This is my first fanfic, so if it's terrible, that's why. This is aimed at those Avatar fans with a philosophical bent. My task here is to expound on the wartime doctrine of the Fire Nation. A boethe (pronounced boffy) is a hut found in the Scottish wildernesses that travellers can shelter in. Having spent a night in one, I can tell you that it's the perfect word for what I want to describe here.
The March of Civilisation
The bulky hunk of metal pushed its way through the waves. Unlike the ships of the Fire Navy, this vessel was only as streamlined as it needed to be. Speed and manoeuvrability were not required for its purpose. The Pride of Hing Wa was a transport and cargo ship. Tiny in comparison were several Fire Navy ships travelling alongside it, there to protect the cargo ship in the unlikely event of an Earth Navy attack.
Karamzan, a boy of fifteen, was near the bow of the ship, leaning on the rail that prevented him from falling overboard. He looked out onto the shore hoving into view: the Earth Kingdom, his new home. The youngster, who had black hair tied up in an untidy topknot and a round, pale face, looked at the alien shores with excitement. A strange land full of sights and sounds waiting to be discovered!
Fire Lord Ozai had just recently ascended the throne, and a fresh wave of colonisation had been ordered. Karamzan's father had decided that the family ought to do more for their nation, and that the best way to do this would be to leave their home on Hing Wa Island for the Earth Kingdom colonies.
As the sun set behind them, the ship drew into port. Only a few miles away Pohuai Fortress could be seen, its colossal pagoda tower illuminated, looking as imposing and unmovable as the mountains that formed its backdrop. The port was a flurry of activity and noise as hundreds of families carried their luggage off the boat and towards waiting carts. Torches were held by the soldiers directing the new colonials, and the dancing shadows made the bustle seem even more chaotic.
Soon enough, Karamzan's family were in a wagon being pulled along by a komodo-rhino. The rhino needed no direction, because they were a part of a large caravan and so it simply followed the wagon in front along the dark path that winded through the mountains. Karamzan's sixteen-year-old brother Azulon slept in the back amongst their luggage, exhausted from the journey. Karamzan's mother, thin and pale like her son, clung to her husband's arm in the cold night. Karamzan's father was a big, muscle-bound man. He was clean-shaven and his angular face was beginning to fall victim to wrinkles. He was an engineer, and was hoping that both his sons would follow in their father's footsteps. 'Engineers are the backbone of the Fire Nation' Karamzan's teachers and the posters on every street corner always said.
Karamzan's grandfather despaired of his son's choice of career. They visited grandpa Kuzon a lot when Karamzan and Azulon were toddlers, but after a particularly vicious argument they stopped their regular visits. Whenever Karamzan would ask why they couldn't visit grandpa Kuzon, his father would reply that grandpa Kuzon had gone mad. He learnt later from his mother that they could not visit him because he was disappointed in their father's passionate love for the Fire Nation. She also told him that grandpa often starved himself because he did not want to partake in the Fire Nation's growing prosperity. Grandpa Kuzon had died during one of these fasts a few months ago.
With the wagon rocking as it travelled down the path to their new home and with Karamzan's head resting on his father's shoulder, the boy drifted into a deep sleep, looking forward to the next day.
***
Karamzan woke up a few hours after dawn, and as they went over a ridge he was confronted with a beautiful sight: a town nestled in a valley with a river running through it, lit up by the sunbeams peeking through the mountains on the other side. As they trundled into the town, Karamzan was amazed that it was so similar to the town they had lived in on Hing Wa. The same style of buildings, the same fire flake stalls, the same omnipresent red. Instead of being reassured, he was rather disappointed. One of the soldiers that had escorted the caravan gave Karamzan's father directions to their new home, and when they arrived Karamzan was equally disappointed: it was almost exactly the same as their old house.
After a hectic and tiring day of unpacking, the family sat down together to eat komodo-chicken. Karamzan played with his food. Life here wasn't what he had imagined it would be. His parents and brother shovelled their meals down, and left Karamzan to finish his on his own: they all went to bed, fatigued by the day's exertions. Karamzan however was restless. He looked out of the window. They were on the edge on town and no wall had been built around it, so he could see the forest that surrounded the little town. He stared at it, curiosity growing in his mind. Out there was where all the new sights and sounds were, out there was the real Earth Kingdom!
