Читать книгу Black Panther and Philosophy - Группа авторов - Страница 13

One of the functions that tradition can serve in a society is as a guard against absolute and arbitrary power. In Britain during Burke’s time, for example, the monarchy had a lot of power, but it didn’t rule unchecked. The political and social traditions that had built up in England over centuries helped to balance the power of the monarch against the power of Parliament and against what Burke called the “entailed inheritance”⁴ of the people’s rights and liberties. The monarch might have had more power than a farmer, but the fact that both the king and the farmer lived within the same tradition meant that the farmer enjoyed liberties that he wouldn’t have under a capricious ruler. It meant that the king didn’t have arbitrary and unrestrained power.

We see this kind of tradition at work in Wakanda, as well. The coronation ceremony, for example, helps to instill humility in the king, reminding him that he is responsible to the tribes for his actions. In fact, the Challenge Day ritual suggests that though Wakanda’s monarchy is inherited, the king also serves by consent of the people. We see this in the fact that T’Challa must have the strength of the Black Panther stripped from his body before he can engage in ritual combat with a challenger to the throne. This levels the playing field and makes it possible for a challenger to actually succeed. Though it is probably not written in law, this custom protects the people from the whims of capricious and arbitrary rulers.

From his first appearance in Wakanda, Killmonger shows that he does not care about the traditions that guarantee order and liberty in the nation that he wants to rule. This is why his brief time in power causes so much harm and threatens to destroy the very fabric of Wakandan society. He says that he wants to use Wakanda’s vibranium and weapons to “liberate” the billions of people around the world who are of African descent, letting Wakanda serve as “judge, jury, and executioner” for oppressive people in other places. Moreover, he clearly has no interest in the customs that guarantee a peaceful, orderly, and fair transfer of power. When the leader of the River Tribe says that “it will take weeks” to arrange a new challenge, Killmonger says, “Weeks? I don’t need weeks. The whole country ain’t gotta be there.” In other words, he isn’t interested in the tribes having their say in the rule of Wakanda; he only wants the power to do what he believes is right – for everyone in the world.

Perhaps his worst offense against Wakanda’s traditions comes just after he has consumed the Heart-Shaped Herb and gained the strength of the Black Panther. One of the women who attend him during the process says that they preserve the garden of the Herb “so that when it comes time for another king, we will be ready.” Killmonger scoffs and says, “Another king? Yeah, go ahead and burn all that.” The woman appeals to tradition, saying that she cannot burn the Herb, and Killmonger viciously grabs her by the throat, lifting her from the ground: “When I tell you to do something, I mean that shit.” In other words, he is limited by no custom, tradition, or sentiment. His power is unchecked and arbitrary.

It’s hard to tell whether Killmonger doesn’t see the likely results of destroying the Heart-Shaped Herb or if he simply doesn’t care. But it is clear that the consequences won’t be good. Even though Wakanda is protected by the Border Tribe and by its advanced technology, its primary defender is the Black Panther, whose strength comes solely from the Herb. Unless some new source of the Herb is found before T’Challa dies, he will be the last of the Black Panthers. Worse, the destruction of the Herb might not bode well for the next transfer of power. Kingship in Wakanda is closely associated with the role of the Black Panther. The loss of that role will probably have a ripple effect on other aspects of Wakandan tradition. When the time comes for a new king, the other tribes might wonder what makes the royal family special without the Heart-Shaped Herb. They might wonder why a Challenge Day ritual is even necessary at all, and once they begin to wonder about that, tribal strife will probably erupt. In other words, the peace and social cohesion that Wakanda has developed over millennia could be destroyed by a single man who thinks that he knows better than Wakanda’s traditions.