Very good analysis. Consistent with my own reading of what he is trying to communicate. The key though is that it’s a story about choice / freedom. Whether that is to choose security or more freedom I feel that it’s pretty clear he is starting from the position that there has to be a choice.
I love one piece, but when someone asks me why I can't clearly explain it to them. Your videos help me to understand why I love it. Each video you post makes me love the series all over again, and have a better appreciation for it. Thank you very much
Well, it's clearly about your emotional response and the connection you feel about certain aspects. There are just far too many, but it's pretty sad that they won't understand how hard One Piece sometimes hits us in the feels...
@@estel5335 One piece is only shonen manga that i can relate in real life since episode 1, i love it not because of the fights or because its anime, every issue Oda tackles in this manga is become a gate pass for people who loyally support the manga to talk what matters and to open a forum to each people that despite of difference in race and culture, different ideology and opinions are welcome it create more understanding to every reader, if you'll notice one piece have a lot of flat form we called forum (ex. wiki, reddit, one piece podcast). those people who hate one piece are probably the same people who doesn't what to talk deep conversation because either is boring or its just a waste of time. we are lucky that we appreciate one piece. I can't wait for its end and repeat the journey of pirate king luffy, maybe that time we can see the bigger picture oda wanted to tell to his readers.
Man theres everything in OP. Racism,politics, balance of power, fighting, comedy, history,geography... Thats why its the goat. Great work mate from someone who's interested in politics.
@@menage6051 OP has NewKama land, Ivankov, Dragon general is a trans. OP also has Amazon Lily the all-woman island, Boa is one of seven warlords. Big Mom is one of Yonko
This is probably the best rendition of real-life comparisons in One Piece that I've seen in a long time. Only Joy Boy has dared to directly go this deep, keep it up!
Its sad that One Piece-youtubers who mostly blow hot air have thrice or four times more subscribers than Morj. THIS right here is content of the highest quality and its also unique!
Morj is one of the best analizers on youtube in my opinion, not only one piece, but in general, and not a single One Piece youtuber i've seen comes close to his level of comprehension of the story nor is there a single one that makes content as complex and interesting as morj, he's a god.
Furor Teutonicus you have to understand that those guys have been doing videos for over 5 years, like some of them have been around since 2010 so it’s only natural that they have a greater following, shows that they have been consistent in their content creation.
I've ended up unsubbing from tekking, grand line reviews, etc etc Because they just don't seem to "get" one piece as much as morj, and certainly aren't as interesting
I've always found that beyond the amazingly exciting adventure One Piece presents, Oda also put a deep, sometimes opaque political message in his writing. Between the discussion about racism (Fishmen Arcs, slave auction, the World Nobels), colonialism (Skypiea, the way Emperor's take over territory, the influence of the World Govt. on the world and its countries), shadow governments, revolutionary movements etc, there is a TON to unpack here and enough material to make hours of videos. I'm fairly new to the channel but from what I've seen if there's one person that has the ability to do so in an intelligent and structured manner it's going to be you Morj.
As well as how prejudice and excluding people to a doomed fate in general can happen in various ways depending on who’s at the top, such as how the scholars at Ohara and Law’s family were terrorized by government forces despite not being slaves or fish men. All it can take is the thought of “there’s something I don’t like about you.” that could start a chain reaction of pain and suffering, even in supposedly in the name of justice.
I guess, like so many other things, it comes down to the circumstances surrounding *choice*. Being able to choose whether or not to see a doctor, go out to sea, have food to eat, join the marines or a pirate crew, search for treasure, go on an adventure etc. is not available to everyone on an equal basis, nor do people want the availability of the same choices for the same reason or to the same degree. For instance: Sabo wasn't free to go out to sea, but Luffy was. Sabo was born a noble with access to riches, education and other aristocratic things, which Luffy was not. Luffy's parents were barely involved in his life, while Sabo's parents tried to mould him into a smug aristocrat and he hated them. They had very different starting points which shaped their wants, needs, dreams and aspirations differently, and it gave them different accessibility to and possibilities of choice. This is also reflected in their story, choices, actions and where they are now. Sabo's background is the reason why he's a revolutionary, and not "just a pirate" like Luffy, and Luffy's lack of said background is why he's *not* a revolutionary. This makes me more interested in seeing Dragon's back story. It's going to be a very interesting one. You make good videos! Subscribed! 🏴☠️
You are right, it comes down to the circumstances surrounding "choice" as as you said, your background will determine your choice, which is a product of past causes leading up to it. Luffy was not "free" to choose, he could not choose otherwise because of his character traits. You could say it was destiny
You’re spot on buddy. I would like to add on this and say there’s also a message of whether people are given the choice to experience in a specific world or abide by an authority. For example, in the world of One Piece, the pirates who attack civilians are depicted so negatively because their choice to live in a safe and secure world of authority is stripped from them and they’re involved in the chaos of piracy without their consent. Another example is that, the people who wish to become pirates are often impeded by the world of authority such as Oden and his conflict with Wano’s isolationist policy. It all comes down to choice and whether people’s choices in life are respected by others.
M U be careful with destiny, you are implying that your past only defines your next actions, which implies no free will, thats not how the world works, people have free will and for sure their past changes how their decision making work, but it doesn’t make it 100%
Actually Luffy is a revolutionary in the real life sense of the word. There's no real different between what he does and what the Revolutionary Army does other than the fact that one of them has a specific moniker and have a large backing by the disenfranchised. Yes, Luffy and Sabo's reasons are different but that doesn't deter from what Luffy is doing. Also, do you think someone like Luffy who purposefully doesn't read the news would even know what the Revolutionary Army is and where to join? Sabo joined because of circumstances around how he was rescued. I doubt if he was rescued, he'd join the Revolutionary Army either.
One piece community creators : Akainu is yonko level , zoro > sanji , theory confirmed about Crocodile being luffy's half cousin from his tenryubito mother forshadowed in chapter 0.5 Mr Morj : One Piece's Politics
Small minds discuss power levels. Average minds discuss chapters. Great minds discuss what it means to live for safety or freedom through One Piece's dual structure of society.
I think the idea of balance in all things is more idealistic than realistic. I’d rather be more positive than negative. I’d rather make more good decisions than bad decisions. I’d rather have more wealth than less. I’d rather be more hard-working than lazy. Idk the idea of “balance in all things” just doesn’t make sense unless you mean ego death which is not actually balance in all things as opposed to worldly detachment from all things. For instance, how does one balance murder or rape lol. You can’t. Or how does one balance helping an entire country of people get free electricity- without doing something objectively bad and unnecessary in order to bring balance lol. You can’t. Ofc some say it’s perfectly obvious that “balance in all things” isn’t literal. But you’d be shocked how many people do believe that and use that idealism to justify their negative actions without ever stopping to think about how unreasonable that actually is. Especially when contrasted with how does one balance their overly-positive behavior- without doing something objectively stupid and unnecessary. Sorry for the essay lol, I just wanted to share a fallacy that I personally fell for in my younger years and hoping maybe this helps someone who’s yet to make the same realization I made. And personally for me this came from horoscopes and my being a libra lol. And yeah it’s childish, but I was a kid so give me some slack 😅
I never realized that the "sea" itself portrays a political system, I don't know it never occured to me. I always thought of the kingdoms or the WR. Fantastic video!
Yeah I've really considered that the 2 worlds could coexist. In my opinion Oda hasn't really portrayed it that way (or at least not well) but when you look at it this way it makes sense. Reason I say he hasn't is because when we think of the average pirate we're thinking of someone who steals from innocent people. Even the Straw Hats did this in Skypeia. Even when you look at people like Whitebeard and Shanks you have to ask why do they have bounties like that? Some of the things Luffy has done don't warrant a bounty from a moral standpoint but stuff like destroying Enies Lobby and Impel Down even though Luffy didn't do those things with ill intent yeah they do.
I have one small gripe I don't think that the ideal governments shown are democratically elected. I think they are shown to up hold the social contact. As in no matter the type of government it should have the support of the governed.
@@MrMorj I have a few issues with this video but I don't wish to be overly critical, especially since I don't regularly watch your videos. It is something I have been thinking about recently though and I think Oda use of subtlety on this topic makes it hard to decipher. Definitely worth meditating on further.
Given the symbolism of Luffy being the ideal for the world of the sea, and Vivi being the ideal for the world of the land, isn't it brilliant how Oda included a scene in which she hits Luffy for saying that there will be death on the path for change, only for him to hit her back, and tell her she is being naive.
@LameDoodler that is a little ironic for Oda to teach considering how little he kills off characters, or rather how characters survive things that should logically leave them dead even in a world of superhumans, but hey how one feels about op death is up to them.
@@waluigi3515 he kills off a lot of people. Just not named people as much. Like the marines at MarineFord. A number I don't know died. They were all killed. Each had families, but they aren't important to the story
The one part of OP I want more of is the political structure and Dragon, and that's really only something that comes about in dragon's arc I'd imagine, like, I can't but hope we get some more information on him because if there's a triangular power system we basically only know two of the three nodes. E.g., the easy story to cover is whose will did Dragon inherit?
I really believe that at the end of Act 3 we will be getting a flashback to the events of the Reverie, and there we will get more of Dragon's ideology fleshed out
@@omgaidebig4121 But why would Garp be a Marine if his will opposed the government? As much as I like Garp as a strong character, a fatherly figure, a great comrade to Roger, etc., I can't help but admit that I don't see that making sense nor do I believe he has one of the stories main "Wills". Luffy has Joyboys, Roger eluded to as much as his son having it, but, clearly, it was Luffy. If Dragon has inherited someone's will, then it's most likely someone we haven't heard been introduced to yet, unless one of the major pirates of Roger's era could be added to/enhanced since Wills only seem to at least be passed by the generation above.
One narrative that bothered me in one piece was, When Franky invents his war machines someone important says that "Inventions are never a crime, it depends on how people use them." In Franky's backstory. At the same time when Caeser Gastino invents the ability and throws the same logic that invention in itself is not a crime - Chopper thrashes him saying, If you didn't invent this thing kids would be safe. I like to think it is the opinion of two different Characters and not Oda himself. But it is presented in such absolute way that you cannot ignore it.
While Franky has no ill will in his inventions, Iceberg warns him that his weapons will eventually lead to harm. After the ships are used to damage water 7 and frame Tom, Franky learns his mistake and stops making new warships
It also the same issue on having civilian rights to own a gun. The purpose is to protect but theirs people who use it to abuse. Sadly its still a matter of choice on how people will be responsible or accountable in everything they have either in skills or things they used. But for me I'm still against of civilian having access to own a gun like what the quote said "with great power. comes great responsibility" -not all civilian realize the responsibility they have if they use a gun in a wrong way, some of them use its for power tripping. unfortunately theirs also policemen who have rights of accessing a gun yet some of them irresponsibly use it.
Recently, I’ve been reading a lot of philosophy from both Nietzsche and Marx. Nietzsche thinks that focusing on equality will hinder great men from cultivating their talents, thus leading to worse art and culture. As such, any political ideology should focus on cultivating the talents of a few great men. Marx, on the other hand, thinks that giving freedom will cause oppressors to exploit the everyday man. Both of these seem to be sensible ideologies, but they also apparently contradict. I never realized that One Piece actually proposes a solution to this dilemma.
I’ll try to learn more about Nietzsche’s philosophy because that sample you’ve given in your comment left an awful taste in my mouth. I want to figure out why exactly I find it so repulsive. Thanks for the comment
I also think that you’ve inadvertently compounded freedom with power to a degree in your comment. Doesn’t mean that I know anything ab ur actual beliefs tho (cause I don’t lol) just talking about how your line on Marx came off.
tbf, the better way before reading Marx's work is reading either Friedman or any econonics book. i find peole who have read Marx with little to no understanding of how Economics work or atleast how businesses operate
nunnally nun, Nietzsche is a very controversial philosopher. Don’t worry if he leaves a bad taste in your mouth. He leaves a bad taste in the mouth of a lot of people. I would also argue that Marx, at the very least, would compound freedom and power. Roughly speaking, Marx thought that freedom in markets would lead wealth (and thus power) to conglomerate in the hands of a few wealthy people.
One Piece follows an idealistic, somewhat Aristotelian approach to politics. The form of government is not intrinsically important - whether the ruler is one person, a few people, or many. Instead, what matters are the content and actions carried out by the governing body. As long as the government or state aims for the common good, its legitimacy is established. That's why there's no critique of monarchy. As seen in Arabasta and Dressrosa, if a king looks out for his people, there's no reason to undermine his authority. However, if that's not the case and the system is corrupted, serving the well-being of a select group (like the Celestial Dragons) or a tyrant (such as Crocodile or Doflamingo), revolution and subversion are justified.
There is something your video is missing. A lot of pirates in One Piece did not choose to be pirates for the sake of freedom. They were just forced to be pirates, because they belonged to societies that were criminalized by the world government. The Sun Pirates, Trafalgar Law himself, Vivi (at some point), King Riku (at some point too), they all had to be against the system, because the system was against them, and it is not that they sought for freedom, but that they were forced to oppose the system in order to survive.
Great video. I think thats one of the reasons why the sea is so important- the notion of a competitive wilderness with little/no rules is integral to explaining the politics in One Piece as well as representing the theme of freedom more generally. The setting does so goddamn much in this story its unbelievable.
Dude if I'd done this vid before I'd done my vid on worldbuilding, I could have incorporated so much more from here into there. Theres this whole other element to the world set up I was missing, too bad I thought about this stuff a month later haha
Mr. Morj knows what's elite discussions are about. He brings freshness on the table... along with his expertise, knowledge, skills and efforts. This is not just a video to attract views... But a video to add value in the One Piece community. #Respect
You’re last sentence is so true. It’s pretty easy to attract views, just go back to power scaling debates or chapter reactions. Morj’s video’s add depth to One Piece.
