Re-visiting Doris Lessing’s The Good Terrorist: A Consequentialist Approach

نوع المستند : المقالة الأصلية

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The present study attempts to interpret communist activism in The Good Terrorist (1985) by Doris Lessing (1919-2013) from a consequentialist perspective. The two main principles of the ethical theory of consequentialism, namely: “negative responsibility” and “impartiality” are investigated. By tackling negative responsibility, the study scrutinizes its impact on the protagonist's attitude towards her family, and the community at large. Likewise, by scrutinizing the consequentialist principle of impartiality, the study aims to decide how far adhering to this ethical theory has impacted the protagonist’s moral choices as well as her sense of justice. The study zooms in on these choices to show whether the protagonist and her fellow communist activists are driven by a genuine desire to alleviate the suffering of the poor. The study, moreover, explores two kinds of alienation entailed by the consequentialist principles of negative responsibility and impartiality, and how far these alienations affect the characters' decisions and actions. It also attempts to decide whether these alienations affect the characters' personal projects and their familial obligations. The rule of consequentialism in changing the characters' strategy and action from peaceful to terrorist is also assessed. Finally, the study aims to decide whether the political beliefs of the characters are grounded or a sheer self-delusion and fantasy.

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