Attack On Titan is a title people will more than likely find familiar. With the manga and anime wrapping up, fans are debating themes and philosophies. For me personally, I find how the series revolves around complacency and how it takes root. Because even when characters have the power to change everything, a number of factors steal their strength of free will. Because will’s compromise can come from love. Needless to say, spoilers ahead. Also strap in because this is a long haul.
Attack On Titan: Complacency
One of Attack On Titan‘s major themes revolves around complacency. Series creator Hajime Isayama’s inspirations come from how people close themselves off from everything. This is especially true for the Titans, supposedly mindless giants that instinctively feed on humans for the sake of it. For most of the series, they are the source of much of the strife. With no way to communicate, their uncanny presence, and their insatiable drive to kill, it’s no wonder people wall themselves off. Many humans in the military of Paradise are driven to eliminate all Titans for the suffering they cause.
That is until a hard truth comes out. The Titans are really people who were turned into monsters against their will; specifically Eldians. Historically speaking, the Eldians were people at the top of the world through conquest. Once Eldians turned on one another, their King and another family decide to assist their past victims out of pity. But on closer inspection, King Karl is essentially holding his people hostage by stripping their autonomy. Through his instructions, the King built a culture of complacency and dependence on safety nets. If anything, the Titans are a distraction meant to hide systemic oppression.
Trouble In Paradis
Attack On Titan takes place mainly in Paradis Island, the last stronghold of Eldia. Within three concentric walls are the majority of the Eldian people, who through Karl’s influence believed they were the last of humanity. This lead to the development of a culture valuing safety above all else in lands where all of the Eldians’ basic needs are covered. But what’s the point of survival if it means that people can get away with corruption? Most inhabitants of the “upper echelon” of the Paradis are lazy and corrupt. The Military Police spend more time gambling and selling weapons because they have free reign. If these people are what the Wall’s culture says are aspirational, something should be wrong.
But no, the people in the Outer Walls accept their simple lives. With their culture of having the needs of the many over the few, they’re content. On its own, this is a pretty good way to live; the problem comes with how selflessness is exploited by people for their agenda.
Reiss To The End
The secret ruling family of Paradis, Reiss’s agenda is full of false hope they fill themselves on. Patriarch of the family, Rod Reiss hoped the power of his ancestor could end the stagnation of Paradis. Yet for three generations, it is extremely apparent that despite Rod’s hopes, the Reiss family couldn’t change anything. Because Karl Frtiz instills in his successors his shame and burdens of their people. Rod unfortunately refused to accept any alternatives which leads to his remaining daughter Historia disowning him. But let’s talk about how power really doesn’t fight complacency.
Attack On Titan: Power Steals Your Soul
One of the main complaints of Attack On Titan is how despite anti-war messages, it glorifies the military. But that’s not exactly true, the high flying and dynamic action from the Survey Corps is merely a way to motivate. You can’t really fight complacency by being boring; Dune creator, Frank Herbert uses this himself. More importantly, it goes into the necessities of free will over power. Because whenever characters have power in this series, it’s a sign of how they have no control.
Titan Daze
Going back to the Titans, think of them as people on indefinite life support. Their basic needs are taken care of since Titan bodies are solar-powered. But despite having enough power to sustain themselves, these people have no autonomy. Even worse, they are aware of what their bodies do when it comes to killing humans on instinct. A few people are lucky enough to have intelligence or a way to communicate in Titan Form. It would be like living in a nightmare with no sense of time. The pinnacle Nine Titans which are essentially piloted by humans are the only exception, but they only have 13 years to live. So yeah, not that good a deal.
Bobbed Marley
Do you remember those people Karl Fritz pitied? Marley is essentially if the Roman Empire became a superpower. So when some tribal kingdom uses super weapons (Titans) against the strongest army of the world, people are going to take it personally. Marley’s culture against Eldians is based on vengeance, both for the atrocities of Eldia and to reclaim past glory. Following in Eldia’s example, they strive to create an empire of their own by enslaving Eldians to become Titans for war.
But who other than the forces of Marley keeps Eldian-Marleyans in line? A traitorous ruling family of Eldia who receives benefits from Marley while working from the shadows; think of them like lobbyists. This Tybur family essentially holds all of the real power of Marley through an illusion. By instilling a culture of both bootlicking and scapegoating, Marley relies primarily on Titans for colonial conquest. But this comes at a few costs; the general populace are ignorant about the price of war since Eldians take most rank-and-file troops. Not only that, the reliance on Titans left them vulnerable to tank artillery.