This is what made me in love with One Piece. Oda says he doesnt try to deliver any messages to readers and they can interpret the story as they see fit, but that's an absolute lie, it's too well written for the messages in the story to be unintentional
I think he mostly means that he didn't set out with the plan of having this grand political/philosophical message, but the story kind of demanded it of him regardless. The director David Lynch always speaks about remaining true to the "central idea" of any given film/novel/insert-medium-here as the key to creating a cohesive project, and that that central idea basically provides everything for you if you continue to trust it and look deeper into it. I think this is very much what happened to Oda when writing One Piece; he had an idea for an adventure series about pirates going on a romantic voyage in a fantastic and mysterious world, all the themes and philosophy just came from him looking deeper into that idea as the series evolved and grew physically. I don't think it's so well written because he planned it out so thoroughly, but because he sticks to the initial premise and designing principle so strongly and let's everything unravel from there organically (or as organically as something can in a narrative that is doctored by someone).
This is very wrong. Oda didnt say that. He said he doesnt want to deliver a political message through LUFFYS MOUTH because its so stupid and contradicting because Luffy will ignore the political messages he said because he just wants to be free. Unlike naruto for example. He very clearly shows and potrays a political message but this political message vagues from arc to arc.
I mostly agree with what you said about One Piece’s politics. However, I think you oversimplified the way Oda portrays the politics of land. Land politics is not 100% pro equality and redistribution. In Water 7 the leader is the most succesful businessman the country has. In fishman Island there is a rich people districts, i.e where the starfish guy comes from, and yet their wealth is never put into question. It does seem like on land, Oda generally supports generous governments, but it does not discard monetary hierarchies acquired through business success. I think Oda criticizes obtaining oppressive legal hierarchies a lot more than monetary hierarchies. Saboady focuses on legally treating people as slaves. Ennies lobby focuses on the government having the power to convict someone for knowing how a language. Marineford on being executed just because of association to someone else.
@@dreadedsage8630 , Iceberg won’t pay his workers including Franky monetary shares higher than what most construction workers in the real world is paid until Franky arrives back in Water 7 after helping Luffy becoming the next Pirate King.
Morj, I had to pause this at 19:15 this is so good man you deserve hundreds of thousands of views EDIT: This is my favorite video from you I think, atleast top 2, thanks!
Holy crap, I'm always on the verge of tears watching your videos; they're only getting better. Not to mention, this further solidifies Vivi's choice to stay behind for her country, but also has this underlying theme that she can be a Strawhat and a friend despite conflicting ideoligies. This opens up an entire other world of One Piece, thank you so much.
For the topic at hand, this was a surprisingly and more so refreshingly objective video. Great job Morj. Only thing I'd nitpick is to be fair you aren't really allowed to be a pirate in OP either, and the lifestyle puts you at odds with the government. Theoretically, you could also embark on a pirating life in the real world with all its freedoms and dangers, though the real world is structured far differently for you to have a chance at succeeding.
The thin is that in the one piace world countries cant realy stop you from leaving, even if all kingdoms in de land strech they navy tin they still cant cover the sea. The real world have missiles.
Yeah, a few times I tried to stress that the pirate's world is more so a metaphorical depiction of a different type of world with less governmental control, etc, whereas with the kingdoms of the land Oda could more literally show what a more democratic, socially conscious government should look like. So it's kind of comparing one type of society that we only get a metaphorical depiction of, to another where we get a more literal depiction of it. May not have gotten that across the best haha
I think morj is saying that in op pirates are so many and so strong that piracy has become its own society with its own code and rules ,in the real world piracy is an underground thing in op when you choose to be a pirate its like u just arent in the world gov umbrella and therefore you are a "criminal"
@@heavenlyweather117 it can be interpreted irl like switching countries because you didn't like the old ones rules (rules can be constitutions or society's pressures)
Wow. This video was really good. Always thought about the hypocrisy in one piece about power. Although I would argue that its not much about land VS pirates. Its about innocence VS sinners. Pirates will happily fight mountain bandits. Luffy easily decides to fight the Yakozuna, without knowing if he was good or bad. Luffy does not care about good or evil. Its whether you are on his side or not. Take a shot at his friend and even if its justified, luffy will attack back. Time and time again, Oda has shown that luffy is not a hero and thus not an ideal character. He is just the main character whose journey we follow. Unlike dragon, luffy's goal is not to make the world a better place. He just wants to do what he wants. His goals normally do align with greater good but it was never his intention. Just like in fishmen island, he does not care if the island burns down if he can save his nakama. Similarly, in Impel down, he does not care that so many prisoners who have actually committed crimes, like Crocodile, will run free. He only cares about Ace. And I really appreciate your these types of videos, but I would have to disagree that Oda is trying to tell us the greatest form of government. Oda is simply telling us the best way to live is through freedom. However, it has its consequences. There are a lot of injustices in the world and everyone has their own form of justice for it. The world will be a better place if those with good values rise to the top and will be shitty if those with bad values rise to the top, regardless of any system. Dragon, Blackbeard, and luffy all are going against the WG but all for different reasons. Dragon hopes to create a better or should I say, fairer world. Blackbeard wants the power of WG while Luffy is against WG simply because they are in his way. Although since politics is involved, what do you think Dragon's plan is after he topples the WG. I always find that Dragon and Luffy will eventually have conflicting world views. A society cannot be safe where its citizens are totally free and similarly, a society cannot be free if its citizens are totally safe. A person like luffy who will chase freedom will always be a problem to a just society(especially since there will also be bad people seeking freedom like blackbeard). I have no idea how Oda will come even close to giving us a satisfying conclusion society wise as there are multiple contradictory lifestyles that Oda embraces in One piece.
Yeah, but then again luffy and BB ideas of freedom are different. BB strives for freedom within control (that being his own of course) Meanwhile luffy doesn’t want to rule as the pirate king, he just views that position as being the Way to achieve Ultimate freedom, but not actually Warming the power of a King. But i agree and i really can’t imagine how he will pull of these aspects of the story
I think the dichotomy of "innocence vs sinners" is a false one. It's more of warmhearted people that create good wherever they go vs people that are blinded by tyranny vs chaotic people. We see it in the Revolutionary Army vs Sakazuki vs Blackbeard respectively. I'll let you choose which one's which but it should be obvious.
So much rich analysis about OP's politics and ideals mentioned by Morj here. It's crazy how much more Morj has helped me to appreciate OP, and develop ideas for a story of my own
I truly believe that the way you examine and go through the detailed explanation is just absolutely brilliant and another great video...you are my fav one piece RUclipsr love from India mate.
How are you always able to articulate and structure your thoughts with such finesse? Seriously whenever I try to make an OP theory it turns out shit, but you always manage to make everything so damn convincing. How do you do that lol.
Haha it just takes time to put together a script that I'm happy with, and plus I've had a lot of practice doing lots of other vids like these. If you did this as much as I did then you'd be articulating your ideas way better I'm sure
You most likely base your theories on feelings instead of researched facts. Mori also tries to find real world epics that are similar to the op theory he has.
Enjoyed the video, but I disagree that the pirate ideal is on the 'economic right'. The 'economic right' is a belief in 'might makes right' and winner takes all; it's a belief that private property is valid, should be taken, and then defended. Luffy is competing to be 'the freest man in the world' (his version of Pirate King), but everyone else is competing to rule over all pirates (the acquisition of power and property). The Straw Hats have to fight because they unapologetically pursue freedom, and this inevitably goes against the wishes of those in control (World Gov, Yonkos) or those who wish to be in control (most other pirates). Without the deadly competition between pirates, Zoro can still win any sword duel, Nami can still chart the world, Chopper can be a doctor, Usopp can be a brave adventurer, Robin can learn the true history, Sanji can find the All Blue, Franky can sail his ship around the world, Brook can meet Laboon, Jinbe can have equality on the surface, and Luffy can travel the world freely with his friends. I don't think Oda sees pirates fighting over power as a good thing. He may just see it as an inevitability that some people will try to conquer others and that freedom from such tyranny will always require the pursuers of freedom to fight back against the wrongdoers. I think by the end of the story we will see The Navy switch their role from enforcers of the law to being guardians of the people, and we will see 'pirates' be groups of adventurers inspired to see the world. The Navy will protect the people from obligation and 'peace-main' pirates will protect the people because they will inevitably irk the badguys who want to control them.
agrees. Oda might romanticize straw hat's adventure but he definitely doesn't romanticise the average piracy. hell, luffy spent most of his adventures bringing down pirates and none of those fights are about some competition. calling that ladder some sort of free market that oda politically endorses and calling it another piece of oda's ideal system, when oda went to great lengths to expand and paint explicit leftist believes, doesn't sit well with me. still great video tho.
People think one piece is anti-capitalist?...... lol how? The core of the franchise is freedom. Does anyone think for even a moment that if the world government declared private ownership of the means of production wax illegal, and took control of all capital, it wouldn't be portrayed as a bad thing?
if the series stopped business owners from being able to profit off others labor by just owning land, it would most certainly be painted as good. it already has been painted as good, the carribou cover story depicts workers taking all the product they produced, overthrowing the business and then holding up a flag resembling che guevera. this is painted in a pretty positive light. not to mention the series has already criqitued privitization and promoted unions before. capitlism and the ability to profit off others labor≠freedom
They’re literal billionaires in marie jois , controlling the world government, and them controlling the marines. They have the same exact system we have irl. And it shows you the disparities as well. It all stems from the idea that some ppl have more and have been abusing it through slavery and military power
I know this is an old comment, and I don't think its anti capitalist exactly but what means of production are private in one piece as it stands? All I can think of right now is small businesses and shipbuilders like icebergs company, but I can't think of any mass industrial production which wouldn't be under the purview of governments like vegapunks creations or navy ships
I think one of the key elements about Oda's writing, as well as frankly most fiction, is its focus in individuals rather than systems and social structures. A lot of fiction really focuses on "great man history" of larger than life characters shaping the world around them. Their personal agency, ability and power allowing them to compete with other individuals of similar capability for the fate of the world. It is primarily these grand individuals who impact and shape good or bad systems based on their own motives and ideals. This in contrast to the real world where, different kinds of core systems and structures give birth to and promote different kinds of individuals whom echoes the system they exist in to positions of power and influence. And grand social change rarely comes primarily from specific individuals as much as it comes from entire social movements. In OP's case, this primarily manifest itself in the idea that its not the system of piracy or world government that is fundamentally broken (as in it fundamentally promotes and generates exactly the kind of bad behaviours and people we see portrayed), but rather the fact that too many powerful individuals are "bad" currently. And if other grand and powerful individuals that are "good" remove them/out compete them, the systems will in turn become "good".
Finally someone with common sense, everyone sitting here trying to defend communism. When its about people being corruptible no matter what system in place, and the rulers (WHICH IS SCIENTIFICALLY NECESSARY, AKA UNAVOIDABLE) will rule good or bad based on who they are, individually. And WHEN it happens you need to step up to replace the rulers. It's not complicated but alot of people here are trying to claim wealth=oppression in a story where treasure is almost exclusively dreams.
@Simon That's one of my gripes with One Piece. The whole great men of history thing. It should be great peoples of history, not great men of history. Another one of my gripes is Oda's view on globalism, he doesn't seem to have any problem with globalism while I do. Give too much power to government until it becomes the world government and it creates tyranny, just like Sakazuki and all of those brainwashed enough to do "absolute justice" which is tyranny. I really wish at the end of One Piece the world government was dismantled along with the marines.
@@itsnotonepieceitsthatpiece wealth cant be oppression since wealth is created at a net gain and money is just a metric to measure it with a stable currency. Like if you give out massage to your family your creating wealth that didn't exist, if you do it for money to meet the demands of a bunch of people who want it in exchange of a representation of wealth like money which can be traded for a variety of wealth. This is why the diffrent of wealth between nations used to be only about 3 times the difference from the best to the poorest. While now the difference is more than a hundred times;that wealth didn't exist before.
@@bobbob-zc1nx But you're not seeing it from a macrostructure perspective and those that work for other people. In order for those who gain wealth to stay affloat they need to subtract some of the value of labor of those that worked for them and have a surplus. Therein lies the oppression. Either way, I don't care for argukng with you. I already told you I beg to differ AND you do you.
Great video as usual! So many interesting angles I never thought of, even the main idea of the contrast between the sea and the land for political systems. The idea that you live in the free world of pirates by choice reminds me of a lot of the early arcs' themes about what being a pirate means. About how being a pirate means being willing to put your life on the line, since in that world there's no authority to take care of you. About accepting notoriety instead of trying to run away from it. The story even has Buggy near the start to specifically make the point that it's not about pillaging the citizens of the land.
Dude I'll be honest, I was very worried about this video, and tried to make it as even-handed as possible, I was certain I'd get a lot of people from all different sides saying I had portrayed it completely biased in one direction or another, so I'm glad to see the comments that are pretty open to what I said. And man, I'm glad you brought up East Blue, when I was cutting up images for this I kind of went down and East Blue rabbit hole where I saw lots of different things I hadn't noticed before haha. I def agree that EB saga is largely about defining what a pirate "really" means, and Buggy's a great example of showing that through contrast.
@@MrMorj At least from just seeing the end result, I don't think you even really needed to worry. Or you did a good job of making it reasonable. It just fits well enough to make sense to anyone, since it starts from themes I think most people recognize (freedom, the world government being bad) but gets extended into more specific ideas if you look closer. I personally never realized that Drum Island is saying something about healthcare availability, but once pointed out it's obvious in a way where I don't think you can even call it biased. And I think it's overall agreeable to people because it's showing a contrast of two systems with their benefits and drawbacks rather than focusing on one being perfect. And yeah, not sure if I mentioned it before in any of our conversations but I love how East Blue helps define what a good pirate is through the contrast between Luffy and the villains. Like how Don Krieg shows you need to rely on your personal strength instead of weapons or numbers. Or how basically all of them until Arlong don't care about their crews.