He tiptoed to his parents' room and heard his father snoring through the door. Seizing his chance, he ran out of the house and out of the town.
***
After about an hour, Karamzan had climbed one of the mountains that formed the side of the valley and was now walking down into another, smaller valley. He was not following any path, but he was confident that he would be able to find his way back. It was the dead of night by now, and he was completely surrounded by darkness. But this darkness did not terrify him; it exhilarated him.
After another hour, he came across a break in the forest. At the edge of the woods he had a wonderful view of one of the mountains that one could see from the town, except from the other side, illuminated by the moon. Karamzan was busy admiring this view when he realised with a gasp that there were people nearby. About a hundred meters away, almost invisible even in the moonlight because it blended in so well with the landscape, was a boethe, and outside it two men, one old and one young, were talking. Karamzan hid behind a tree, but peeked round the side. Facing away from the old man, the young man got into a fighting stance, stamped the ground and punched the air in front of him. There was the sound of a landslide and dust was thrown into the air along a thin strip between the boethe and the forest. The man had just created a smooth path.
"Earthbending…" murmured Karamzan. He had seen plenty of firebending back on Hing Wa, usually used for practical or entertainment purposes, but the ability to manipulate earth…it seemed so savage.
"Thanks," he heard the old man say, "I've been meaning to do that for a while"
Karamzan was fascinated and hoped that they would do some more. But the two men went inside the boethe. Smoke began to drift idly out of a chimney and into the night air. Karamzan waited for another half hour, but it didn't look like they were going to come out again. So he decided to make his way back home, smiling.
However, not half an hour into his journey, the boy came across another curious sight. In the centre of a small glade, there was a middle aged man meditating. With the moon directly above and the wind caressing the leaves of the trees around, the scene was an eerie one. Karamzan walked in front of the man: he was wearing the armour of a Fire Nation soldier and he looked very familiar. He was sure he had seen a picture of him somewhere. No, surely not…
Suddenly General Iroh's eyes shot open with a gasp. The boy yelled and fell onto the ground out of shock. Iroh unwound himself from his meditative position, taking deep breaths as though he had just run a marathon.
"Hello", he said to the boy with a weary smile
"General…General Iroh?" stuttered Karamzan
"That's me"
"Were you…were you in the Spirit World?"
Iroh chuckled with a cough, as he was still catching his breath. He nodded.
"Why?"
Iroh sighed.
"What's your name, lad?"
Karamzan told him.
"Well, Karamzan, sit down. There's no use you staying sprawled on the grass like that"
He did as he was told.
"You know, Karamzan, war is a terrible thing"
"I thought the War was good," said Karamzan, "I thought it was going to make the world a better place"
"If you had seen war, you might not so readily call it good," said Iroh, "if you had been to all those funerals of brave men, if you had heard your comrades shriek in pain, if you had seen your own son die in front of you…"
"That's why you went to the Spirit World," said Karamzan sympathetically, "to see your son again"
There was a short pause whilst Iroh was lost in that horrific memory.
"Did you…did you see him?" Karamzan asked hesitantly, unsure whether it was his place to ask, "In the Spirit World?"
Iroh looked up again, into the boy's eyes, tears rolling down his cheek, and nodded with a smile.
"I'm sorry," he said, "enough about me. I take it your from one of the Fire Nation towns? Judging by your clothes"
Karamzan explained that he and his family had only just arrived.
"But I didn't think it would be so…similar to the Fire Nation"
"Well that was Sozin's dream, to have only one culture, one nation. If the Earth Kingdom colonies weren't the same as towns back in the Fire Nation, the War would be in vain. Sozin, my father and now my brother all fight in the name of Unity, but they do not see that there is a way to achieve Unity which still preserves Diversity"
"What do you mean?" asked Karamzan, more than a little bemused
Iroh looked up at the night sky, at the thousands upon thousands of stars, "Something…something has changed. I see the world more clearly now. Going into the Spirit World has given me a new perspective on things"
"What do you mean?" asked Karamzan again, a little impatient to hear this revelation
"It is conventional wisdom that Air is opposed to Earth, and Water to Fire. The elements are not compatible with one another. This is what Sozin believed, and this is why he set out to conquer and subdue the other nations. But this conventional wisdom is wrong! The elements and the nations are compatible with one another, and the fact that people believe that they're not leads to people being confused: they cannot understand the world, and so they feel alienated from it. We are, after all, all people. A firebender might be different to a waterbender, but both of them are still human; they even speak the same language! Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"Er…not really", said Karamzan as he got up from the ground, "but you can explain it to me again on the way back to town. C'mon, you must be cold"
Iroh shook his head, "No, although I'm grateful for your offer, I need to stay out here for a while longer. I need some more time to think"
"Okay, but I'll be going now. I want to be back before my family realise I'm gone"
Iroh chuckled, "Fair enough. Fare well! Oh, and the soldiers who were escorting me back to the Fire Nation are probably looking for me, so if anyone asks you, you haven't seen me!"
