In the case of Warhammer however, it’s not just a matter of stepping out of our everyday lives into a galaxy far far away. It’s also about stepping into a new metaphysical and moral system, along with the new collective experiences that go along with them. One of the most important characteristics of Star Wars and Star Trek is that they are both a projection of Americanism and Liberal Modernity onto space. For one thing, they took many of the experiences of 20th century America, such as economic and industrial expansion as well as the civil rights movement, and projected them onto outer space, with aliens taking on the role of the “other” (i.e. people from different cultures, races, religions and nationalities), and the galaxy took over the place of the wild west. Star Trek was even called the wagon train to the stars. In contrast to this, Warhammer’s morality must be contextualized within the setting, a setting that is brutal and where happy endings, like Luke Skywalker blowing up the Death Star with a lucky shot using the Force, are not allowed. Moreover, the “other” are not aliens who are open to diplomacy, but inscrutable monsters (with few exceptions) which are so inhuman that they exclude the possibility of long term interstellar diplomacy. It’s easy to identify with the heroes of Star Wars and Star Trek because they have the same values as peoples of the modern world. One can even say that among the reasons why Star Wars and Star Trek have become so famous is the fact that they are projections of modern culture into a wider and more exciting setting (i.e. a technologically advanced galactic civilization). They are the myths of globalism and Americanism. This is not the case with Warhammer 40K. Most of those who deplore the ideas of Right would most likely consider the Imperium as the archetypal manifestation of those ideas: brutal, pitiless, hierarchical, militaristic and reactionary, and they would be correct. However, even though Warhammer 40K and the Human Imperium are mere caricatures of these values, the appeal is still there, and this appeal represents the human will to fight and overcome mediocrity, stagnation and defeat. These values – even in their twisted forms – say no to those values presented by Star Wars and Star Trek. It is traditionalist counterculture at its finest.
Posted on: Mon, 19 Jan 2015 03:14:49 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015