I love how One Piece doesn't shy away from its goofy nature to explore these deeps themes. You don't need to be edgy, suppousedly mature or dark, you can be fun and that's ok. Just as there's nothing wrong in being edgy to tell these kinds of themes.
Showing us different ideologies through various characters and letting us know whether those ideologies are right or wrong or neither is what oda is doing. I'm positive that he doesn't have extreme views and accepts almost every view(sensible ones - which in itself is subjective) in moderation. He may be letting us know that even though we have different ideologies we can coexist and find happiness if we don't believe/act in the extremes. This is just my perspective. Feel free to give me a new insight.
@Kvothe Windrunner wait, didn't you just describe an extreme idea of freedom? If they have no moral limitations because they believe heavily in freedom then that makes it an extreme belief.
Democracy is by definition incompatible with a society where everyone is equal and lives in harmony. The literal definition of democracy is "A system in which the minority is dominated by the majority." You can debate whether this is preferable to alternatives (Monarchy, Oligrachy, , various forms of anarchy, etc.) but it's just inaccurate to depict democracy as a peaceful utopia.
It isn't supposed to be a peaceful utopia but really the alternatives of monarchy or oligarchy are worse. We see an undemocratic oligarchy ruling the One Piece world and it's in a terrible state, I think it would be different if it was a democratic world.
@@itsnotonepieceitsthatpiece we see bad oligarchies in the world government, but we also see good monarchies in Alabasta and Dressrosa. Even in Skypiea, the whole God system doesn't dismantle entirely after Enel is defeated, Ganfall simply becomes the new one. Oda never portrays monarchy or authoritarianism (in its least pejorative sense) as bad necessarily. There are wise kings and tyrants. Just as there are good and bad pirates
@@maxalaintwo3578 Yeah, I guess you're right. I don't think Oda is gonna get that into real world politics anyway, so I don't think he'll speak about democracy in actual depth (other than what we saw in the Sakura Kingdom).
I'm so amazed at your panel selection. When reading them for the first time, usually never thought to give them any deeper meaning. However, your videos always show that there's some hidden meanings we are missing! Amazing video as always!
Minor spoiler; according to chapter 1011, even Big Mom believes in the separation of land and sea, and the basic decency pirates must uphold to innocent people who have nothing to do with them.
24:00 Oda does not only depict pirates who plunder the people's security as evil. He also portrays the act of chaining down the freedom of a common man in the name of security as disingenuous. A flip side to what Morj mentioned is also depicted, and is done so quite often in the story of One Piece. Thought would be worth mentioning.
he doesnt mention it directly, but he does imply it, by saying that people should be free to choose to go to the sea when they dont want to be ruled so strictly, he didnt make the parallel, but he didnt ignore that either
@@gladehartdreamer5620 morj did mention it at the very start when he showed the panel of dragon saying smoker, "what right do you have to stop a man from going out on sea?" But he didn't mention it in his conclusion while summing it up. That's what i meant to say.
I’ve always seen the sea as this weird mix of Libertarianism, but not going full Atlas Shrugged (See Bioshock for example) while the land is more of modern day social democracy. Again, comparing the world of One Piece to ours is incredibly tricky as our world is infinitely more nuanced and complicated when it comes to economic systems and philosophies, but it does give us interesting insight on an idea of what Oda’s ideal society would be.
Here is MrMorj with another amazing take. I have always viewed Luffy and the other peacemane pirates in the series as a libertarian. They strive for personal freedom and fight like hell for others freedom as well. I appreciate you bringing up the axis of politics. So many nowadays want to view politics as left and right, when in reality there is a whole other layer to it. Ultimately what I believe Oda is trying to portray by contrasting society on land and on sea is that true freedom and ultimate good is somewhere in the middle. Extremes of any side are dangerous and lacking. Thanks for the amazing content.
that would definitely be more left than the center. the ability to reach for higher goals and work for the better but also being provided safety nets and basic necessities with little to no goverment is a form of socialism.
Little to no government is capitalism. Government interference is anti capitalism. Trade between citizens and private citizen is capitalism. Only time the govt can interfere if the trade is not fair, hence limited government. @@hera761
This was a really well put together video, and I want to thank you for introducing the political compass to this discussion, as most other political videos about OP seem to not be seated in actual political knowledge. However, I'm a bit confused about why you never discussed anything in the libleft section. It is, after all, the synthesis of the things that One Piece is saying are good (democratically elected government, providing resources to everyone, also freedom and the removal of class hierarchies) and the antithesis to the things that OP is saying are bad. I understand that you wanted to address the 2 worlds idea, and while I do think that this is what Oda is saying currently exists in the OP world, I do not necessarily think that these worlds will remain separate and exclusive by the end of the story. Rather, I think there will be a sort unified version of the two. Even if you don't believe that though, it would be nice to hear you discuss the possibility of what combining those two worlds would mean for the One Piece world. I would be interested to hear you discuss it in a later video. I'll be making my own video about it soon as well, if you'd like to hear another perspective before addressing it.
@@jarrithmccoy4417 yeah ansyn/ancom or at least libertarian socialism is what I think Oda is trying to make a case for. When the revolutionaries finally defeat the celestial dragons, the world government will become like essentially an union of communes with each island allowed to self govern how they want, and they can come together to organize trade deals and make decisions that affect the world at large. The role of the marines will be interesting to consider, but I think theyre probably going to become much more decentralized and focused on defending the islands themselves rather than hunting pirates. Because unfortunately with the kinds of powers that are possible in One Piece, some kind of a defense force will still be necessary. But I can see it becoming much more of a militia based group that gets supplied with auxiliary units from other islands in times of need.
@@Max-kv8uw we just haven't gotten enough about the revolutionary army and its beliefs to pinpoint the specific ideology that fits them best, and tbh I dont think we ever will, since there are probably a lot of differing viewpoints ideologies among the members. That being said, it does seem to be some kind of libertarian leftism, and I don't think they'd be opposed to anarcho-syndicalism or anything. I expect oda to just go with a more broad "socialism good and authoritarianism bad" message.
@@Max-kv8uw , the Revolutionaries are more anarch-communist whereas the Strawhats themselves are more libertarians or anarch-capitalists depending on the One Piece arc hence why even if Luffy was raised by Dragon then Luffy would have never met the Pirate Crew he met on his Pirate quest because Luffy’s, Dragon’s, and Garp’s ideologies are entirely different from one another, and they can’t be mixed together into one society because they have different ideologies that can’t work with all at once within different contradicting ideologies.
I feel like Oda is depicting the perfect Society within kingdoms as more of an unrealistic utopia, were as he depicts the pirates world as a more realistic world full of hardships and such.
I really like your interpretation of the politics in one piece, but I'd like to add one thing. By having those two options: the left/ authoritarian land and the right/ liberal sea, it is crucial to always start at the land and than decide to go to the sea. The savety on the land gives you the chance to grow and decide to take more risk on your live and then set sail. This is another reason why people, who where successful on the sea give back to the land. They pay for the save infrastructure that let them grow and so contribute to the society as a whole.
Where majority of one piece content creator busy in rant, reaction and surface analysis we are blessed to have mr morj. Hxh fandom already proved that if your community have great content creator they can make your series more than great series.
*Another Video?!!* With teary Eyes...Soul filled with inspiration and voice breaking... *Mr Morj... Y-y-y-you SHOULDN'T HAVE* Then the Sun came out, and a Rainbow that would soften even the Thuggest of Thugs graced the land. Ramen.
You really just recontextualized all of One Piece for me, I could never quite place this idea that you so eloquently portrayed. I could never really nail down that the ocean itself could be, in an ideal world, it's own world where the lawless adventuring of One Piece could thrive, despite its political messages.
00:00:00 ⟾ Intro - controversy, nuance 00:00:42 ⟾ Philosophy - Freedom vs. Authority, extremes 00:01:08 ⟾ Oda’s Answer? - ideal world, philosophy (values), politics (practical) 00:02:31 ⟾ GROUND RULES - 1) No Personal Politics 00:02:54 ⟾ Ground Rules - 2) No Specific Ideologies 00:03:23 ⟾ No Specific Ideologies: Simplified Political Compass 00:04:18 ⟾ No Specific Ideologies: no labels 00:04:38 ⟾ MOST “GOOD” FOR THE MOST PEOPLE - Good and Bad Regimes 00:05:42 ⟾ Good Regimes: for the people, Alabasta (Cobra), Dressrosa (Riku) 00:06:12 ⟾ Monarchies, Elections: Sakura Kingdom (Dalton), Dressrosa (Riku) 00:07:00 ⟾ Duties: Strong Safety Net; Alabasta (Cobra), Wano (Oden), Drum Kingdom (Wapol) 00:07:26 ⟾ Duties: Militia, Arlong Park , limit to centralized power, Dressrosa 00:07:51 ⟾ Equality, Class divides, Celestial Dragons, Goa, Wano, hierarchy, status by birth 00:08:59 ⟾ Most “Good” for the Most People - Summary 00:09:23 ⟾ ‘Most People’? - Luffy, pirates, another world 00:09:58 ⟾ THE SEA - Freedom: different type of society 00:12:00 ⟾ Freedom: Hierarchy, ambition, competition 00:14:03 ⟾ Economic Competition: plundering, looting, from other pirates vs. from populace 00:14:44 ⟾ Money: importance, reward, spending by free will 00:16:26 ⟾ The Sea - Summary: freedom with danger/unfairness, Chopper, Tama, Ace 00:18:56 ⟾ THE TWO WORLDS OF ONE PIECE - Dream World, balance of ideals, freedom to choose, 1) Land World, 2) Sea World 00:21:50 ⟾ Not Ideal World Yet: land unjust governance, destruction and rebirth 00:23:10 ⟾ Not Ideal World Yet: sea pirates attacking land citizens 00:24:20 ⟾ The Ideal World: two-headed conflict, Celestial Dragons, Blackbeard, Kaido, Big Mom 00:25:18 ⟾ The Ideal World: Balance of Political Ideologies 00:25:49 ⟾ [Promo] [Credits]
Some people have been pushing an idea that One Piece promotes the beautiful marxist revolution and that is somehow a good thing. Which contradicts the fact that Imu and the WG run a 1984 marxist hellscape.
thinking the world goverment is comparable to how the goverment is portrayed in 1984 is pretty ridiculous and makes me think you've read neither. 1984 is also specifically about the soviets and not marxism. the world goverment in one piece are a lot more comparable to to characticures of crooked leaders under feudalism or capital owners under capitlism. the celestial dragons aren't depicted as some sort of the all seeing, heavy handed dictatorship the way the soviets are depicted in 1984. they're moreso just depicted as people who profit off others peoples labour, make laws that specifically effect people they want and use military and law enforcement to protect their own interest all while being in the shadows. also considering the serie's support for unions, anti privatization messages, the insane amount of class conflict and odas blatant support of the cuban revolution I don't really think it's far off to say the series has marxist themes.
The amount of insight I gain from these videos my droog is insane i'm so impressed at how you're able to disect, digest, and then regurgitate the story of one piece as if it's a college class lecture is simply astounding.
I had pretty much decided to never release a video like this because it would get a lot of backlash no matter what, till I came up with the solution of "no official terms, just place it on the compass yourself" haha
This video is truly one of the very best made on one piece. As a fan of the great series and its nuances i truly salute you and thank you for this excellent video
I believe you are extremely biased on the idea of Democracy. In real life, most kings were selected at first (except for those who came to power through conquest, they were only selected in their first land), it's only their descendants that haven't been chosen.
Great, really love this- but I think this misses that while there’s competition on the seas, inside a pirate ship things are largely egalitarian- at least run like a family. Inside a pirate ship, the words of a captain are only the words of one man. Real pirate ships could never have an owner, or a king, because any captain could be removed by the crew at gun point at any time. He’s got no deed with police to back him up- the power of the crew majority forces a pirate ship to be a democratic enterprise where the workers literally control the means of production and own/run the ship collectively. Even in a world where your boss could be as powerful as Big Mom or Kaido, “good” ship are always egalitarian with hierarchy existing but being mostly casual- Straw Hats, White Beards, Red Hair, Roger Pirates, Sun Pirates etc. and just like we saw with Usopp at Water 7, anyone can abandon a crew at any time. Most pirate crews have no way of metting out retribution to deserters- in real life and OP, Pirate ships only continue insofar as they make it worthwhile for crew to remain. Even if you look at “bad” crews like the Black Beards, Arlong Pirates, Buggy Pirates, etc. loose hierarchy, closer to egalitarianism or family values is the norm for pirates. There is no market system of merit amongst crew mates- or else where such things exist (pretty much Kaido/Big Mom/Flamingo pirates exclusively) they’re the exception rather than the norm, and even then there’s more crew equality than what’s seen on a Marine ship. If you live in a society where there is no employer-employee relationship, no individual state-enforced property rights, where everyone chooses freely where to work between worker-owned enterprises and there is no Government-that’s not a right wing society. So what you really see is pretty like: Ideally Social Democracy/Democratic Socialism on the land Ideally Anarcho Communism on the sea One Piece is a world where the World Government are evil, fascist, authoritarians at their core, and the Revolutionary Army are bringers of democracy, liberation and justice. Overall, it’s mostly idealizing different kinds of leftism.
Big Mom wasn’t even born a Yonko; she was born as an obese land whale that whenever she was with the Rocks Pirates is whenever she was a muscular MMA fighter that later became a Yonko after having 85 children through raping and having one night stands from everybody she met after Roger’s and Rocks deaths.