***
The next day, Karamchand, Azulon and their friend Karmarx (a fourteen-year-old girl with long brown hair) were in a small square in the outskirts of the town, away from the hustle and bustle of the centre. Azulon raised and dropped a dumbbell as they talked. He was much more muscly than Karamzan, and was thinking of going against his father's wishes and joining the army, hoping that his father would still see this as a noble way of serving their nation.
"I was thinking," said Karamzan hesitantly, "is the War really…you know…good?"
His brother and his friend scoffed.
"Of course it is!" said Karmarx, "Why would you even ask?"
"I dunno…" said Karamzan, looking at the floor
"Think about it Karamzan: first there were just tribes wandering the world, then some people began to learn bending from the dragons, the sky bison, the badger-moles and the moon. After centuries of struggle, the world was eventually organised into the Four Nations"
"And then the Spirit of the World descended to the world to ensure peace between the Four Nations," said Karamzan, feeling a little patronised, "I know"
"But the Avatar was getting in the way of the next epoch, the next stage of the world's evolution," continued Karmarx, "namely a united world, a world without the division of the Four Nations. With one nation ruling the others, there will be no more wars. Can you imagine that, Karamzan? Eternal Peace! This will be the Last War, and the atrocities committed now will be justified by the fact that after the War there will be no more atrocities"
"It's more than just that," said Azulon, "the War is about unlocking the potential of humanity. Some say that it is never right to kill a person. But this 'morality' is simply a tool, used by the Weak to control the Strong. And let me tell you brother, the Weak do not deserve to live. Life does not forgive Weakness. For too long the Weak have held back humanity, preventing it from achieving its potential. But now the Strong are taking charge, and humanity could achieve anything!
"Man shall no more be the idle plaything of the Spirits!" continued Azulon, "We will be free to pursue our own destiny without the meddling of Spirits, and indeed we may be able to even challenge them one day! Everything in existence is ours to do with as we please, including the Spirits. Through us, Man shall take his rightful place as the Master of Everything!"
Karamzan seemed unmoved by this speech.
"Yeah, I s'pose that makes sense", said he half-heartedly
He slipped off his seat, and walked back to the house. Azulon peered after him, suspicion riddling his mind.
***
That night, after he was sure the rest of his family were asleep, he sneaked out of the house and made his way back to the boethe. He couldn't wait to see earthbending again; he couldn't stop thinking about it all day. After two hours walking, he found himself at the same spot he was at the previous night. There wasn't anybody outside the boethe, but Karamzan decided to wait. He waited for barely five minutes.
"Hello there!" said a voice directly behind him, causing the boy to jump, "Nice night for a walk, isn't it?"
Karamzan slowly turned around. It was the young man he had seen earthbending the night before. He didn't look unlike his father, except younger and of a darker complexion.
"Give us a hand, will ya?" said the earthbender, casually throwing some of the logs he was carrying to Karamzan.
He began walking towards the path he had created the night before, and automatically Karamzan followed him without uttering a word. He was petrified. It must have been obvious he was a Fire Nation citizen, because his clothes were black and red. But he was scared that if he simply dropped the logs and ran, the earthbender would throw a boulder at him or do something worse. So Karamzan followed the young man, as though in trance.
They walked up the path to the boethe, the door of which the young man pushed open. He beckoned Karamzan to enter. The boethe was just one small room, which had within it a simple fireplace, a hamper, a Pai Sho table and a smaller table at which a decrepit old man was eating his meal. He had deep set eyes and the only hair he had was a silver goatee at the end of protruding chin.
"Ah," said the old man slowly, "and who is this?"
"Our new friend!" announced the young man jovially
He took the logs from Karamzan and put them by the fireplace. Karamzan stood still, as though he was paralysed. What were they going to do to him?
