Thank you for coming to Anime Rants. Do you think knowledge should be freely available to people despite their education level? Badeni doesn’t think so. He argues that knowledge should be known and guarded by the select few. I was delighted to see this interesting and poignant question brought up in Orb: On the Movements of the Earth. It’s time to review episode 10.

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Episode 10: Truth

Episode Rating: 9/10

Badeni is employing Orczy as his servant and providing daily rations for him. While Badeni works inside the church, Orczy works inside the nearby barn, practicing his reading and writing. Jolenta taught him the basics. Orczy is already intensely fond of literacy and he says he wants to write a book. It was super cute to watch this big, nervous guy be so happy with the mere idea of self-expression through writing. However, Badeni didn’t think it was cute at all.

Badeni discouraged Orczy’s attempts to read and write, saying knowledge shouldn’t be shared with peasants. His reasoning is that words and knowledge have immense power, so education and training are needed to handle them. Obviously, according to his view, only the upper classes were concerned with things like education and academics. If anyone could read, write, or access literature, Badeni argued that the world would become “flooded with unreliable information.”

Personally, I advocate for expanding public literacy and and education. I also think every person should be free to write what they want, even if such writings are unfit for publishing. Writing and education are so important for self-expression. However, Badeni also has a point. It’s the same point made by the 2006 movie, Idiocracy. As the general masses have increased access to unlimited knowledge and communication abilities, societies will eventually be ruled by those with insufficient understanding of information and critical thinking.

This is already happening in the United States. Misinformation runs rampant as idiots on Twitter and on TV argue without fact-checking. The biggest proof is that the US people have elected a pathological liar twice now, someone who specializes in spreading “unreliable information” to the poorly educated cult that follows him. Depending on how things go, the US may lose its very status as a democracy thanks to this decision. The United States has become an Idiocracy.

I don’t have the answers. I don’t know how to correct this problem effectively, but I’m certain that restricting knowledge based on class or other arbitrary standards is not the way to do it. Despite Badeni’s logical argument, I will never support the gatekeeping of knowledge or literacy on a societal level. Perhaps it’s frustrating for you to read this when I’m only complaining without proposing a solution. Sorry about that, but I still wanted to make my thoughts heard – after all, it’s my right.

Leaving that discussion alone for now, let’s talk about the new character who was introduced in this episode: Father Grabowski. He is a kind, reasonable clergyman who runs a small village church and often works alongside Badeni. So far, I like Grabowski because he’s gentle, humble, and yet driven to uncover new knowledge. The difference between the two men is that Badeni wants to gatekeep knowledge, while Gabowski wants to share it with his congregation where appropriate. Gabowski disagees with Badeni’s prejudice against “commoners.”

One day, Grabowski overheard from an old man the story of how Badeni got his facial scars. I always assumed he got them as church punishments for his obsessive learning, but there was a different reason. Years ago, Badeni’s university partner and best friend tried to steal his work and then challenged him to a duel over it. Badeni won the duel, meaning he was forced to kill his best friend.

Even Badeni, who is usually detached, said it was hard for him to deal with the loss. When Grabowski asked why Badeni stayed in research after such trauma, Badeni said he couldn’t give up on pursuing truth. It’s the most important thing to him. This is something Badeni and I have in common – at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter to me how convenient something may be, or how beneficial to society at large; personally, I only care whether or not that something is true.

While Grabowski tries to acquire more knowledge by visiting libraries, Orczy digs an emergency escape tunnel for Badeni. In case Inquisitors come to the church, there will be a tunnel leading to the barn, making for a reliable escape. One day, Orczy asks Badeni for increased bread rations. It’s clear that it’s not for him, however. He’s been giving away a lot of food to beggars. If you recall, Badeni hates poor people. He expresses disdain and refuses to raise the bread rations.

Strangely, Badeni’s attitude seems to change a bit after he completes the heliocentric model. Using the orb necklace as it hung on the wall, Badeni was able to figure out that orbits are elliptical. That means the errors in the model are now accounted for. Then Badeni started acting nicer. He gave extra bread to Orczy and resisted the urge to burn his book. However, I doubt he’s really had a change of heart. I think he’s planning something. That’s why he went to ask the beggars questions that make no sense.

The last scene shows a bunch of young monks beginning their new jobs as Inquisitors. Two in particular seem to be important, but I didn’t catch their names. They listen to a speech from their church Father. Of course, said speech is horrendously problematic in all the ways religion tends to be. At the end of the episode, as the two young monks restate their passionate commitment to their work, they meet Nowak.

This should be entertaining. The newbies are in for surprise once they see Nowak’s detachment and low motivation. The episode leaves off there. What did you think of the episode, and do you think it’s ever okay to gatekeep knowledge?

~Thanks for reading~

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Click for more about Orb: On the Movement of the Earth

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Written by 7Mononoke