@@RoronoaZoro-ur6hr First off, she was absolutely a monster when she was a kid long before rocks. She destroyed Elbaf and single-handedly killed one of the kings. She could easily have competed against many of the mid-high tier characters even at a young age. I also wouldn't say she raped anyone that we know of. She was very fetching in her younger days (In her 20s). Just because she didn't stick around with her husbands does not mean they weren't willing participants.
this is brilliant! really, really, really, really good! It's such a good in-depth dive into the themes that i would've never ever gotten anywhere close to thinking of. I'm really glad you've put your skills to good use in analyzing this amazing story and sharing it with the world :D
I loved Doflamingo's monologue at Marineford. "Justice will prevail? Of course it will! Whoever wins the battle decided justice" (not a word for word quote, but still...he's right
I'm not so sure that the 'two worlds" are actually supposed to be seperate societies one can choose to live in. I feel that in a story called "One Piece" that a unification of the world would be thematically more fitting. I think that rather than advocating for two seperate societies, they are seperate aspects of the same society. Ensuring a social safety net for all and abolishing exploitation, gives people more freedom to chase their own dreams. For a true meritocracy to happen, people need to begin on the same place at the starting line (equality of oppertunity). As long as there are people who inherit excessive wealth and have the means to protect it by force (Celestial Dragons), while at the same time other people are oppressed and exploited from birth (Fishmen), a true meritoctacy cannot exist. I think the message is that competition and ambition are great and should be pushes for, but only in a fair society that takes care of people's basic rights and needs. That would the only society wherin actual freedom can flourish. Economic security as a means to accomplish more personal freedom and expression. Looking at it from this lense of analysis, left libertarianism would be the most fitting for the ideal world that One Piece implies.
Good video, but I think you makes a point about how opening the borders goes against Wano's interest, which is kind of wrong? A thing throughout the story is about exploration and being able to go wherever you want, and understanding the world around you. Even in FMI, the New Fishman pirates are limited by the fact that they haven't actually seen the outside world, and have no desire to try interact with outsiders,while Fisher did explore the world, and Otohime wanted to have better relations with the humans in general. And of course, there's also the Sea Train itself, which is used as a device to connect with other islands, and have trade due to which W7 is able to prosper. And the way Skypiea is under Enel, and Shandia before Noland visited, distrusted outsiders is seen as wrong.
I definitely agree that in the series, freedom of exploration and gaining new information is portrayed very positively, and that Wano's isolationist policy is portrayed to be "wrong", and something that should be rectified. But that was my point, that Wano is an example of Oda showcasing how the ideal of "safety/security of the people" is not always necessarily more important than personal freedoms. It is made clear that yes, Wano was once in danger because of outside forces, and the reason that Wano ended up in the terrible state today is precisely because of an outside force, Kaido, coming in and wreaking havoc; Wano was a flourishing society for the most part before Kaido's arrival. The desire to keep "bad things" out, is probably safer for everyone. However, personal freedoms matter as well. And yes, in this case, Oda is definitely implying that Wano ultimately should have open borders, even if it is less safe, but the issue itself isn't the point, it's what the open borders issue represents. Oda could have swapped the open borders issue for some other hypothetical issue that pits personal freedom against safety of the population, and depicted how one man values his freedom over the "safer rules" of society, and the point would still stand. Some laws provide safety, but restrict freedom. You should always have the option of leaving the "safer society" for one with greater freedom, is what I took away from the Wano situation. Hope that clarifies what I meant!
I learned something from this video to the context of One Piece as a series in addition to what is mentioned in the video. I think a good third of people who don't like One Piece but are alright with anime in general just don't agree with the ideals presented in the series. One Piece rides on those ideals for everything. If you can't accept the core "conceit" or whatever- of the ideal(s) of One Piece, then it will be an empty experience like a very very slow and uneventful shonen. Like epic moments like Sanji respecting food after his mentor starved might simply not click at all, probably being simply too plain for them.
Idk if you're still reading comments on this one but I had something to say based on the ideological arguments between Socialists and Libertarians that I think you missed maybe. Libertarians often argue that if worker co-ops and being your own boss (worker control of the means of production) is possible now under Capitalism, then why do Socialists want to impose this system on everybody else? Why can't they just let bygones be bygones and allow private industry to exist alongside public, and let people choose which is best for them? The Socialist counter (I am a socialist btw) is that that *fundamentally misses the critique of private industry that Socialism argues- private industry and it's interests are constantly reaching it's tentacles out into the world to increase and maintain their power at the expense of uninvolved citizens.* Rural villagers who have nothing to do with the private industry will have their rivers polluted by runoff from copper wire factories for instance. A similar dynamic exists in One Piece that explains why this aggressively libertarian side-society is easy to romanticize but ultimately destructive to the main body of the world's citizens who don't subscribe to it- power acquired in this free society is meritocratically earned, sure, but ultimately always comes back around to hurt and affect those who took the blue pill and chose to security over freedom. Pirates routinely harass the citizens, and in a world where public and private industry exist side by side, the private industries/pirates are unconstrained by the safeguards of democracy and collective morality, therefore they're able to acquire power and exercise it in a way that is against the wishes and interests of the VAST majority of society- Nobody wants life saving drugs to be price-gouged to straight up evil levels, and nobody wants their island to be invaded by pirates, but as long as this lawless libertarian side world exists, it will always prey on those outside it's boundaries. It never works the other way around.
Before I get into the video I'm going to post my own thoughts about One Piece's politics and see how it compares. I think the main thing Oda is trying to get across is the importance of local government and self-governance. Every time we see an island in disarray it's because outside forces control the political system whether that be warlords, the navy, an Emporer. We see this in Alabasta, Dessrosa, Wano, and basically every other major arc. Edit: I realize I only answered the up and down question basically World Government represents the top part of the graph and Pirates represents the bottom part of the graph and the ideal situation seems to be in the middle. However, I didn't answer the left to right of the graph and in that regard, I don't have enough information to make an informed opinion but I think the lean is to having strong safety nets because we don't see much in the way of poverty. (Yes we do see poverty in One Piece but that's when it's being caused by either the world government or pirate warlords, not when the government is restored to the people and their representative leaders.)
Yes, yes, and yes your take is far far better than most of these people. I however am against safety nets made by government. Because in reality there are people who are responsible for the functioning of society no matter what political system and they are the responsible, ie the defenders, and maintainers, in government that would be NET tax payers, government can only create a safety net via taking your money(since they have none) so if a safety NET of any size is made through government its only against the will of the responsible. Otherwise they would have already made said safety NET but cheaper and more efficient without bureaucracy, if neccessary. So ultimately to keep out parasites and corrupt politicians using safety nets to buy votes or power your EXPLAINATION, is best. Local safety nets only; made by the responsible, willingly, should a safety net exist at all and then local churches and charities made by free people in their own communities take care of the rest. Oda specifically mentions government using safety as an excuse to wield power aswell. I believe when oda shows kings creating social safety nets it's more yo show the heart of the king than a specific policy
Ironic that Oda, the preacher of freedom and adventure, spent a huge portion of his life being sedentary, drawing this manga. It's his embodiment of his passion, joy, and calling. Everyone's got their own calling that's just as fulfilling for them as it is for someone like Luffy going out to sea.
This is what did it. Excellent analysis of what you think backed up by evidence. Subscribed. I'll take an hour of this please. As long as you're willing to do so and it doesn't burn you out.
This video is why I think one piece is the best story of ALL TIME...no other story in any medium gets across these many ideas (the two sides of freedom, family, war, friendship, etc) and builds a “believable” world around it. The ideas emphasized in the story like freedom and the power of dreams have literally changed my life and are some of the most important ideas to ever exist...when one piece ends, put Oda’s right hand in a museum!
Just came from Nux video declaring war to the One piece community and boy this channel is a treasure trove subscribed immediately, this has just made me love One piece even more can't wait to binge through all your content.
I wouldn't say that the only pirates who are portrayed as "good" by the series are the ones who do not take and pillage from non-pirates. Eustass Kid was said to loot and kill from civilians when he first started his pirate crew with Killer, now he's one of the secondary protagonists (aka one of the good guys)
Pretty interesting video; the balance of freedom and equality, individual freedom and collective freedom, and finding ways in which they can reinforce each other. Luffy's own pirate values have always intrigued me. From the beginning, he has considered himself a pirate rather than a simple seafaring adventurer, even though "pirate" often has this negative connotation. I've often wondered why Luffy calls himself a pirate if he doesn't do the traditional pirating activities. But over time, I realized that's really the whole point; if Luffy doesn't have the freedom to call himself a pirate, is he really free? And while Luffy is generally pretty friendly, he isn't a "hero" in the usual sense. He doesn't feel a duty to help people unless they're his friends, or they show the willingness to help themselves (though thankfully, Luffy makes friends pretty easily). He criticizes Captain Kuro in the beginning partly because of his unwillingness to deal with the Marines and the overall challenges of being a pirate. Even though he has no personal dislike of Marines, he recognizes that clashing with the Marines is part and parcel of the journeys of being a pirate. I do think it's important that Luffy doesn't want to conquer anything. He has a friendly rivalry with certain pirates in that he wants to become Pirate King before they do. He likes fighting (to the point where he made friends with Laboon by starting a fight), but it's generally not portrayed as him wanting to dominate his opponents. There are certain aspects where Luffy can be confusing; sometimes he acknowledges that the pirate world is unfair, other times he shows a code (i.e. "Don't attack from behind, respect one-on-one duels"). There's a quote from Star Trek: TNG: Captain Jean-Luc Picard : This is the 24th century. Material needs no longer exist. Ralph Offenhouse : Then what's the challenge? Captain Jean-Luc Picard : The challenge, Mr. Offenhouse, is to improve yourself. To enrich yourself. Enjoy it. I find this an important value; even if your basic needs are met, there are still more challenges and more things in life to seek out.
I think one of the reasons for that is because Luffy based his entire belief & value system of what being a pirate really is on Shanks who has been his first main influence in the series imo.
Mr Morj made me realize why they teach literature in school.
I wish Mr Morj was my Lit teacher
Unfortunately, 90% of English teachers are bottom of the barrel, lol
LMAO
😂
Lmao
Excellent Morj!!! The fact you found all the panels too... *salute*
Dude finding all these panels......makes me wanna take a month long break each time I do one of these haha. But no, we're gonna keep it going :)
Whoa ... wassap Joy Boy?
@@MrMorj your videos are so informative and interesting! You're doing great!
Very good analysis. Consistent with my own reading of what he is trying to communicate. The key though is that it’s a story about choice / freedom. Whether that is to choose security or more freedom I feel that it’s pretty clear he is starting from the position that there has to be a choice.
Hey morj joyboy here
I love one piece, but when someone asks me why I can't clearly explain it to them. Your videos help me to understand why I love it. Each video you post makes me love the series all over again, and have a better appreciation for it. Thank you very much
Just tell them it's long, and has alot of to talk about
Well, it's clearly about your emotional response and the connection you feel about certain aspects. There are just far too many, but it's pretty sad that they won't understand how hard One Piece sometimes hits us in the feels...
@@estel5335 One piece is only shonen manga that i can relate in real life since episode 1, i love it not because of the fights or because its anime, every issue Oda tackles in this manga is become a gate pass for people who loyally support the manga to talk what matters and to open a forum to each people that despite of difference in race and culture, different ideology and opinions are welcome it create more understanding to every reader, if you'll notice one piece have a lot of flat form we called forum (ex. wiki, reddit, one piece podcast). those people who hate one piece are probably the same people who doesn't what to talk deep conversation because either is boring or its just a waste of time. we are lucky that we appreciate one piece. I can't wait for its end and repeat the journey of pirate king luffy, maybe that time we can see the bigger picture oda wanted to tell to his readers.
Dude, same
Man theres everything in OP. Racism,politics, balance of power, fighting, comedy, history,geography... Thats why its the goat. Great work mate from someone who's interested in politics.
@Ariel Shapiro oof
@Ariel Shapiro it would be nice to know which manga is less sexist and more pro Lgbt than one piece. Just to ask.
@@Tommaso251287 In what way is One Piece NOT pro-LGBT?
@@menage6051
OP has NewKama land, Ivankov, Dragon general is a trans.
OP also has Amazon Lily the all-woman island, Boa is one of seven warlords.
Big Mom is one of Yonko
@@deckyfx2188 Yeah, only thing is Oda is a coomer. But he's got good social stances as far as I can tell
This is probably the best rendition of real-life comparisons in One Piece that I've seen in a long time. Only Joy Boy has dared to directly go this deep, keep it up!
@Skate Team lmao
Lol like if JB’s thoughts were organized and structured
@Skate Team we're and other races are too. It's not just us
I hope you're talking about the character not the youtuber 😂
Its sad that One Piece-youtubers who mostly blow hot air have thrice or four times more subscribers than Morj. THIS right here is content of the highest quality and its also unique!
yes, i hate that all the big OP youtubers do are live reactions and Morj who actually looks at the story and analises has way less subscribers.
and importantly, timeless!
Morj is one of the best analizers on youtube in my opinion, not only one piece, but in general, and not a single One Piece youtuber i've seen comes close to his level of comprehension of the story nor is there a single one that makes content as complex and interesting as morj, he's a god.
Furor Teutonicus you have to understand that those guys have been doing videos for over 5 years, like some of them have been around since 2010 so it’s only natural that they have a greater following, shows that they have been consistent in their content creation.
I've ended up unsubbing from tekking, grand line reviews, etc etc
Because they just don't seem to "get" one piece as much as morj, and certainly aren't as interesting
I've always found that beyond the amazingly exciting adventure One Piece presents, Oda also put a deep, sometimes opaque political message in his writing.