The young man sat at the small table, and invited Karamzan to do the same. He stiffly complied.
"I'm Tuk," said the young earthbender, "and this is my mentor Jayo. I've just come back from Ba Sing Se, where I've been at university"
"University?!" blurted out Karamzan
This made Tuk and Jayo jump. They had not expected someone of clearly a quiet disposition to say something suddenly so loudly. Karamzan went from being deathly pale to bright red.
"Sorry," he said, "I didn't know they had universities in the Earth Kingdom. I was told that all the universities in the world were in the Fire Nation"
Tuk burst into haughty laughter, and Jayo cackled happily.
"Trust the Fire Nation to think they're the only nation capable of wisdom and intellect," said Jayo, "now tell us your name, stranger"
Karamzan told them.
"So why have you left university?" asked the boy, thinking it polite to ask
"Because I got my degree," answered Tuk, "I grew up round here, so I decided to come and visit my family and this old hermit. I can't believe it's been three years…"
"And what now?" asked Karamzan, "Do you think you'll figh-"
He stopped before he finished the question, but it was too late. The mood suddenly turned very sombre.
"Do I think I'll fight the Fire Nation?" Tuk finished the question for him, "I don't know"
"Do you support the War?" asked Jayo, "Do you believe it is good?"
"I don't know what to believe anymore…" Karamzan replied pensively
There was a knock at the door. The three of them froze. Tuk went over to the hamper, opened it and motioned Karamzan over to it. Thankfully there was hardly anything in it, so the teenager just about fitted into it. Tuk closed the hamper, enveloping Karamzan in darkness. He became very conscious of how loud his breathing was, but by focusing on it he seemed to be making it even louder. He heard the door open.
"Yes?" said Jayo
"I'm sorry to bother you," said a familiar voice, "but would you mind if came in? You see, I haven't had any shelter for days and-"
"General Iroh!" said Karamzan, bursting out of the hamper
"Karamzan, my boy!" exclaimed Iroh, "What are you doing here?"
"I was sort of invited here", said Karamzan, getting out of the hamper.
Iroh turned to Tuk, "May I?"
"Of course!" replied Tuk, "Thankfully we have four chairs"
The four of them sat down around the small table.
"Well well," said Jayo, "citizens from two nations, supposedly at war with each other, meeting in the middle of nowhere, one young and one old from each. This is quite an occasion"
Tuk got out a bottle from a bag in the corner, "I brought back a present for you from Ba Sing Se," he said to Jayo, "You won't mind if we share it with our new friends, will you?"
"No, not at all!" said Jayo, "but wait one moment," he looked at Karamzan, "how old are you, boy?"
"Fifteen", he said
"Bah, I was younger than that when I first drank this stuff," said Tuk, "he can join us"
He got out four very small glasses from the hamper, and poured into them the clear liquid from the bottle. Tuk and Jayo took their glasses, put them to their lips and in one fluid motion swigged it all down. Karamzan and Iroh tried to do the same, but both of them spat the drink back out. Tuk burst into haughty laughter, and Jayo cackled joyfully.
"I take it you've never had tato-grain juice before", said Tuk
"We should have realised, Tuk," said Jayo, "we're made of harder stuff than these Fire Nation folk. Heck, it takes ten of those to make us even tingly"
As Tuk poured out another two shots for himself and his mentor, Jayo leant toward the two Fire Nation citizens.
"Have either of you been to Ember Island?"
Both of them nodded with a reminiscent smile. Karamzan had spent a blissful week there last year on holiday.
"My father, who grew up in Taku, always told me that before the War, when he was a young man, he and his friends would go to Ember Island every summer and have…er…a fun time," said Jayo with a wink, "fire is the element of passion, after all…"
***
The next day, the town was buzzing. One of the Fire Sages had come to town. He was on a propaganda tour of the colonies. Hundreds of people gathered in the main square to listen to his sermon. Karamzan pushed his way to near the front. The Fire Sages, the guardians of the Nation's spirituality and the constitutional branch of the Nation's politics, had led the Nation for countless centuries with their wisdom. Maybe this Sage, who had a long face and a longer beard, could quell the turmoil in Karamzan's mind.
"Sons and daughters of Fire, the Superior Element! I have travelled in the Earth Kingdom, I have seen the Southern Water Tribe and I have carried out in-depth research on the Air Nomads. All these endeavours have taught me a precious truth: that the Fire Nation is the Greatest Civilisation the world has ever known!"