Family Shame
Back on the Reiss Family and other people with royal blood is a history of being in power but having no strength. The Reiss are the secret rulers of the Walls and have access to the Founding Titan’s power through an heir. But due to Karl Fritz’ guilt ideology they are unable to use its full potential.
Some characters try to circumvent Fritz’ ideology to see their ends through. Kenny Ackerman wanted the power to be king, the Eldians wanted to be a part of the world by repeating history, and Zeke Yeager wants it all to end. For Zeke, he has a very antinatalist outlook, after being used by his father for Eldians to reclaim their dignity. Taking the Marleyan-Eldian people’s outlook of shame for being Eldian as further motivation, Zeke seeks to sterilize his people. This way he hopes Eldians won’t have to be persecuted as they’ll be a non-threat. He even hopes to do this after years of exposure to the source of Titan power. But it becomes apparent that this act only conditioned Zeke to Karl’s ideology.
Attack On Titan: The Illusion of Choice
What the above all comes down to is the price to get the power to force complacency, free will. Just about every character or group going through this process lose themselves. This is often in the form of a lack of self-awareness and making decisions for others without their consent. Zeke’s antinatalist plan is so simplistic, he doesn’t understand the nuances of the consequences. Marleyans will more than likely kill or torment the Eldians just for their own amusement as the Survey Corps suggest. But then there’re others.
Ackerman Plows
The Ackerman family are a clan with two of the strongest people in Attack On Titan. While I would love to gush about Levi, the only one of importance here is Mikasa. Mikasa’s main traits come from her sense of loyalty, often at the expense of her desires. She like many people in the series wanted a quiet life. But Mikasa wants to do it with the person who means the world to her, Eren Yeager. To her Eren is a king, not unlike how the Ackerman’s served Eldia’s kings until their falling out.
Yeager Drift Incompatible
That brings us to Eren Yeager himself, the series protagonist. Eren begins the series as a passionate if argumentative person, willing to push himself at physically challenging odds. This is what makes Eren such a good character, he’s an everyman with impossible dreams who wishes to make a difference for himself. Sure he fumbles about while prone to losing his confidence, but he grows from his experience. When he has the power to make a difference by controlling a Titan Body, he takes the chance to free the world from Titan influence.
But the more he used his Titan powers, the more of his humanity was lost. With his Attack Titan powers allowing him to see through time, it evokes similarities with Watchmen‘s Doctor Manhattan. Eren much like Jon becomes able to experience all events at once, with everything preordained. Only difference is, Eren has to arrange everything that got him to where he is including the death of his mother. With his morals destroyed, Eren ultimately chooses to make a risky gamble that could free his people. The problem is he had to push everyone he cares about into thinking for themselves. Note that Eren did not give up his free will, only his morals.
Ymir Fritz: The First Titan
Because thinking selflessly for people they love even the non-toxic ones is what ensnares every character. The First Titan, Ymir Fritz, is the result of the worst kind of Stockholm Syndrome. Years of abuse, trauma, and conditional love results in her eternal enslavement to the first Eldian king. Even after her death, Ymir’s lingering feelings in the Founding Titan bind her to wishes of her inheritors. For all of Karl Fritz’s talk of taking on the burdens of his people, he still used his very great grandmother as a means to his end. Because in the end, Karl, the Reiss Family, and Zeke never wanted to give up the power of cold comfort.
Power unlike strength is both parasitic and cannibalistic; every other day in the real world, it’s evident that having power over anyone becomes a means for abuse. Unfortunately this also includes the power of love and friendship. For Mikasa in particular, her protectiveness towards Eren looks like outright dependency. Eren ultimately uses this against Mikasa by comparing her to a Titan, a creature he long hated. It’s only by letting go of Eren that Mikasa is able to deal the final blow. A blow that convinces Ymir to let go of the power that serves as a safe prison.
Attack On Titan: What Is Free Will?
What makes Attack On Titan such a compelling series is how it confronts the difficulty of communication. Narratives much like the ones throughout the series have a way of demoralizing people. Anybody who isn’t a success story or measure up to who they admire might feel like a failure. In normal circumstances, the better thing to do is enjoy ethical hedonism. But that’s a hard thing to do when systemic oppression hides in the status quo as it can lead to complacency. Those drunks Isayama got inspired for the Titans… people broken by a status quo that see them as disposable. People want to believe habitual leaders can make things better; but power as a byproduct has a way of corrupting the ones directly affected by it. It takes actual means of free will to make a difference.
So does this mean free will is a combination of self and situational awareness, ethical hedonism, and no ties towards religious morality? Well the ink’s not dry yet. Thanks for coming to the end and as always remember to look between the panels.