At the end of the day, he tells the boys that they may remove the gas masks and be dismissed if they shout “Mozart is shit”. A cheerful, gleeful shout from the boys laughingly pronounces the required statement, the masks come off and the boys merrily head for their dinner. However, the Sergeant notices one recruit still wearing his mask and still at attention.

In short: The boy refuses to say that Mozart is shit and therefore he does not remove the mask. Traditional military punishment for days does not force him to change his mind and he keeps the mask on day and night, even when sleeping or when having a shower.

The Master Sergeant in the end gives in and tells him to remove the mask. The boy refuses to do this, unless the Master Sergeant says that Mozart was a great composer. He plays some works of Mozart on the company’s piano, to demonstrate his meaning. However, even though the Master Sergeant concedes that it is a nice tune, he refuses to say that Mozart is a great composer. The boy refuses to remove the gas mask and more days go by in the status quo, with the Master Sergeant becoming more and more desperate. In the end, the Master Sergeant cannot take it any more and concedes that Mozart was a great composer. However, the boy refuses to remove the gas mask unless the Sergeant shouts his statement in front of all his troops, which the Sergeant eventually does with gusto! The boy takes off the gas mask and laughs with pleasure while continuing with his daily training.

QUESTION: Is this boy a free man even though he is in fact a slave to the Army and military rules and regulations? The boy refuses to surrender his beliefs and achieves a victory over his superior, but is he a free man?


THOUGHT “B”
450 BC. Peloponnesian wars. According to Thucydides, a Greek state surrounds the fort of another Greek State and eventually, following a promise of free passage, the defenders surrender. The winners change their mind about the free passage and demand that the prisoners swear allegiance to them, before they are allowed to go free, hoping that the prisoners will refuse and thereby give the winners an excuse to kill them and do away with a serious problem (from the winners’ point of view). One by one the prisoners are asked to swear allegiance, one by one they refuse and one by one are put to death.

QUESTION: Did the prisoners die free men? Did they die as slaves? What did their actions gain them in terms of freedom? No doubt the actions of the winners were despicable, but by achieving what they wanted in the first place, were they not the ones actually free, through their horrible acts ensuring their future freedom from aggression from a dangerous neighbour?

THOUGHT “C”
2009. A documentary. A guy alone films himself in the wilderness. Lots of game and water available and he can sustain himself for ever, if he so wishes. No taxes to pay, no rules to follow, no obligations to anyone. On day 32 he films himself crying. He misses human companionship. He misses the human touch, the exchange of words, thoughts and ideas.

QUESTION: This person is free from all restrictions yet he yearns for human contact which will essentially mean giving up some of his freedom, because as with all things human, one must compromise. He is therefore desperate to give up at least PART of his freedom, for the sake of companionship. When is he freer? Alone or with company?

DIMITRIS