The crowd cheered fanatically.
"We are, and always have been, the most technologically advanced nation. In this way alone we are the most sophisticated and most civilised nation. Those of you here who are engineers: you are the pride of the Fire Nation!"
A significant portion of the crowd cheered in gratitude.
"The other nations though are most savage and barbaric. The inhabitants of the Earth Kingdom are a thick-skulled lot, incapable of comprehending anything that requires skill or intelligence. The barbarians of the Water Tribes are content with living in houses made of ice, and the warriors of the Southern Water Tribe paint their faces and fight with clubs. They even liken themselves to wolves! We shall civilise them all, and barbarism shall no longer sully this world!
"The Air Nomads, I can tell you, did not want to be a part of this world. They devoted themselves to looking upwards to an existence beyond this one, and thus did they turn their back on this world, arrogantly condemning us who were content with our bodies. They constantly sought to free themselves from their flesh and blood. Our great forefather Sozin aided them in their struggle, and they are no longer of any concern to the world.
"One of the hallmarks of our civilisation is our great institution that is Agni Kai. When we have a quarrel, we settle it with honour and dignity. The people of the other nations, however, when they have a quarrel, simply attack their opponent, dishonourably utilising the element of surprise if possible.
"But, sons and daughters of fire, do not think that these barbarians are content simply with plunging their own lands and peoples into chaotic darkness. Fire Lord Sozin correctly divined the nature of the other bending styles as brutal and horrifically immoral. Your bones are made of earth, and so an earthbender can break every bone in your body in an instant. Blood is partly water, and so a waterbender can manipulate your flesh, and even draw the blood from out of you, leaving you a dry husk. Every second of your life you inhale and exhale; airbenders could kill in a most horrific way by preventing you from drawing breath. Sozin rightly defended the Fire Nation from these brutes, and one day no one will ever have to fear such horrible deaths.
"Without fire, no society can call itself civilised. Fire is Civilisation, and the Fire Nation is thus the origin and prime example of Civilisation. Fire shall continue to sweep through the world, purifying everything it touches, until barbarism is dead and there is nothing but everlasting Civilisation!"
The crowd burst into zealous cheering, all of their hearts inflamed with national pride. All but one. Karamzan slinked out of the horde of patriots. As he did so, he passed Azulon, who, pressing forward, seemed eager to talk to the Fire Sage.
***
That night, Karamzan went to the boethe again. Iroh, who had spent the day there, was making a stew from some rabbit-squirrels that Tuk had caught. The teenager was telling the others about what the Fire Sage had said.
"But I couldn't believe that what he was saying about the other nations is true," he was saying, "especially after meeting you two. He was listing all these ways that foreign benders kill you, and saying that the War was the Fire Nation defending itself"
"Ah, yes, that's the thing about firebending," said Jayo, "there aren't many defensive moves, so the best defence is offence. This mentality has obviously permeated into Fire Nation politics"
"He called the Air Nomads barbarians," continued Karamzan, "but from what he said it seems like they were just searching for enlightenment"
"I took a module in anthropology whilst I was in Ba Sing Se," said Tuk, "the Air Nomads weren't barbaric in any way. They were very peaceful, apparently. Professor Zei told us about various substances they supposedly consumed in order to 'free themselves from reality' or something. There was something they ate which made them question whether they were separate from everything else, and there was something they smoked which gave them very strange ideas and made them stare at their hands a lot"
"How did that get them closer to enlightenment?" asked Karamzan
"Dunno. Maybe they just did it for fun"
"So, boy, did this Fire Sage persuade you that the War is justified?" asked Jayo, as Iroh dolled out the stew
"No, if anything he persuaded me that it isn't," answered Karamzan, "what he was saying seemed…wrong. He called the people of the other nations savages, but I don't think they are. They just have a different way of life to the people of the Fire Nation, and that's no reason to oppress them or wipe them out. People should be free to live the way they want to live"
Jayo and Tuk looked at each other soberly, then back at Karamzan and Iroh, who had sat down and began to dig into his stew.
"We've been talking to Iroh throughout the day about his opinions on the War, and now that you've said that you think the War is wrong, we'd like to offer both of you something", said Jayo
"I take it that neither of you has heard of the Order of the White Lotus?" asked Tuk
Both Karamzan and Iroh shook their heads.
