Beyond - Legends I Fear My Master. posted on 8/28/2008

Explanations at bottom. Don't start typing until you've read everything, please.

Here we go!

*****
I fear my master. He can be cruel, abusive and insulting. It?s not my fault, either! I?m a creature of peace, not of the constant war and fighting he seems to love. I want people to understand each other, to work together and bring them to the table, as it were. He prefers mindless violence, and the barrel of a blaster to talking.

And oh, the abuse! I?ve been beat up, mocked and derided. Simply because I?m different. Is it truly my fault that I?m different from him, not the same? I suppose to him, it is? but that gives him no right!

Well, maybe it does. All I am is property, a thing. I do my job and damned better shut up about it! No backtalk from the servant, no. If I say one word in protest? sometimes I even lose consciousness.

And the peril I?ve been in? I?ve been shot at, shot up and down. How I?ve survived over the years is beyond me. I wasn?t made for these situations, either. I?m far too fragile, you see.

I hear him again, bellowing like he always does when he talks to me. I must put my best façade on for him as he approaches?

?Hey, goldenrod! Get ready. We?re heading off to Mon Calamari. Something about a trade dispute??

I have a bad feeling about this. Not that it matters, anyway. All I am is a droid, after all. I?m just a thing, nothing more than property. Right?

Right.
*****

Author's notes
This is not a parody. This is not 'Hah, hah!' at Threepio. This addresses something I've noticed in Star Wars: Droid slavery.

Yes, slavery. To me, many droids are fully sentient beings... under thrall. Under the heroes. They may not know it, but ignorance is no excuse. Han especially. Annoying as he is, Threepio is a fully sentient being and is treated beneath contempt on occasions. Where is his pay? When is his time off?

It is not what you are, but who you are.

 

You know, this would be entirely appropriate for the middle of the Thrawn Trilogy, when Threepio and Han have made one stab at trying to be civil to each other and Threepio really does his best and Han banishes him from his presence by the afternoon of the third day. Threepio really is in a bad position at times.

 

I see your point here, Striker. Also, I liked it. Well done.

 

Wow, Striker, amazing. Thanks for putting it this way. I know people like to ignore their heroes doing stuff like this, but it's still horrible. I bet Han wouldn't have saved Chewie if he was a droid.

 

Point taken, Jon. I never really thought about it before. I liked it -- great job! We really do feel sorry for poor Threepio. The verbal insults such as "Goldenrod" are amusing when you first hear them, but when you think of it like this... not so much.

 

Yes, Go Striker. Freedom for all droids.

Good job Striker. It was good.

 

I completely agree. Great job, Striker.
I sometimes wonder why some droids won't just leave. They think for themselves, then why not find another way to live?
Similiar to "I, Robot", I suppose.

 

As a big 3PO fan, I have to say well done! It's been time that someone addresses this matter of droid mistreatment more thoroughly, and you did a good job with this fic.


I have a bad feeling about this. Not that it matters, anyway. All I am is a droid, after all. I?m just a thing, nothing more than property. Right?

Excellent.

 

DarthIshtar-Yeah, I remember that scene. Threepio's stuck between the rock and hard place.

Daenabenjen42-Thanks. Glad you see the point, there.

tjace-It's quite a black mark upon them. I don't think Han would've spared him a second's glance.

Idrelle_Miocovani-Yeah. I'm glad I got you to think about it. That was the point of it, actually.

Mister_Master-Aye, freedom!

Ceillean-Where would they go, though? They'd just be hunted down and scrapped. They need legal rights.

Amon_Amarth-Threepio's not my favorite droid. Possibly top five, though. Yeah, he's basically a slave.

Anyone else? Anyone else got a bit of a queasy feeling when finished with this fic?

 

very thought-provoking, striker. Very very much so!

Huggles,
Irish

 

Mmmmm. Very good. And very true as well. You know I'm a Mara fanatic, but did anyone else notice that when she crashed the Jade's Fire into the Hand of Thrawn that her pilot droid was aboard? "Slips", I belive. It had enough sentience to be petrulant and over-protective as well, according to Luke. The beckon call presumably just sent the ship a slave signal and didn't give any messages to the droid. Just packed the both of them off on a suicide run. Always left me uncomfortable.

I think that's why I love Luke so much. From the first time on Tatooine, he always treated Threepio and Artoo like people. Polite, understanding and patient all the way. Others might be polite to droids, but there's still the unspoken mentality of "property".

Does sentience qualify the same freedoms for mechanical beings?

I really like this ficlet, Striker. Food for thought, and hard to chew at that! Well done.

 

I agree that old C3P0 gets the shaft and nobody seems to care. Just goes to show how cultural norms can create an almost hypocritical sets of who is seen as a person and who isn't. After reading this story, I wouldn't be surprised if, given the chance, 3P0 sells The Solos out to Skynet when the machine uprising begins. Escpecially if you're going with the Legacy continuity (just look what they did to R2 in that godawful Dark Nest storyline!).

 

Wasn't it "Truce at Bakura" that had Han putting Threepio in Strormtrooper armor (for some reason related to Han's plan) and sending him to Chewie and the Falcon- and Chewie totally shot him?

Striker, do you think Han dislikes all droids, or just has it in for Threepio?

 

I think it might be personal. After all, look at how Han got along with Bollux and Blue Max during his Corporate Sector adventures. Though by COPL, Han seems to respect Threepio more. Great 'fic, Striker ... I think many people dismiss droid sentience because the concept is very foreign to them ... it doesn't make it right, but it does explain.

 

Irish_Jedi_Jade-Thanks. That was the intent.

Jaded_Girl-Actually, no. I didn't know that. Yeah, that's it. I love Han, but his behavior towards droids can be so... awful. And it's not just him and Mara, either. Luke does seem to be the only one who doesn't think of them as property. Heck, in the JJK, we see himpersonally degreasing and cleaning out Artoo. I think he dislikes the majority of droids.

Stookymalarkey-lol, no continuation here. Well, story-wise. The discussion, however... And I just want to see their reaction if ha asked for a salary, or time off.

ZebulaNebula-I think those pair are the exception, but it could be jsut me. *Shrug*

 

I completely see the point about Han treating 3PO with disrespect, but Luke has always treated him well. At first I thought he meant he feared Luke, 'til you said 'Goldenrod.' For some reason I think of Luke as his master. Although I guess he ends up being Leia's eventually.

Good job. Makes you think.

 

celine-Yeah, the Solos seem to take possession of Threepio, while Luke gets Artoo. I'd say Artoo got the better end of the bargain. It made you think? Then my work is done.

 

Striker's response to ZebulaNebula: I think those pair are the exception, but it could be just me

Seems so, as Dark Empire shows us what happened to the only droid Han ever owned... totally malfunctioned due to neglect and shot to pieces by Boba Fett. (Han might have even ducked behind the droid on purpose, I can't remember.)

But in regards to Threepio, Han's distate and distain for Threepio reaches levels that other droids can only shudder at. His attitude towards Threepio is Han's usual disregard for droids grievously complicated by his loathing of everything Threepio stands for: proper protocol, caution and a fussiness that leaps the borders of the phrase "anal-retentive". From the very first moment that Threepio said "Hello, sir." in ANH, you could see in Han's immediate eye-rolling the thought "useless... annoying... pain-in-the-neck". Han may treat other driods with either an attitude of indifference or "somewhat sentient property", but his treatment of Threepio borders on cruelty. Even surpasses it sometimes.

IMHO, anyway.



And yeah, Artoo got the better end of the bargain there.