Between the discussion about racism (Fishmen Arcs, slave auction, the World Nobels), colonialism (Skypiea, the way Emperor's take over territory, the influence of the World Govt. on the world and its countries), shadow governments, revolutionary movements etc, there is a TON to unpack here and enough material to make hours of videos. I'm fairly new to the channel but from what I've seen if there's one person that has the ability to do so in an intelligent and structured manner it's going to be you Morj.
mr. morj is goated
I agree. Morj is intelligent one piece youtuber.
Others are likable but not deep.
Joy_Boy Theories if you havent yet subbed 👍
Also the abolition of Gender and how suffocating it can be for people outside of the accepted gender norms. One Piece says trans rights :)
As well as how prejudice and excluding people to a doomed fate in general can happen in various ways depending on who’s at the top, such as how the scholars at Ohara and Law’s family were terrorized by government forces despite not being slaves or fish men. All it can take is the thought of “there’s something I don’t like about you.” that could start a chain reaction of pain and suffering, even in supposedly in the name of justice.
I guess, like so many other things, it comes down to the circumstances surrounding *choice*.
Being able to choose whether or not to see a doctor, go out to sea, have food to eat, join the marines or a pirate crew, search for treasure, go on an adventure etc. is not available to everyone on an equal basis, nor do people want the availability of the same choices for the same reason or to the same degree.
For instance: Sabo wasn't free to go out to sea, but Luffy was. Sabo was born a noble with access to riches, education and other aristocratic things, which Luffy was not. Luffy's parents were barely involved in his life, while Sabo's parents tried to mould him into a smug aristocrat and he hated them.
They had very different starting points which shaped their wants, needs, dreams and aspirations differently, and it gave them different accessibility to and possibilities of choice. This is also reflected in their story, choices, actions and where they are now.
Sabo's background is the reason why he's a revolutionary, and not "just a pirate" like Luffy, and Luffy's lack of said background is why he's *not* a revolutionary.
This makes me more interested in seeing Dragon's back story. It's going to be a very interesting one.
You make good videos! Subscribed! 🏴☠️
You are right, it comes down to the circumstances surrounding "choice" as as you said, your background will determine your choice, which is a product of past causes leading up to it. Luffy was not "free" to choose, he could not choose otherwise because of his character traits. You could say it was destiny
You’re spot on buddy. I would like to add on this and say there’s also a message of whether people are given the choice to experience in a specific world or abide by an authority. For example, in the world of One Piece, the pirates who attack civilians are depicted so negatively because their choice to live in a safe and secure world of authority is stripped from them and they’re involved in the chaos of piracy without their consent. Another example is that, the people who wish to become pirates are often impeded by the world of authority such as Oden and his conflict with Wano’s isolationist policy. It all comes down to choice and whether people’s choices in life are respected by others.
M U be careful with destiny, you are implying that your past only defines your next actions, which implies no free will, thats not how the world works, people have free will and for sure their past changes how their decision making work, but it doesn’t make it 100%
A very good description of why egalitarianism is a false god 👍
Actually Luffy is a revolutionary in the real life sense of the word. There's no real different between what he does and what the Revolutionary Army does other than the fact that one of them has a specific moniker and have a large backing by the disenfranchised. Yes, Luffy and Sabo's reasons are different but that doesn't deter from what Luffy is doing. Also, do you think someone like Luffy who purposefully doesn't read the news would even know what the Revolutionary Army is and where to join? Sabo joined because of circumstances around how he was rescued. I doubt if he was rescued, he'd join the Revolutionary Army either.
One piece community creators : Akainu is yonko level , zoro > sanji , theory confirmed about Crocodile being luffy's half cousin from his tenryubito mother forshadowed in chapter 0.5
Mr Morj : One Piece's Politics
The differences are so stark!
Small minds discuss power levels.
Average minds discuss chapters.
Great minds discuss what it means to live for safety or freedom through One Piece's dual structure of society.
@@LinkEX *clap emoji*
thats why we sub morj and laugh at the rest
Y'all throwing shade at bdw law
so basically, One Piece is striving to be perfectly balanced... as all things should be
....you seem familiar....
@@udonnauchegbu2018 yeh your right hs oddly familiar
I think the idea of balance in all things is more idealistic than realistic. I’d rather be more positive than negative. I’d rather make more good decisions than bad decisions. I’d rather have more wealth than less. I’d rather be more hard-working than lazy. Idk the idea of “balance in all things” just doesn’t make sense unless you mean ego death which is not actually balance in all things as opposed to worldly detachment from all things. For instance, how does one balance murder or rape lol. You can’t. Or how does one balance helping an entire country of people get free electricity- without doing something objectively bad and unnecessary in order to bring balance lol. You can’t. Ofc some say it’s perfectly obvious that “balance in all things” isn’t literal. But you’d be shocked how many people do believe that and use that idealism to justify their negative actions without ever stopping to think about how unreasonable that actually is. Especially when contrasted with how does one balance their overly-positive behavior- without doing something objectively stupid and unnecessary. Sorry for the essay lol, I just wanted to share a fallacy that I personally fell for in my younger years and hoping maybe this helps someone who’s yet to make the same realization I made. And personally for me this came from horoscopes and my being a libra lol. And yeah it’s childish, but I was a kid so give me some slack 😅
@@noahokayama3825 i see
@@noahokayama3825 idk how you fall for that. That was Thanos' ideology and he was the villain lol
I never realized that the "sea" itself portrays a political system, I don't know it never occured to me. I always thought of the kingdoms or the WR. Fantastic video!
Yeah I've really considered that the 2 worlds could coexist. In my opinion Oda hasn't really portrayed it that way (or at least not well) but when you look at it this way it makes sense. Reason I say he hasn't is because when we think of the average pirate we're thinking of someone who steals from innocent people. Even the Straw Hats did this in Skypeia. Even when you look at people like Whitebeard and Shanks you have to ask why do they have bounties like that? Some of the things Luffy has done don't warrant a bounty from a moral standpoint but stuff like destroying Enies Lobby and Impel Down even though Luffy didn't do those things with ill intent yeah they do.
I have one small gripe I don't think that the ideal governments shown are democratically elected. I think they are shown to up hold the social contact. As in no matter the type of government it should have the support of the governed.
That's fair, might have made an unnecessary extrapolation there
@@MrMorj I have a few issues with this video but I don't wish to be overly critical, especially since I don't regularly watch your videos. It is something I have been thinking about recently though and I think Oda use of subtlety on this topic makes it hard to decipher. Definitely worth meditating on further.
@@RedElm747 Would like to hear them; some of the issues.
There is no "should" in politics or political theory
@@estel5335 that's all there is
Given the symbolism of Luffy being the ideal for the world of the sea, and Vivi being the ideal for the world of the land, isn't it brilliant how Oda included a scene in which she hits Luffy for saying that there will be death on the path for change, only for him to hit her back, and tell her she is being naive.
@LameDoodler that is a little ironic for Oda to teach considering how little he kills off characters, or rather how characters survive things that should logically leave them dead even in a world of superhumans, but hey how one feels about op death is up to them.
@@waluigi3515 I mean Pedro actually dies
@@waluigi3515 Also Ace and Whitebeard
@@waluigi3515 he kills off a lot of people. Just not named people as much. Like the marines at MarineFord. A number I don't know died. They were all killed. Each had families, but they aren't important to the story
@@waluigi3515 and logic doesn't apply to one piece, since there is someone made of fire, and another made of light.
Me Morj once again spitting facts about how important the Foxy arc was
@Pixel Smile i could only imagine - Buggy in smaller scale ... 😂
If Oda is Goda, than Mr.Moji is an Apostle.
Think he was there during the Eclipse?
I don't know the word apostle
cant agree more.
@@diobrando6729 messenger
Kaustubh Kathole someone who interprets the work of a God’s teachings and spreads that information to the masses
The one part of OP I want more of is the political structure and Dragon, and that's really only something that comes about in dragon's arc I'd imagine, like, I can't but hope we get some more information on him because if there's a triangular power system we basically only know two of the three nodes. E.g., the easy story to cover is whose will did Dragon inherit?
I really believe that at the end of Act 3 we will be getting a flashback to the events of the Reverie, and there we will get more of Dragon's ideology fleshed out
I think he has Garp's will or JoyBoy's.
@@MrMorj really on act 3 but don't you think that wano is already biggest arc ever and why oda will add revivere on wano and will stretch the arc.
@@MrMorj I wish
@@omgaidebig4121 But why would Garp be a Marine if his will opposed the government? As much as I like Garp as a strong character, a fatherly figure, a great comrade to Roger, etc., I can't help but admit that I don't see that making sense nor do I believe he has one of the stories main "Wills". Luffy has Joyboys, Roger eluded to as much as his son having it, but, clearly, it was Luffy.
If Dragon has inherited someone's will, then it's most likely someone we haven't heard been introduced to yet, unless one of the major pirates of Roger's era could be added to/enhanced since Wills only seem to at least be passed by the generation above.
One narrative that bothered me in one piece was,
When Franky invents his war machines someone important says that "Inventions are never a crime, it depends on how people use them." In Franky's backstory.
At the same time when Caeser Gastino invents the ability and throws the same logic that invention in itself is not a crime - Chopper thrashes him saying, If you didn't invent this thing kids would be safe.
I like to think it is the opinion of two different Characters and not Oda himself. But it is presented in such absolute way that you cannot ignore it.
I think the key difference is the intention behind their creators
a hammer can be used both for good and bad...
there are no good use to a machine gun
@@mobiushelldoctor1423 Yeah and in the end ceasar was helpful to the strawhats (by obligation but helpful anyway)
While Franky has no ill will in his inventions, Iceberg warns him that his weapons will eventually lead to harm. After the ships are used to damage water 7 and frame Tom, Franky learns his mistake and stops making new warships
It also the same issue on having civilian rights to own a gun. The purpose is to protect but theirs people who use it to abuse. Sadly its still a matter of choice on how people will be responsible or accountable in everything they have either in skills or things they used. But for me I'm still against of civilian having access to own a gun like what the quote said "with great power. comes great responsibility" -not all civilian realize the responsibility they have if they use a gun in a wrong way, some of them use its for power tripping. unfortunately theirs also policemen who have rights of accessing a gun yet some of them irresponsibly use it.
Recently, I’ve been reading a lot of philosophy from both Nietzsche and Marx. Nietzsche thinks that focusing on equality will hinder great men from cultivating their talents, thus leading to worse art and culture. As such, any political ideology should focus on cultivating the talents of a few great men. Marx, on the other hand, thinks that giving freedom will cause oppressors to exploit the everyday man. Both of these seem to be sensible ideologies, but they also apparently contradict. I never realized that One Piece actually proposes a solution to this dilemma.
I’ll try to learn more about Nietzsche’s philosophy because that sample you’ve given in your comment left an awful taste in my mouth. I want to figure out why exactly I find it so repulsive. Thanks for the comment
I also think that you’ve inadvertently compounded freedom with power to a degree in your comment. Doesn’t mean that I know anything ab ur actual beliefs tho (cause I don’t lol) just talking about how your line on Marx came off.
tbf, the better way before reading Marx's work is reading either Friedman or any econonics book. i find peole who have read Marx with little to no understanding of how Economics work or atleast how businesses operate
Please give me a quote where Marx uses such a vague "freedom" definition.
nunnally nun, Nietzsche is a very controversial philosopher. Don’t worry if he leaves a bad taste in your mouth. He leaves a bad taste in the mouth of a lot of people.
I would also argue that Marx, at the very least, would compound freedom and power. Roughly speaking, Marx thought that freedom in markets would lead wealth (and thus power) to conglomerate in the hands of a few wealthy people.
I was completely missing the duality, only concentrating on the "sea" side of the spectrum, valuable insight
One Piece follows an idealistic, somewhat Aristotelian approach to politics. The form of government is not intrinsically important - whether the ruler is one person, a few people, or many. Instead, what matters are the content and actions carried out by the governing body. As long as the government or state aims for the common good, its legitimacy is established. That's why there's no critique of monarchy. As seen in Arabasta and Dressrosa, if a king looks out for his people, there's no reason to undermine his authority. However, if that's not the case and the system is corrupted, serving the well-being of a select group (like the Celestial Dragons) or a tyrant (such as Crocodile or Doflamingo), revolution and subversion are justified.
There is something your video is missing. A lot of pirates in One Piece did not choose to be pirates for the sake of freedom. They were just forced to be pirates, because they belonged to societies that were criminalized by the world government. The Sun Pirates, Trafalgar Law himself, Vivi (at some point), King Riku (at some point too), they all had to be against the system, because the system was against them, and it is not that they sought for freedom, but that they were forced to oppose the system in order to survive.
Great video. I think thats one of the reasons why the sea is so important- the notion of a competitive wilderness with little/no rules is integral to explaining the politics in One Piece as well as representing the theme of freedom more generally. The setting does so goddamn much in this story its unbelievable.
Dude if I'd done this vid before I'd done my vid on worldbuilding, I could have incorporated so much more from here into there. Theres this whole other element to the world set up I was missing, too bad I thought about this stuff a month later haha
Morj what did you study in college or prior to this to give you the background to facilitate your analysis?
@@MrMorjPlease make a new video on this topic. I want to see your more recent understanding.
Mr. Morj knows what's elite discussions are about.
He brings freshness on the table... along with his expertise, knowledge, skills and efforts.
This is not just a video to attract views...
But a video to add value in the One Piece community.
#Respect
You’re last sentence is so true. It’s pretty easy to attract views, just go back to power scaling debates or chapter reactions. Morj’s video’s add depth to One Piece.