"That's because it is a secret society," continued Tuk, "a society that transcends the nations. Its members value Wisdom, Truth, Peace and Balance, and those are the things the society as a whole seeks. Generally speaking, we'd have to know you a lot better before we did anything, but because we both feel that you are trustworthy, we'd like to offer you membership of the Order of the White Lotus"
Both Karamzan and Iroh were speechless. The idea was amazing! Hundreds, if not thousands of people across the globe, all secretly working together to end the War! The fact that there were others of the same opinion as himself reassured that opinion in Karamzan's mind, and gave hope to the prospect of the War actually ending one day! Karamzan and Iroh readily agreed to join.
"Excellent!" said Jayo, "well, come over to the Pai Sho table. There are some things we need to teach you…"
***
A few hours later, Iroh left the boethe, saying that it was time for him to continue his journey back to the Fire Nation. He was assured that the Order would be able to contact him there. He said his good-byes, and walked into the night.
Karamzan stayed a while longer, but then decided that it was also time for him to go.
"Don't make a habit out of coming here," said Tuk, "because if you do, someone will eventually notice"
Karamzan took the advice to heart, and made his way back to town.
***
The next morning, Karamzan was led out across the main square by two soldiers, his hands bound behind his back. A large crowd had gathered. They were kept back an appropriate distance from a block of wood in the middle of the square by numerous soldiers. Once at the middle, the soldiers forced the boy onto his knees and then forced his back into a horizontal position, so that his neck was on the block of wood. Karamzan was shaking uncontrollably, and tears were rolling down his cheeks. He moved his head so that he could see the executioner, a great hulk of a man, a black hood concealing most of his face, wearing a grim expression, mentally preparing to do his duty.
"Karamzan son of Ozamu," said the Fire Sage, who was leading the proceedings, "two nights ago, your brother followed you as you went into the woods and saw you go into the abode of a savage. Last night he followed you again, this time with me. I saw with my own eyes you going into that hovel. You are accused of treachery and of conspiring with Earth Kingdom rebels, and you are hereby sentenced to death"
Did they see Iroh? Karamzan thought, What will happen to Jayo and Tuk? He would never know the fate of his friends. Even though the blood flowing through his veins felt like icy water, he was drenched in sweat. He couldn't believe it was going to end like this; he had wanted to see so much more of the world. He looked over to his parents: his mother was sobbing into his father's chest. When he looked into his father's eyes, he simply looked at the ground with a frown. He had never known disappointment like this. Karamzan looked to his brother: Azulon, who was next to the Fire Sage, was trying and failing to suppress a malicious grin. This was the Strong's victory over the Weak. He looked over to Karmarx: She was clutching her father's hand tightly, and tears were streaming down her cheeks. She was talking under her breath: "For the Greater Good…for the Greater Good"
The axe swung.
Notes
If you think this is a little pretentious, that's because it is.
Hing Wa Island is where Ash-Bananas are grown.
Karamzan is supposed to be reminiscent of Karamchand, Mahatma Gandhi's middle name.
Iroh's argument for the compatibility of the elements is similar to Hegel's argument for the compatibility of concepts which are opposed to each other (such as individuality and universality). We feel alienated from the world because we think these oppositions exist, because of this 'either/or' mindset. My lecturer used the example of Bush: "You are either with us or with the terrorists".
Karmarx is supposed to be reminiscent of Karl Marx, who argued the world goes through various epochs (such as feudalism and capitalism) until the final epoch is reached: communism. Karmarx has a similar view of history, except that the final epoch is eternal peace with the world under Fire Nation rule.
Azulon's arguments are similar to those of Nietzsche. The Nazis (whose philosophy Ozai seems to share) twisted Nietzsche's ideas for their own ends.
I imagine earthbenders (clearly being heavy-weights) liking shots – Toph looks like she's having one in 'The Headband'. I also imagine the Fire Nation to be, in more peaceful times, somewhat of a sex resort (only the Fire Nation could produce the likes of Ty Lee ;-D)
The Romans' world-view was that every race except theirs was barbaric, and they believed that they had a duty given to them by the gods to civilise the world. Similarly, the European Empires of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries used civilisation as justification for the subjugation of foreigners. They believed Africans and Asians as unable to rule themselves competently. I believe the Fire Nation to have had a similar doctrine, as explained through the Fire Sage.