Waiting for the Barbarians: First Impressions

My impressions of the character Joll are pretty straight forward. They came early in the reading and have remained the same up to this point. He rather disgusts me, to put it simply. His ways of torture are horrifying. Torture gives him power and a sense of superiority, which he clings to. He does not seek the truth as he claims; for him, the truth exists only in what he wants to hear, only what he wants it to be. He does not listen to reason or logic, but will make barbarian his prisoner, as he showed clearly with the fishing people. He looks to praised for making progress for the Empire and for him this means capturing many barbarians and finding out the "truth" through interrogations, all of which he has already formed in his mind.

My feelings toward the Magistrate are a little more complex. He is clearly uncomfortable with Joll's methods of torture. He even tries to reason with Joll, creating an "unsound" reputation for himself. He does his best to make comfortable conditions for the barbarians and seems almost to be their voice, looking out for their interests--all of which is very admirable. It is clear that the barbarians' way of life and their history fascinates them, as is evidenced through his excavations. He recognizes them as a people. All of this is very admirable, yet I am disgusted with a part of him as well. That part being his inclination to womanizing. He appears rather narrow-minded when it comes to women, as in he can only think of one thing when he see them or thinks of them. Particularly, I am troubled with his relationship with the barbarian girl whom he takes off the streets. This was an initially kind act, but I feel that he takes it too far, and that, in a way, he is manipulating her, for lack of better words. It is this side of him that leaves me with doubts as to his character.

Word Count: 335