Yeah we learn more from this! Praise to Oda and Morj!!!!
I really did watch Morj say all the list of patreons just to hear him say "srirachalimes" lol
Marco D. Toon LOOOL we miss you marco
@@lolololllll Sup bro how you doing
Been reading one piece for years. And your the only RUclipsr that makes me like one piece even more. Beautiful video man
This is what made me in love with One Piece. Oda says he doesnt try to deliver any messages to readers and they can interpret the story as they see fit, but that's an absolute lie, it's too well written for the messages in the story to be unintentional
I think he mostly means that he didn't set out with the plan of having this grand political/philosophical message, but the story kind of demanded it of him regardless. The director David Lynch always speaks about remaining true to the "central idea" of any given film/novel/insert-medium-here as the key to creating a cohesive project, and that that central idea basically provides everything for you if you continue to trust it and look deeper into it. I think this is very much what happened to Oda when writing One Piece; he had an idea for an adventure series about pirates going on a romantic voyage in a fantastic and mysterious world, all the themes and philosophy just came from him looking deeper into that idea as the series evolved and grew physically. I don't think it's so well written because he planned it out so thoroughly, but because he sticks to the initial premise and designing principle so strongly and let's everything unravel from there organically (or as organically as something can in a narrative that is doctored by someone).
This is very wrong. Oda didnt say that. He said he doesnt want to deliver a political message through LUFFYS MOUTH because its so stupid and contradicting because Luffy will ignore the political messages he said because he just wants to be free. Unlike naruto for example. He very clearly shows and potrays a political message but this political message vagues from arc to arc.
I mostly agree with what you said about One Piece’s politics. However, I think you oversimplified the way Oda portrays the politics of land.
Land politics is not 100% pro equality and redistribution. In Water 7 the leader is the most succesful businessman the country has. In fishman Island there is a rich people districts, i.e where the starfish guy comes from, and yet their wealth is never put into question. It does seem like on land, Oda generally supports generous governments, but it does not discard monetary hierarchies acquired through business success.
I think Oda criticizes obtaining oppressive legal hierarchies a lot more than monetary hierarchies.
Saboady focuses on legally treating people as slaves. Ennies lobby focuses on the government having the power to convict someone for knowing how a language. Marineford on being executed just because of association to someone else.
I'm sure that iceberg's workers get a way better share than most workers do in our world.
@@dreadedsage8630 , Iceberg won’t pay his workers including Franky monetary shares higher than what most construction workers in the real world is paid until Franky arrives back in Water 7 after helping Luffy becoming the next Pirate King.
@@RoronoaZoro-ur6hr source? I hope it's not "trust me bro" keep in mind they didn't need security because they themselves fulfilled that roll.
Morj is on fire! This is a topic i hoped a one piece youtuber would discuss.
Morj, I had to pause this at 19:15 this is so good man you deserve hundreds of thousands of views
EDIT: This is my favorite video from you I think, atleast top 2, thanks!
"Earning money is never put on a pedestal in OnePiece"
*Namiying Intensifies*
This man is physically incapable of missing 😳
Holy crap, I'm always on the verge of tears watching your videos; they're only getting better. Not to mention, this further solidifies Vivi's choice to stay behind for her country, but also has this underlying theme that she can be a Strawhat and a friend despite conflicting ideoligies. This opens up an entire other world of One Piece, thank you so much.
Morj has been spoiling us lately :)
For the topic at hand, this was a surprisingly and more so refreshingly objective video. Great job Morj.
Only thing I'd nitpick is to be fair you aren't really allowed to be a pirate in OP either, and the lifestyle puts you at odds with the government. Theoretically, you could also embark on a pirating life in the real world with all its freedoms and dangers, though the real world is structured far differently for you to have a chance at succeeding.
The thin is that in the one piace world countries cant realy stop you from leaving, even if all kingdoms in de land strech they navy tin they still cant cover the sea. The real world have missiles.
Yeah, a few times I tried to stress that the pirate's world is more so a metaphorical depiction of a different type of world with less governmental control, etc, whereas with the kingdoms of the land Oda could more literally show what a more democratic, socially conscious government should look like. So it's kind of comparing one type of society that we only get a metaphorical depiction of, to another where we get a more literal depiction of it. May not have gotten that across the best haha
I think morj is saying that in op pirates are so many and so strong that piracy has become its own society with its own code and rules ,in the real world piracy is an underground thing in op when you choose to be a pirate its like u just arent in the world gov umbrella and therefore you are a "criminal"
@@heavenlyweather117 it can be interpreted irl like switching countries because you didn't like the old ones rules (rules can be constitutions or society's pressures)
Wow. This video was really good. Always thought about the hypocrisy in one piece about power. Although I would argue that its not much about land VS pirates. Its about innocence VS sinners. Pirates will happily fight mountain bandits. Luffy easily decides to fight the Yakozuna, without knowing if he was good or bad. Luffy does not care about good or evil. Its whether you are on his side or not. Take a shot at his friend and even if its justified, luffy will attack back. Time and time again, Oda has shown that luffy is not a hero and thus not an ideal character. He is just the main character whose journey we follow. Unlike dragon, luffy's goal is not to make the world a better place. He just wants to do what he wants. His goals normally do align with greater good but it was never his intention. Just like in fishmen island, he does not care if the island burns down if he can save his nakama. Similarly, in Impel down, he does not care that so many prisoners who have actually committed crimes, like Crocodile, will run free. He only cares about Ace.
And I really appreciate your these types of videos, but I would have to disagree that Oda is trying to tell us the greatest form of government. Oda is simply telling us the best way to live is through freedom. However, it has its consequences. There are a lot of injustices in the world and everyone has their own form of justice for it. The world will be a better place if those with good values rise to the top and will be shitty if those with bad values rise to the top, regardless of any system.
Dragon, Blackbeard, and luffy all are going against the WG but all for different reasons. Dragon hopes to create a better or should I say, fairer world. Blackbeard wants the power of WG while Luffy is against WG simply because they are in his way.
Although since politics is involved, what do you think Dragon's plan is after he topples the WG. I always find that Dragon and Luffy will eventually have conflicting world views. A society cannot be safe where its citizens are totally free and similarly, a society cannot be free if its citizens are totally safe. A person like luffy who will chase freedom will always be a problem to a just society(especially since there will also be bad people seeking freedom like blackbeard). I have no idea how Oda will come even close to giving us a satisfying conclusion society wise as there are multiple contradictory lifestyles that Oda embraces in One piece.
I trust in Goda
Yeah, but then again luffy and BB ideas of freedom are different. BB strives for freedom within control (that being his own of course)
Meanwhile luffy doesn’t want to rule as the pirate king, he just views that position as being the Way to achieve Ultimate freedom, but not actually Warming the power of a King. But i agree and i really can’t imagine how he will pull of these aspects of the story
I think the dichotomy of "innocence vs sinners" is a false one. It's more of warmhearted people that create good wherever they go vs people that are blinded by tyranny vs chaotic people. We see it in the Revolutionary Army vs Sakazuki vs Blackbeard respectively. I'll let you choose which one's which but it should be obvious.
So much rich analysis about OP's politics and ideals mentioned by Morj here. It's crazy how much more Morj has helped me to appreciate OP, and develop ideas for a story of my own
Ive always seen political compass on reddit but never knew what each side meant. Thsnk you for explaining it to me
Politicalcompass.org and see where you land...
I truly believe that the way you examine and go through the detailed explanation is just absolutely brilliant and another great video...you are my fav one piece RUclipsr love from India mate.
How are you always able to articulate and structure your thoughts with such finesse? Seriously whenever I try to make an OP theory it turns out shit, but you always manage to make everything so damn convincing. How do you do that lol.
Haha it just takes time to put together a script that I'm happy with, and plus I've had a lot of practice doing lots of other vids like these. If you did this as much as I did then you'd be articulating your ideas way better I'm sure
It's your username that's interfering with your ability
There could potentially be lots of different reasons as to why your theories suck. You will probably find them out eventually
@@Mal-go5dl i second that analysis.
You most likely base your theories on feelings instead of researched facts. Mori also tries to find real world epics that are similar to the op theory he has.
Enjoyed the video, but I disagree that the pirate ideal is on the 'economic right'. The 'economic right' is a belief in 'might makes right' and winner takes all; it's a belief that private property is valid, should be taken, and then defended. Luffy is competing to be 'the freest man in the world' (his version of Pirate King), but everyone else is competing to rule over all pirates (the acquisition of power and property). The Straw Hats have to fight because they unapologetically pursue freedom, and this inevitably goes against the wishes of those in control (World Gov, Yonkos) or those who wish to be in control (most other pirates).
Without the deadly competition between pirates, Zoro can still win any sword duel, Nami can still chart the world, Chopper can be a doctor, Usopp can be a brave adventurer, Robin can learn the true history, Sanji can find the All Blue, Franky can sail his ship around the world, Brook can meet Laboon, Jinbe can have equality on the surface, and Luffy can travel the world freely with his friends.
I don't think Oda sees pirates fighting over power as a good thing. He may just see it as an inevitability that some people will try to conquer others and that freedom from such tyranny will always require the pursuers of freedom to fight back against the wrongdoers.
I think by the end of the story we will see The Navy switch their role from enforcers of the law to being guardians of the people, and we will see 'pirates' be groups of adventurers inspired to see the world. The Navy will protect the people from obligation and 'peace-main' pirates will protect the people because they will inevitably irk the badguys who want to control them.
agrees. Oda might romanticize straw hat's adventure but he definitely doesn't romanticise the average piracy. hell, luffy spent most of his adventures bringing down pirates and none of those fights are about some competition. calling that ladder some sort of free market that oda politically endorses and calling it another piece of oda's ideal system, when oda went to great lengths to expand and paint explicit leftist believes, doesn't sit well with me.
still great video tho.
People think one piece is anti-capitalist?...... lol how? The core of the franchise is freedom. Does anyone think for even a moment that if the world government declared private ownership of the means of production wax illegal, and took control of all capital, it wouldn't be portrayed as a bad thing?
if the series stopped business owners from being able to profit off others labor by just owning land, it would most certainly be painted as good. it already has been painted as good, the carribou cover story depicts workers taking all the product they produced, overthrowing the business and then holding up a flag resembling che guevera. this is painted in a pretty positive light. not to mention the series has already criqitued privitization and promoted unions before. capitlism and the ability to profit off others labor≠freedom
They’re literal billionaires in marie jois , controlling the world government, and them controlling the marines. They have the same exact system we have irl. And it shows you the disparities as well. It all stems from the idea that some ppl have more and have been abusing it through slavery and military power
I know this is an old comment, and I don't think its anti capitalist exactly but what means of production are private in one piece as it stands? All I can think of right now is small businesses and shipbuilders like icebergs company, but I can't think of any mass industrial production which wouldn't be under the purview of governments like vegapunks creations or navy ships
I think one of the key elements about Oda's writing, as well as frankly most fiction, is its focus in individuals rather than systems and social structures.
A lot of fiction really focuses on "great man history" of larger than life characters shaping the world around them. Their personal agency, ability and power allowing them to compete with other individuals of similar capability for the fate of the world.
It is primarily these grand individuals who impact and shape good or bad systems based on their own motives and ideals.
This in contrast to the real world where, different kinds of core systems and structures give birth to and promote different kinds of individuals whom echoes the system they exist in to positions of power and influence. And grand social change rarely comes primarily from specific individuals as much as it comes from entire social movements.
In OP's case, this primarily manifest itself in the idea that its not the system of piracy or world government that is fundamentally broken (as in it fundamentally promotes and generates exactly the kind of bad behaviours and people we see portrayed), but rather the fact that too many powerful individuals are "bad" currently. And if other grand and powerful individuals that are "good" remove them/out compete them, the systems will in turn become "good".
Finally someone with common sense, everyone sitting here trying to defend communism. When its about people being corruptible no matter what system in place, and the rulers (WHICH IS SCIENTIFICALLY NECESSARY, AKA UNAVOIDABLE) will rule good or bad based on who they are, individually.
And WHEN it happens you need to step up to replace the rulers. It's not complicated but alot of people here are trying to claim wealth=oppression in a story where treasure is almost exclusively dreams.
@@bobbob-zc1nx Wealth=oppression IMO. But you do you.
@Simon That's one of my gripes with One Piece. The whole great men of history thing. It should be great peoples of history, not great men of history.
Another one of my gripes is Oda's view on globalism, he doesn't seem to have any problem with globalism while I do. Give too much power to government until it becomes the world government and it creates tyranny, just like Sakazuki and all of those brainwashed enough to do "absolute justice" which is tyranny.
I really wish at the end of One Piece the world government was dismantled along with the marines.
@@itsnotonepieceitsthatpiece wealth cant be oppression since wealth is created at a net gain and money is just a metric to measure it with a stable currency. Like if you give out massage to your family your creating wealth that didn't exist, if you do it for money to meet the demands of a bunch of people who want it in exchange of a representation of wealth like money which can be traded for a variety of wealth. This is why the diffrent of wealth between nations used to be only about 3 times the difference from the best to the poorest. While now the difference is more than a hundred times;that wealth didn't exist before.
@@bobbob-zc1nx But you're not seeing it from a macrostructure perspective and those that work for other people. In order for those who gain wealth to stay affloat they need to subtract some of the value of labor of those that worked for them and have a surplus. Therein lies the oppression.
Either way, I don't care for argukng with you. I already told you I beg to differ AND you do you.
Deadass you have like a phD in One Pieceology... this is like the 5th time you blew my mind this month...
Great video as usual! So many interesting angles I never thought of, even the main idea of the contrast between the sea and the land for political systems.
