"anyways, let's say the one and only food source for that village, is a certain merchant who brings food everyday and sells them to the villagers."
"Okay," he said, leaning in. The logistics were still shaky, but perhaps for him, the premise was clear
"Everything is going ok, but suddenly, one day.... The merchant raised the food prices by three times."
"How cruel."
"Indeed. But the villagers, having no other choice had to buy from him at the increased price."
"Because starvation is a more expensive alternative ? Got it."
"But..." I paused, my voice dropping to a whisper.
"But ?"
"There was one single villager who could not afford it. He had no savings, no credit, and As such, soon he had no food left to feed himself."
"And Then ?"
"A few days later, his corpse was found. He had died of starvation in his own home."
"...I see. Then ?"
"Then.... The End!" I said, leaning back with a satisfied smile.
"...are you serious ?" he stared at me, genuinely stunned
"Of course, I am."
"Then, how is that even an end ? Shouldn't there be more of it ? a twist ? The arrival of a hero? A peasant revolt against the merchant for price or something else ? What am I supposed to learn from that ?"
"Oh. There are, Ty. There are multiple things you can learn from it."
"Like ?"
"Oh, there are many things, Ty. There are multiple layers to that silence. Now, I will ask you some questions. And honestly, some of these questions don't even have a definite answer. So, don't expect answers from me. You got to find your own answers."
"I see. bring it on, then!"
"So, first question. Can his death be considered to be a sin ?"
"what ? What does his death have anything to do with sin ? He died of his own biological failure,"
"Doesn't it ? Did he die ? Or... Was he killed ? Killed by the pain of starvation... or Killed by evil price manipulation ?"
He stayed silent for seconds before finally answering.
"....I don't know." He said with a contemplating expression.
I gave a light laugh and said, "alright then, let's Go with the flow. let's say his death was a sin. Who do you think bears the weight of this sin ? who is or are the true killers ?"
"The merchant obviously!" He answered with confidence.
"Are you really sure about that ?" I didn't know playing mind games with my son could be so fun.
I should do it more often from now on.
"Isn't he ? Since he increased the price for his greed, He exploited a monopoly for personal gain. he is the perpetrator, right ?"
"And what if I say it's the fault of the other villagers from that village, His own kinsmen ?"
"How does that work ?" He asked, his brows knitting together.
"Can't i just blame the villagers for his unjust death ? Could they not have saved him? If every villager in the village, gave up just one mouthful of their own portion, the man would still be alive. They had the means, but.... they chose their own full bellies over his life, the life of one of their own. Is the merchant a sinner for selling high, or are the villagers sinners for not giving for free?"
"But that's-" he was about protest but stopped midway and started to think through the logic i gave him.
"And you're also wrong about one thing."
"What ?"
"The merchant. I never said he did it out of greed. You assumed it was such, based on two factors. One, he was a merchant. And two, just like most people, you have a bias that merchants are inherently greedy."
"Are they not, though ?"
"Whether they are or not is not the subject of discussion here. Not all of them are. We're talking about this merchant right now. What if he had his own circumstances ?"
"For example ?"
"It's not mentioned in the story. But what if the merchant's daughter or wife was sick and he needed urgent money for treatment. Would you still call him an evil sinner ?"
"No..."
"Why not ?"
"He had a reason for doing what he did!"
"Reason does not excuse the weight of responsibility of your actions, Ty. The man is still dead and this consequence cannot be undone."
He thought for a moment and As if, trying to change the subject, he said "So, There are several Suspects ?"
"Yes! There are many people that can be branded as sinners. We already talked about the merchant and villagers now, do you think the daughter can be the sinner ?"
"Because she was the reason for the merchant to increase the price ? I don't think so."
" Okay, And what about the illness itself ?"
"How can you blame something lifeless ?"
"There are many people who do, Ty. You will see. Now, what about the victim himself ?"
"How are you supposed to blame his death on himself ?" He asked with an annoyed expression, as if he could not take my questions any longer.
"Can't i ? If he had worked harder, saved more, or made himself indispensable to the village, would he have been left to starve? Is it a sin to be weak in a world that requires strength?"
"...True."
"So, Ty. The lesson I am trying to teach you here is simple. Each person refers to a different thing, a different lesson in this 'useless' story. A different question. Now tell me what questions do they bring up. Starting off, The villagers."
"Is it a sin to not help someone even while you can ?"
" The Merchant"
"Does having a 'good reason' justify a 'bad action'? Everyone has their own story, own perspective and their own reasons for what they do, even their sins have reasons. But the result remains the same."
"Good. Daughter."
"Is it wrong when someone does something bad, for your sake, but without any bad intentions ? Just like the merchant increased prices for the sake of his daughter but had no bad intention towards the victim. If someone kills for you, are your hands truly clean?"
"Victim."
"Whose blame is it if a cruel man shows cruelty towards a person, who he sees as weak ? Is it the man's fault, because he is cruel by nature ? Or is it the victim's fault, for being weak enough to be deemed as an easy target ?"
"Correct!"
It's good that he understood the intentions behind the story. No. Actually, it's awesome.
Now, I can only hope that the answers that he chooses for these questions are the correct ones.
It isn't about being 'good' or 'bad'—it is about the mechanics of cause and effect. It is about the reality that in the world he is about to enter, 'sin' is nothing but a fancy word used by the people who have survived the 'reasons' of others.
I looked at his curious face.
"...more" he said in a low whispering voice.
"What ?"
"Tell me more." He said.
Hmm.. has he taken the bait of story ? he is kid a heart, after all.
"Alright"