Inverting Morality: Portraying Good as Bad and Evil as Good

For centuries, western mythology portrayed dragons as murderous, greedy hoarders of treasure, destroyers of villages, and adversaries to virtuous heroes.  They were like Smaug in Tolkien’s “The Hobbit.”

Historically, many symbols of evil warned against chaos and destruction.  Dragons were but one example.

Modern movies and literature, however, increasingly invert good and evil.  They recast evil as sympathetic, heroic, or virtuous.  They depict good as rigid, oppressive, or villainous.  They also paint traditional values and moral absolutes as tyrannical.

This trend reflects the relativism that grips Western culture.  It blurs absolute notions of right and wrong into subjective perspectives.

Fighting Against a Repressive Good

Some narratives glorify evil as a liberator rebelling against a stifling, authoritarian good.  They portray morality as subjective, with evil as the underdog challenging divine or societal tyranny.

John Milton’s poem “Paradise Lost,” written between 1658 and 1663, lays the foundation for this kind of narrative.  Milton retells the biblical battle in heaven, casting Satan as a charismatic anti-hero.  He depicts God as an omnipotent ruler issuing absolute commands.  Satan rebels against this tyranny, pursuing freedom.  His famous line, “Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven,” frames his fall as a noble stand for autonomy against God’s oppressive hierarchy.

The poem humanizes Satan, portraying him as heroic, steadfast, and defiant.  This inversion presents Satan as a symbol of individualism fighting conformity.  It challenges religious notions of sin, recasting rebellion as virtuous progress.

Just Misunderstood

One common way modern narratives reframe evil as good involves portraying villains as misunderstood.  This approach humanizes evil monsters or villains, inviting audiences to empathize with them.

Consider the animated film series “How to Train Your Dragon.”  In the story, a Viking village fears dragons that savagely attack their homes and livestock.  However, the Viking Chief’s son befriends a wounded dragon.  He learns that dragons are not naturally malicious.  Rather, they are intelligent and gentle.  They raid only because a larger, domineering dragon forces them to do so.

As the Chief’s son trains this wounded dragon, he shifts his society’s view.  The dragons in time become allies with humans.  Together they defeat the bad dragon leader.

This story inverts the historical dragon mythos.  The villagers are closeminded bigots. They see the dragons as evil. The dragons, however, are actually good, gentle creatures.

While imaginative, this narrative reframes evil as a flawed presupposition caused by miscommunication and lack of empathy.  It promotes relativism, equating the confrontation of threats with intolerance, potentially undermining discernment of real dangers in life.

Good Driven to Darkness

Another inversion portrays evil not as innate, but as a corruption of goodness.  Villains, once good, turn dark due to betrayal or injustice.  This makes villains relatable.

Disney’s movie “Maleficent“ exemplifies this.  In the classic animated movie “Sleeping Beauty,” from the 1959, Maleficent is a wicked fairy who curses Princess Aurora out of spite.

In the film “Maleficent,” she starts as a benevolent protector with a pure heart.  However, her love betrays her, cutting off her wings for ambition.  She becomes vengeful in response.

She is evil only because of a reaction to human greed and violence, transforming her into a fallen hero rather than a wicked monster.  The “good” king and his court instigate her fall, flipping the moral script.

Toxic Men & Stifling Marriages

Modern fictional stories introduce a new way of thinking.  Modern entertainment does not just invert the notion of evil, they attack traditional values.  In turn, modern media often depicts traditionally good characteristics and institutions as caustic and oppressive.

Men in particular are under attack.  Moden writers often portray men as bumbling clueless buffoons or passive wimps.  Concurrently, they label strong, intelligent, protective, courteous men as possessing toxic masculinity.  Women, however, are now portrayed as extremely intelligent, fearless, and able to beat up any man in hand-to-hand combat!

Marriage is rarely portrayed as blissful.  Most characters, if married, are now divorced.

If marriage is included in the narrative, the sacrament is distorted into a caustic patriarchy enforcing rigid norms.  They depict women making all the sacrifices, confining them to the home and stifling independence.  Conversely, Men use marriage to their advantage and benefit while the woman is oppressed.

Feminist narratives further push the idea that women should act like nasty vulgar fallen men.  The notion is that this is a good thing.

Challenging the Narrative

Fictional stories inverting good and evil, combined with attacks on traditional values, work to undermine fundamental Catholic morals.  These include foundational principles like the Ten Commandments.  But despite these narratives, most still understand good and evil.

Far from oppressive, the Ten Commandments guide humans towards prosperity.  They offer practical direction to avoid self-inflicted pain.  Avoiding adultery, for instance, safeguards marriages. Chastity prevents the emotional devastation of betrayal that breaks families.  Prohibitions against stealing and false witness foster trust across society.

God’s Commandments enable freedom and prosperity.  They are not repressive.

Regardless of media portrayals, evidence supports matrimony’s value.  Historically, marriage stabilizes both men and women.  It unites couples with common spiritual and physical goals to foster mutual prosperity.

Mutually committed marriages enhance life for both men and women.  Even secular studies show married individuals live longer, healthier, and happier lives than single people.  Strong men in marriages provide stability, not toxicity.

Demonstrating these truths is among the best ways to combat relativism.  Actions validate reality more than words and fictional stories.

Strong, polite men prove masculinity’s value by showing respect and responsibility without being toxic.  Husbands and wives publicly celebrating the length of their covenant are witnesses to others who may be considering, just starting, or struggling with marriage.  And no one can deny the strength of a confident feminine woman.

Individuals who live authentically and embrace virtuous masculinity as well as femininity, defend matrimony through their example and enrich society.

Such actions affirm that genuine character and moral clarity triumph over falsehoods, regardless of how cleverly those falsehoods are marketed.

Truth Outlasts

Evil remains evil, despite any polished secular public relations campaigns attempts to disguise it.  Skilled deception fails to change reality.  Truth outlasts superficial narratives.

Perhaps in 50 years, movies will portray dragons as evil fire-breathing demons synonymous with chaos and destruction once again.  A new generation may find such stories novel and enjoyable.  They flip of the scrip of portraying dragons as good guys.