The idea that you live in the free world of pirates by choice reminds me of a lot of the early arcs' themes about what being a pirate means. About how being a pirate means being willing to put your life on the line, since in that world there's no authority to take care of you. About accepting notoriety instead of trying to run away from it. The story even has Buggy near the start to specifically make the point that it's not about pillaging the citizens of the land.
Dude I'll be honest, I was very worried about this video, and tried to make it as even-handed as possible, I was certain I'd get a lot of people from all different sides saying I had portrayed it completely biased in one direction or another, so I'm glad to see the comments that are pretty open to what I said. And man, I'm glad you brought up East Blue, when I was cutting up images for this I kind of went down and East Blue rabbit hole where I saw lots of different things I hadn't noticed before haha. I def agree that EB saga is largely about defining what a pirate "really" means, and Buggy's a great example of showing that through contrast.
@@MrMorj At least from just seeing the end result, I don't think you even really needed to worry. Or you did a good job of making it reasonable. It just fits well enough to make sense to anyone, since it starts from themes I think most people recognize (freedom, the world government being bad) but gets extended into more specific ideas if you look closer. I personally never realized that Drum Island is saying something about healthcare availability, but once pointed out it's obvious in a way where I don't think you can even call it biased. And I think it's overall agreeable to people because it's showing a contrast of two systems with their benefits and drawbacks rather than focusing on one being perfect.
And yeah, not sure if I mentioned it before in any of our conversations but I love how East Blue helps define what a good pirate is through the contrast between Luffy and the villains. Like how Don Krieg shows you need to rely on your personal strength instead of weapons or numbers. Or how basically all of them until Arlong don't care about their crews.
Mr. Morj, every one of your videos makes me love this series more and more.
I love how One Piece doesn't shy away from its goofy nature to explore these deeps themes. You don't need to be edgy, suppousedly mature or dark, you can be fun and that's ok. Just as there's nothing wrong in being edgy to tell these kinds of themes.
Showing us different ideologies through various characters and letting us know whether those ideologies are right or wrong or neither is what oda is doing. I'm positive that he doesn't have extreme views and accepts almost every view(sensible ones - which in itself is subjective) in moderation. He may be letting us know that even though we have different ideologies we can coexist and find happiness if we don't believe/act in the extremes. This is just my perspective. Feel free to give me a new insight.
@Kvothe Windrunner wait, didn't you just describe an extreme idea of freedom? If they have no moral limitations because they believe heavily in freedom then that makes it an extreme belief.
Mr Morj is oda’s son you can’t tell me otherwise.
Democracy is by definition incompatible with a society where everyone is equal and lives in harmony.
The literal definition of democracy is "A system in which the minority is dominated by the majority." You can debate whether this is preferable to alternatives (Monarchy, Oligrachy, , various forms of anarchy, etc.) but it's just inaccurate to depict democracy as a peaceful utopia.
It isn't supposed to be a peaceful utopia but really the alternatives of monarchy or oligarchy are worse. We see an undemocratic oligarchy ruling the One Piece world and it's in a terrible state, I think it would be different if it was a democratic world.
@@itsnotonepieceitsthatpiece we see bad oligarchies in the world government, but we also see good monarchies in Alabasta and Dressrosa. Even in Skypiea, the whole God system doesn't dismantle entirely after Enel is defeated, Ganfall simply becomes the new one. Oda never portrays monarchy or authoritarianism (in its least pejorative sense) as bad necessarily. There are wise kings and tyrants. Just as there are good and bad pirates
@@maxalaintwo3578 Yeah, I guess you're right. I don't think Oda is gonna get that into real world politics anyway, so I don't think he'll speak about democracy in actual depth (other than what we saw in the Sakura Kingdom).
I'm so amazed at your panel selection. When reading them for the first time, usually never thought to give them any deeper meaning. However, your videos always show that there's some hidden meanings we are missing! Amazing video as always!
Minor spoiler; according to chapter 1011, even Big Mom believes in the separation of land and sea, and the basic decency pirates must uphold to innocent people who have nothing to do with them.
24:00
Oda does not only depict pirates who plunder the people's security as evil.
He also portrays the act of chaining down the freedom of a common man in the name of security as disingenuous.
A flip side to what Morj mentioned is also depicted, and is done so quite often in the story of One Piece.
Thought would be worth mentioning.
he doesnt mention it directly, but he does imply it, by saying that people should be free to choose to go to the sea when they dont want to be ruled so strictly, he didnt make the parallel, but he didnt ignore that either
@@gladehartdreamer5620 morj did mention it at the very start when he showed the panel of dragon saying smoker, "what right do you have to stop a man from going out on sea?"
But he didn't mention it in his conclusion while summing it up. That's what i meant to say.
@@myshadow3074 no oda clearly showed that government will use "saftey"true or not as just an excuse to exercise power over others
Man, your work is AMAZING! These analyses make me appreciate the greatness of one piece a lot more!
I never comment on videos but that was a fantastic video. I’m glad I found you
I’ve always seen the sea as this weird mix of Libertarianism, but not going full Atlas Shrugged (See Bioshock for example) while the land is more of modern day social democracy. Again, comparing the world of One Piece to ours is incredibly tricky as our world is infinitely more nuanced and complicated when it comes to economic systems and philosophies, but it does give us interesting insight on an idea of what Oda’s ideal society would be.
Here is MrMorj with another amazing take. I have always viewed Luffy and the other peacemane pirates in the series as a libertarian. They strive for personal freedom and fight like hell for others freedom as well. I appreciate you bringing up the axis of politics. So many nowadays want to view politics as left and right, when in reality there is a whole other layer to it. Ultimately what I believe Oda is trying to portray by contrasting society on land and on sea is that true freedom and ultimate good is somewhere in the middle. Extremes of any side are dangerous and lacking. Thanks for the amazing content.
On the political compass, I would say that One Piece is in the center and down. Just enough government to help the people but also rewards hard work.
that would definitely be more left than the center. the ability to reach for higher goals and work for the better but also being provided safety nets and basic necessities with little to no goverment is a form of socialism.
Little to no government is capitalism. Government interference is anti capitalism. Trade between citizens and private citizen is capitalism. Only time the govt can interfere if the trade is not fair, hence limited government. @@hera761
each chapter, each thought, each video of yours,
deeper and deeper into this sea vast i row
This was a really well put together video, and I want to thank you for introducing the political compass to this discussion, as most other political videos about OP seem to not be seated in actual political knowledge.
However, I'm a bit confused about why you never discussed anything in the libleft section. It is, after all, the synthesis of the things that One Piece is saying are good (democratically elected government, providing resources to everyone, also freedom and the removal of class hierarchies) and the antithesis to the things that OP is saying are bad. I understand that you wanted to address the 2 worlds idea, and while I do think that this is what Oda is saying currently exists in the OP world, I do not necessarily think that these worlds will remain separate and exclusive by the end of the story. Rather, I think there will be a sort unified version of the two. Even if you don't believe that though, it would be nice to hear you discuss the possibility of what combining those two worlds would mean for the One Piece world. I would be interested to hear you discuss it in a later video. I'll be making my own video about it soon as well, if you'd like to hear another perspective before addressing it.
I had a similar thought watching this. I’ve always found that anarcho-syndicalist reading works best for OP
@@jarrithmccoy4417 yeah ansyn/ancom or at least libertarian socialism is what I think Oda is trying to make a case for. When the revolutionaries finally defeat the celestial dragons, the world government will become like essentially an union of communes with each island allowed to self govern how they want, and they can come together to organize trade deals and make decisions that affect the world at large. The role of the marines will be interesting to consider, but I think theyre probably going to become much more decentralized and focused on defending the islands themselves rather than hunting pirates. Because unfortunately with the kinds of powers that are possible in One Piece, some kind of a defense force will still be necessary. But I can see it becoming much more of a militia based group that gets supplied with auxiliary units from other islands in times of need.
I think the anarcho-syndicalist viewpoint is best represented by the Revolutionary army and its leader Monkey D. Dragon. Thoughts?
@@Max-kv8uw we just haven't gotten enough about the revolutionary army and its beliefs to pinpoint the specific ideology that fits them best, and tbh I dont think we ever will, since there are probably a lot of differing viewpoints ideologies among the members. That being said, it does seem to be some kind of libertarian leftism, and I don't think they'd be opposed to anarcho-syndicalism or anything.
I expect oda to just go with a more broad "socialism good and authoritarianism bad" message.
@@Max-kv8uw , the Revolutionaries are more anarch-communist whereas the Strawhats themselves are more libertarians or anarch-capitalists depending on the One Piece arc hence why even if Luffy was raised by Dragon then Luffy would have never met the Pirate Crew he met on his Pirate quest because Luffy’s, Dragon’s, and Garp’s ideologies are entirely different from one another, and they can’t be mixed together into one society because they have different ideologies that can’t work with all at once within different contradicting ideologies.
I feel like Oda is depicting the perfect Society within kingdoms as more of an unrealistic utopia, were as he depicts the pirates world as a more realistic world full of hardships and such.
I really like your interpretation of the politics in one piece, but I'd like to add one thing.
By having those two options: the left/ authoritarian land and the right/ liberal sea, it is crucial to always start at the land and than decide to go to the sea. The savety on the land gives you the chance to grow and decide to take more risk on your live and then set sail. This is another reason why people, who where successful on the sea give back to the land. They pay for the save infrastructure that let them grow and so contribute to the society as a whole.
Where majority of one piece content creator busy in rant, reaction and surface analysis we are blessed to have mr morj. Hxh fandom already proved that if your community have great content creator they can make your series more than great series.
*Another Video?!!*
With teary Eyes...Soul filled with inspiration and voice breaking...
*Mr Morj... Y-y-y-you SHOULDN'T HAVE*
Then the Sun came out, and a Rainbow that would soften even the Thuggest of Thugs graced the land.
Ramen.
You really just recontextualized all of One Piece for me, I could never quite place this idea that you so eloquently portrayed.
I could never really nail down that the ocean itself could be, in an ideal world, it's own world where the lawless adventuring of One Piece could thrive, despite its political messages.
00:00:00 ⟾ Intro - controversy, nuance
00:00:42 ⟾ Philosophy - Freedom vs. Authority, extremes
00:01:08 ⟾ Oda’s Answer? - ideal world, philosophy (values), politics (practical)
00:02:31 ⟾ GROUND RULES - 1) No Personal Politics
00:02:54 ⟾ Ground Rules - 2) No Specific Ideologies
00:03:23 ⟾ No Specific Ideologies: Simplified Political Compass
00:04:18 ⟾ No Specific Ideologies: no labels
00:04:38 ⟾ MOST “GOOD” FOR THE MOST PEOPLE - Good and Bad Regimes
00:05:42 ⟾ Good Regimes: for the people, Alabasta (Cobra), Dressrosa (Riku)
00:06:12 ⟾ Monarchies, Elections: Sakura Kingdom (Dalton), Dressrosa (Riku)
00:07:00 ⟾ Duties: Strong Safety Net; Alabasta (Cobra), Wano (Oden), Drum Kingdom (Wapol)
00:07:26 ⟾ Duties: Militia, Arlong Park , limit to centralized power, Dressrosa
00:07:51 ⟾ Equality, Class divides, Celestial Dragons, Goa, Wano, hierarchy, status by birth
00:08:59 ⟾ Most “Good” for the Most People - Summary
00:09:23 ⟾ ‘Most People’? - Luffy, pirates, another world
00:09:58 ⟾ THE SEA - Freedom: different type of society
00:12:00 ⟾ Freedom: Hierarchy, ambition, competition
00:14:03 ⟾ Economic Competition: plundering, looting, from other pirates vs. from populace
00:14:44 ⟾ Money: importance, reward, spending by free will
00:16:26 ⟾ The Sea - Summary: freedom with danger/unfairness, Chopper, Tama, Ace
00:18:56 ⟾ THE TWO WORLDS OF ONE PIECE - Dream World, balance of ideals, freedom to choose, 1) Land World, 2) Sea World
00:21:50 ⟾ Not Ideal World Yet: land unjust governance, destruction and rebirth
00:23:10 ⟾ Not Ideal World Yet: sea pirates attacking land citizens
00:24:20 ⟾ The Ideal World: two-headed conflict, Celestial Dragons, Blackbeard, Kaido, Big Mom
00:25:18 ⟾ The Ideal World: Balance of Political Ideologies
00:25:49 ⟾ [Promo] [Credits]
This was an amazing video, this is why you're the best One Piece youtuber. Every One Piece fan should see this
Some people have been pushing an idea that One Piece promotes the beautiful marxist revolution and that is somehow a good thing.
Which contradicts the fact that Imu and the WG run a 1984 marxist hellscape.
thinking the world goverment is comparable to how the goverment is portrayed in 1984 is pretty ridiculous and makes me think you've read neither. 1984 is also specifically about the soviets and not marxism. the world goverment in one piece are a lot more comparable to to characticures of crooked leaders under feudalism or capital owners under capitlism. the celestial dragons aren't depicted as some sort of the all seeing, heavy handed dictatorship the way the soviets are depicted in 1984. they're moreso just depicted as people who profit off others peoples labour, make laws that specifically effect people they want and use military and law enforcement to protect their own interest all while being in the shadows. also considering the serie's support for unions, anti privatization messages, the insane amount of class conflict and odas blatant support of the cuban revolution I don't really think it's far off to say the series has marxist themes.
Exactly! I find it hilarious when commie cultists try to project their own ideology in a series to make themselves feel more validated.
The amount of insight I gain from these videos my droog is insane i'm so impressed at how you're able to disect, digest, and then regurgitate the story of one piece as if it's a college class lecture is simply astounding.
