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Caleb McBride H03: The Indoctrination in Iron Man

It is a sad fact that in today’s political, religious and social environments, indoctrination runs rampant. No matter what form it takes, indoctrination represents itself in schisms that are drawn between individuals and groups alike, with neither side willing to put down the values ingrained in them in order to bridge the gap and see the other side. While this phenomenon goes mostly unaddressed in modern media, the Netflix original series Iron Fist (based on the comic book character of the same name) attempted to  tackle this problem by giving the audience a look into the different forms of indoctrination that takes place all over the world, and especially in a area like America, where opinions can be as charged and influential as facts.

While the show did not receive a great deal of positive criticism from critics and viewers alike, the problems lie in the fight choreography and the overarching story not the underlying message, which I feel was overlooked by a great number of people. This theme is that indoctrination is bad no matter how valuable the lessons that are indoctrinated are. Indoctrination is a process by which a person or group passes on their teachings in a dogmatic way, unwilling to have the beliefs accepted as anything less than 100% correct.

This is most easily seen in religious families, where children are raised to accept the religion of their household based on nothing but their parent’s convictions and involves the demonizing of people who oppose their views. As a victim of this form of indoctrination I can attest that it only serves to confuse and complicate a child’s life, as they have no inner connection to the spiritual teachings presented and thus feel locked into a set of traditions that they are not sure they agree with.

However, the idea of indoctrination is just as prominent outside the religious circles, but is normally less heavily examined than the religious variety. For example, families and friend groups that staunchly support one political view often end up unconsciously indoctrinating the people around them, resulting in tons of support and conviction for the causes and views but also causes those who do not hold the same views to be deemed ignorant or some other form of inferior.

Finally, there is also the idea of social indoctrination. This form of indoctrination is most easily examined in gang cultures, where people congregate together in search of community and safety but end up becoming so tightly knit that they close themselves off to the outside world in favor of their own social traditions and norms. This closing off often results in violence and other such acts due to the placement of the groups safety over that of outsiders’.

Iron Fist has characters that represent each one of these forms of indoctrination and their journeys throughout the show mirror the struggle that many people feel today. Danny Rand, the titular character and shows main protagonist, is subjected to religious indoctrination against the show’s antagonist organization and results in him taking steps that would not be considered heroic by any person, in name of stopping the villain. A member of the supporting cast and the primary love interest of the series, Colleen Wing, is the symbolic character for political indoctrination. Colleen was taught and raised by the villainous organization Danny is stalwartly set against, but never saw its nefarious sides and as a result she and Danny suffered a major falling out, with him now considering her a villain and she considering him a naïve and immature child. The final form of indoctrination is adopted by a collection of characters, namely the gangs of children that the villainous organization takes in and indoctrinates. This indoctrination results in many difficulties for the kids as they struggle to adapt to the world outside the group when the organization is dismantled.

In summary, Iron Fist may not be the best show if you want compelling stories or well put together action, but if you want a good look at the effects of indoctrinating people, this is the show for you. The cast of characters offers a wide range of views that often leave you wondering who the real good guy and bad guy is, because just like real life, morality is more complicated than good and evil.

Quiz:

1: What are the 3 types of indoctrination dealt with in Iron Fist?

2: What character characterized Political Indoctrination?

3: What character characterized Religious indoctrination?

4: What separates Religious and Political Indoctrination?

DQ’s

1: Do you have any experience with Indoctrination? If so what kind?

2: how do you think we can best avoid indoctrination of our future children?

3: Is it possible to ever fully, de-indoctrinate someone?

MIDTERM LINK: http://cophilosophy.blogspot.com/2018/10/machiavelli.html