MovieChat Forums > Paradise Now (2005) Discussion > Had I been in his circumstances, would I...

Had I been in his circumstances, would I have done it ?

posted 17 years ago by AmO_MithrandiR
5 replies | jump to latest

Maybe the message of the movie was to deliver the point of view for the suicide bombers. Or maybe it is a bit deeper, it is the question that many of the viewers have asked themselves: Had I been in his circumstances, would I have done it ?... I asked myself that question. I'm a pacifist, I don't believe in killing nor violence. What if I was there in Nabuls, living in that big prison, braught up in a refugee camp in my own country, subjected to continuious humiliation by occupation, every family I know have lost many poeple who're killed by occupation, and the occupation is presenting itself as the victim and having the whole world believing in that, and worst of all, there is not a single hope that things will be better, in other words there is no future nor present. If i was living in such situation, would pacifism be a luxury that I can not afford ? Would I have been able to kill ?

It is so easy to make judgements, to categorize people by what we see of them. But it is impossible to know what it is like to be in someone else's shoes. What we have been through is a big part of what we are now. Our choices in life are greatly influenced by what we've had experienced. Had my experiences been completely different, would I have been a different man? Certainly...

MithrandiR
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It takes a man to suffer ignorance and smile
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[–] TemporaryOne-1 16 years ago

They were living freely and living in apartments, not "refugee camps", and they were going wherever they wanted to go freely. And everywhere they went, Palestinians were operating their own businesses, people were walking and driving and buying and working freely. There was no occupation anywhere.

Said even admits to Suha that Palestinians burnt down their own movie theatre in Nablus to protest businesses in Israel that decided to not employ West Bank workers. That startling moment is supposed to make viewers consider how many other acts of terrorism Palestinians committed against themselves.

That was one of the main points of the film - the occupation was predominantly in their mind and not a reality.

[–] 16 years ago

[deleted]

[–] vonnoejoe-212-561794 11 years ago

the occupation was predominantly in their mind and not a reality.

Are you serious?

[–] all_eyes_on_xanadu 16 years ago

Hopefully not. Hopefully you are not a dehumanised monster indoctrinated by Hamas to kill innocent people, leaving your own mother to weep and mourn, not just at your death but at the contrast created between yours and your fathers deaths. This was the significance of the mother figure. She was the most disappointed that Said has been recruited.

[–] AmO_MithrandiR 15 years ago

I like to think that I wouldn't; being a pacifist myself. However, I also believe in empathy; I try to see things, not only through my eyes, but through others'. It is the easiest thing on all earth to sit on a comfy seat, watching TV and calling others to be monsters. It is much easier than actually trying to understand why someone sacrifices own self to get back at random people.

As a pacifist, I don't make distinction between killing done by uniform or without. It is all unjust killing. So for me when Israel killed civilians in Gaza, it was no different than Hamas. Both sides killed civilians by intentions. If I'm to call names, I would call the Israel army to monstrous as much as Hamas.

If he is a dehumanized, then who bears the responsibility of this dehumanization? I hope your answer has a little of empathy, instead of calling names.