3:10 good move, that way you're going to avoid the avalanche of "bUt thIS iSN'T *rEaL* coMMuniSm" messages that would have ensued
I had pretty much decided to never release a video like this because it would get a lot of backlash no matter what, till I came up with the solution of "no official terms, just place it on the compass yourself" haha
This video is truly one of the very best made on one piece. As a fan of the great series and its nuances i truly salute you and thank you for this excellent video
I believe you are extremely biased on the idea of Democracy. In real life, most kings were selected at first (except for those who came to power through conquest, they were only selected in their first land), it's only their descendants that haven't been chosen.
What you said is definitely not democracy
Great great man, much love. You are the best.
Mr. Morj is just the level of RUclipsr that I don’t even have to watch the full video before I like it because I know it’s gonna be amazing
Great, really love this- but I think this misses that while there’s competition on the seas, inside a pirate ship things are largely egalitarian- at least run like a family. Inside a pirate ship, the words of a captain are only the words of one man. Real pirate ships could never have an owner, or a king, because any captain could be removed by the crew at gun point at any time. He’s got no deed with police to back him up- the power of the crew majority forces a pirate ship to be a democratic enterprise where the workers literally control the means of production and own/run the ship collectively. Even in a world where your boss could be as powerful as Big Mom or Kaido, “good” ship are always egalitarian with hierarchy existing but being mostly casual- Straw Hats, White Beards, Red Hair, Roger Pirates, Sun Pirates etc. and just like we saw with Usopp at Water 7, anyone can abandon a crew at any time. Most pirate crews have no way of metting out retribution to deserters- in real life and OP, Pirate ships only continue insofar as they make it worthwhile for crew to remain. Even if you look at “bad” crews like the Black Beards, Arlong Pirates, Buggy Pirates, etc. loose hierarchy, closer to egalitarianism or family values is the norm for pirates. There is no market system of merit amongst crew mates- or else where such things exist (pretty much Kaido/Big Mom/Flamingo pirates exclusively) they’re the exception rather than the norm, and even then there’s more crew equality than what’s seen on a Marine ship.
If you live in a society where there is no employer-employee relationship, no individual state-enforced property rights, where everyone chooses freely where to work between worker-owned enterprises and there is no Government-that’s not a right wing society.
So what you really see is pretty like:
Ideally Social Democracy/Democratic Socialism on the land
Ideally Anarcho Communism on the sea
One Piece is a world where the World Government are evil, fascist, authoritarians at their core, and the Revolutionary Army are bringers of democracy, liberation and justice.
Overall, it’s mostly idealizing different kinds of leftism.
"No one is born a yonko"
Lmao what about big mom?
Big Mom wasn’t even born a Yonko; she was born as an obese land whale that whenever she was with the Rocks Pirates is whenever she was a muscular MMA fighter that later became a Yonko after having 85 children through raping and having one night stands from everybody she met after Roger’s and Rocks deaths.
@@RoronoaZoro-ur6hr First off, she was absolutely a monster when she was a kid long before rocks. She destroyed Elbaf and single-handedly killed one of the kings. She could easily have competed against many of the mid-high tier characters even at a young age. I also wouldn't say she raped anyone that we know of. She was very fetching in her younger days (In her 20s). Just because she didn't stick around with her husbands does not mean they weren't willing participants.
this is brilliant! really, really, really, really good! It's such a good in-depth dive into the themes that i would've never ever gotten anywhere close to thinking of. I'm really glad you've put your skills to good use in analyzing this amazing story and sharing it with the world :D
I loved Doflamingo's monologue at Marineford. "Justice will prevail? Of course it will! Whoever wins the battle decided justice" (not a word for word quote, but still...he's right
I think you got it word for word. He said Decides though.
I have to really praise your video, really amazing insight! Very impressive! Good job!
Great insightful video!
As a politics student I find discussion like this interesting many times over some debates over power levels
I'm not so sure that the 'two worlds" are actually supposed to be seperate societies one can choose to live in. I feel that in a story called "One Piece" that a unification of the world would be thematically more fitting. I think that rather than advocating for two seperate societies, they are seperate aspects of the same society.
Ensuring a social safety net for all and abolishing exploitation, gives people more freedom to chase their own dreams. For a true meritocracy to happen, people need to begin on the same place at the starting line (equality of oppertunity). As long as there are people who inherit excessive wealth and have the means to protect it by force (Celestial Dragons), while at the same time other people are oppressed and exploited from birth (Fishmen), a true meritoctacy cannot exist.
I think the message is that competition and ambition are great and should be pushes for, but only in a fair society that takes care of people's basic rights and needs. That would the only society wherin actual freedom can flourish. Economic security as a means to accomplish more personal freedom and expression.
Looking at it from this lense of analysis, left libertarianism would be the most fitting for the ideal world that One Piece implies.
Damn, mr morj's videos are always so insightful
Top tier youtuber
He is so underrated
Mr. Morj is the master analyst of One Piece, and Arthur is the master lore keeper of One Piece
Good video, but I think you makes a point about how opening the borders goes against Wano's interest, which is kind of wrong? A thing throughout the story is about exploration and being able to go wherever you want, and understanding the world around you. Even in FMI, the New Fishman pirates are limited by the fact that they haven't actually seen the outside world, and have no desire to try interact with outsiders,while Fisher did explore the world, and Otohime wanted to have better relations with the humans in general.
And of course, there's also the Sea Train itself, which is used as a device to connect with other islands, and have trade due to which W7 is able to prosper. And the way Skypiea is under Enel, and Shandia before Noland visited, distrusted outsiders is seen as wrong.
I definitely agree that in the series, freedom of exploration and gaining new information is portrayed very positively, and that Wano's isolationist policy is portrayed to be "wrong", and something that should be rectified. But that was my point, that Wano is an example of Oda showcasing how the ideal of "safety/security of the people" is not always necessarily more important than personal freedoms. It is made clear that yes, Wano was once in danger because of outside forces, and the reason that Wano ended up in the terrible state today is precisely because of an outside force, Kaido, coming in and wreaking havoc; Wano was a flourishing society for the most part before Kaido's arrival.
The desire to keep "bad things" out, is probably safer for everyone. However, personal freedoms matter as well. And yes, in this case, Oda is definitely implying that Wano ultimately should have open borders, even if it is less safe, but the issue itself isn't the point, it's what the open borders issue represents. Oda could have swapped the open borders issue for some other hypothetical issue that pits personal freedom against safety of the population, and depicted how one man values his freedom over the "safer rules" of society, and the point would still stand. Some laws provide safety, but restrict freedom. You should always have the option of leaving the "safer society" for one with greater freedom, is what I took away from the Wano situation. Hope that clarifies what I meant!
@@MrMorj Thanks for the reply! And yeah, I get your point now. 👍
Wow. I never knew I needed to hear this...
Hey bro, I'm a new subscriber(youtube suggestions are on point!) keep up the great work
I learned something from this video to the context of One Piece as a series in addition to what is mentioned in the video. I think a good third of people who don't like One Piece but are alright with anime in general just don't agree with the ideals presented in the series. One Piece rides on those ideals for everything. If you can't accept the core "conceit" or whatever- of the ideal(s) of One Piece, then it will be an empty experience like a very very slow and uneventful shonen. Like epic moments like Sanji respecting food after his mentor starved might simply not click at all, probably being simply too plain for them.
amazing post. I think a post about foreshadowing would be interesting since there seems to be a lack of videos about that
Idk if you're still reading comments on this one but I had something to say based on the ideological arguments between Socialists and Libertarians that I think you missed maybe.
Libertarians often argue that if worker co-ops and being your own boss (worker control of the means of production) is possible now under Capitalism, then why do Socialists want to impose this system on everybody else? Why can't they just let bygones be bygones and allow private industry to exist alongside public, and let people choose which is best for them? The Socialist counter (I am a socialist btw) is that that *fundamentally misses the critique of private industry that Socialism argues- private industry and it's interests are constantly reaching it's tentacles out into the world to increase and maintain their power at the expense of uninvolved citizens.* Rural villagers who have nothing to do with the private industry will have their rivers polluted by runoff from copper wire factories for instance. A similar dynamic exists in One Piece that explains why this aggressively libertarian side-society is easy to romanticize but ultimately destructive to the main body of the world's citizens who don't subscribe to it- power acquired in this free society is meritocratically earned, sure, but ultimately always comes back around to hurt and affect those who took the blue pill and chose to security over freedom. Pirates routinely harass the citizens, and in a world where public and private industry exist side by side, the private industries/pirates are unconstrained by the safeguards of democracy and collective morality, therefore they're able to acquire power and exercise it in a way that is against the wishes and interests of the VAST majority of society- Nobody wants life saving drugs to be price-gouged to straight up evil levels, and nobody wants their island to be invaded by pirates, but as long as this lawless libertarian side world exists, it will always prey on those outside it's boundaries. It never works the other way around.
I appreciate the consistency Mr. Morj!
Before I get into the video I'm going to post my own thoughts about One Piece's politics and see how it compares. I think the main thing Oda is trying to get across is the importance of local government and self-governance. Every time we see an island in disarray it's because outside forces control the political system whether that be warlords, the navy, an Emporer. We see this in Alabasta, Dessrosa, Wano, and basically every other major arc.
Edit: I realize I only answered the up and down question basically World Government represents the top part of the graph and Pirates represents the bottom part of the graph and the ideal situation seems to be in the middle. However, I didn't answer the left to right of the graph and in that regard, I don't have enough information to make an informed opinion but I think the lean is to having strong safety nets because we don't see much in the way of poverty. (Yes we do see poverty in One Piece but that's when it's being caused by either the world government or pirate warlords, not when the government is restored to the people and their representative leaders.)
Yes, yes, and yes your take is far far better than most of these people. I however am against safety nets made by government. Because in reality there are people who are responsible for the functioning of society no matter what political system and they are the responsible, ie the defenders, and maintainers, in government that would be NET tax payers, government can only create a safety net via taking your money(since they have none) so if a safety NET of any size is made through government its only against the will of the responsible. Otherwise they would have already made said safety NET but cheaper and more efficient without bureaucracy, if neccessary.
So ultimately to keep out parasites and corrupt politicians using safety nets to buy votes or power your EXPLAINATION, is best.
Local safety nets only; made by the responsible, willingly, should a safety net exist at all and then local churches and charities made by free people in their own communities take care of the rest.
Oda specifically mentions government using safety as an excuse to wield power aswell. I believe when oda shows kings creating social safety nets it's more yo show the heart of the king than a specific policy
probably the best simplification of the political compass that doesnt boil down to "commie, nazi, sjw, capitalist"
Ironic that Oda, the preacher of freedom and adventure, spent a huge portion of his life being sedentary, drawing this manga. It's his embodiment of his passion, joy, and calling. Everyone's got their own calling that's just as fulfilling for them as it is for someone like Luffy going out to sea.
This is what did it.
Excellent analysis of what you think backed up by evidence.
Subscribed. I'll take an hour of this please.
As long as you're willing to do so and it doesn't burn you out.
This video is why I think one piece is the best story of ALL TIME...no other story in any medium gets across these many ideas (the two sides of freedom, family, war, friendship, etc) and builds a “believable” world around it. The ideas emphasized in the story like freedom and the power of dreams have literally changed my life and are some of the most important ideas to ever exist...when one piece ends, put Oda’s right hand in a museum!
Just came from Nux video declaring war to the One piece community and boy this channel is a treasure trove subscribed immediately, this has just made me love One piece even more can't wait to binge through all your content.
I think many Americans look at One Piece in the eyes of their own politics/history when OP is most with its social/moral message a viewpoint of Japan.
I wouldn't say that the only pirates who are portrayed as "good" by the series are the ones who do not take and pillage from non-pirates. Eustass Kid was said to loot and kill from civilians when he first started his pirate crew with Killer, now he's one of the secondary protagonists (aka one of the good guys)
Pretty interesting video; the balance of freedom and equality, individual freedom and collective freedom, and finding ways in which they can reinforce each other.
Luffy's own pirate values have always intrigued me. From the beginning, he has considered himself a pirate rather than a simple seafaring adventurer, even though "pirate" often has this negative connotation.
I've often wondered why Luffy calls himself a pirate if he doesn't do the traditional pirating activities. But over time, I realized that's really the whole point; if Luffy doesn't have the freedom to call himself a pirate, is he really free?
And while Luffy is generally pretty friendly, he isn't a "hero" in the usual sense. He doesn't feel a duty to help people unless they're his friends, or they show the willingness to help themselves (though thankfully, Luffy makes friends pretty easily).
He criticizes Captain Kuro in the beginning partly because of his unwillingness to deal with the Marines and the overall challenges of being a pirate. Even though he has no personal dislike of Marines, he recognizes that clashing with the Marines is part and parcel of the journeys of being a pirate.
I do think it's important that Luffy doesn't want to conquer anything. He has a friendly rivalry with certain pirates in that he wants to become Pirate King before they do. He likes fighting (to the point where he made friends with Laboon by starting a fight), but it's generally not portrayed as him wanting to dominate his opponents.
There are certain aspects where Luffy can be confusing; sometimes he acknowledges that the pirate world is unfair, other times he shows a code (i.e. "Don't attack from behind, respect one-on-one duels").
There's a quote from Star Trek: TNG:
Captain Jean-Luc Picard : This is the 24th century. Material needs no longer exist.
Ralph Offenhouse : Then what's the challenge?
Captain Jean-Luc Picard : The challenge, Mr. Offenhouse, is to improve yourself. To enrich yourself. Enjoy it.
I find this an important value; even if your basic needs are met, there are still more challenges and more things in life to seek out.
I think one of the reasons for that is because Luffy based his entire belief & value system of what being a pirate really is on Shanks who has been his first main influence in the series imo.
Morj, you're a king. This video is brilliant, as usual. You're my favorite One Piece youtuber, and I'm looking forward to your next one!