Death Note

Since the topic is about morality, let me hear about your opinions for this matter. This is from a manga/anime called Death Note. You know, you should read manga or watch anime once in a while, you’ll get something from it one way or another.

Rules of Death Note

  1. The human whose name is written in this notebook shall die.
  2. This note will not take effect unless the writer has the person’s face in their mind when writing his/her name. Therefore, people sharing the same name will not be affected.
  3. If the cause of death is written within 40 seconds of writing the person’s name, it will happen.
  4. If the cause of death is not specified, the person will simply die of a heart attack.
  5. After writing the cause of death, the details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds.

Raito (Light) picked up and was entrusted with this notebook called Death Note. By those rules above, Death Note is that special notebook used by the Shinigamis/death gods/reapers/whatever you wanted to call them, on which gives you the privilege to see the shinigami assigned to that certain Death Note and kill people by whatever means you like, of course, it’s limited to realistic deaths. (I wont go into details with the Death Note since its not really important for this entry.) Since Raito is still young and is very idealistic, he wanted to use the Death Note to “create a world clean of sinners” and so he began his massive killings of convicts all around the world. For Raito, that thing he’s doing, is just because those people he killed are sentenced criminals and are therefore, worthless humans that need to be eliminated. But for “L”, his rival, no matter if they are criminals or not, they are still humans and therefore, in his point of view, what Raito is doing, is unjust.

Please also take this into consideration the fact that, since Raito begun killing criminals, the amount of criminals around the world dropped hugely because people are afraid of getting killed themselves. Raito was then treated as both savior of mankind and a serial mass murderer – both a god and a devil.

In my opinion, there’s not doubt that “L”, is right when he claimed even though they are criminals, they are still humans. But, I do not agree in that fact that they deserve to live, at least peacefully in jail. I also agree to Raito’s opinion that criminals such as those he killed are worthless, but in my opinion, they don’t deserve death either. Because when you die, you would never be able to see the ugliness of humanity, you will never be able to hear the screams of people’s agony, you will never be able to taste the bitterness of life, you will never smell the dripping blood from roting flesh of people scars, you will never feel pain nor suffering. With death, you would be eternally in bliss and in freedom. Therefore, I prefer people to see their own rotting reflections, hear their own frightful cries, taste how life can be as bitter, smell their own blood as they bleed. And after that, they would forever drown themselves in tears and regret.

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13 Comments

  1. well, Japanese horror always unique, as usual! And there’s no exception for Death Note. I’ve read the review and i’d like it but i couldn’t get the manga since i was too lazy to search!

  2. ahhhh yes Death note I love it! I started reading it myself and its easy to see it from both points of view but at the end of the day who is to decide when we live and when we die this is where we see that raito is wrong in what he is doing as he kills those who kill others but what makes him any better then those he kills pretty soon he’ll be the true criminal! but thats my point of view I do believe that some criminals are beyond saving and that there existence isn’t really necessary but theres no need to kill them because they have to live each day with the madness inside them that drove them to kill in the first place! but I love the manga and when I stop watching naruto on utube I’ll read more of it lol any ways long time no see euri! its good to see the site again my laptop kept blocking it so thats why I haven’t been able to comment but yay I am able to now! I love the layout!
    Luv Bexxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

  3. Woo hoo! I heart the whole vibe here. I used to go gaga over anime, but it kinda stopped due to cableTV-free lifestlye. Blows, huh?

    Death Note… Interesting.

    Shinigami… Shinigami… I’ve encountered that term before. Yami No Matsuei (Yaoi Yaoi hehe), perhaps? Yup. Way back in 2002 when AXN Asia had this late-night anime thingamajig. 🙂

    Anyhoo, thanks for blog crashing. Come back anytime! 🙂

  4. @ Yuki-chan ~
    You can get the manga here: http://soujirou.com

    @ Bex ~
    You’re laptop’s blocking this site. O_o Odd… Anyway, yes, yes, I agree with you in the fact that they shouldn’t have been killed by him. Since them living knowing the fact that they had killed, will be really disturbing. But that only applies to people who still has even a little bit of conscience within them. What about those who doesn’t? Raito, in my opinion is really a righteous guy, not until he held the Death Note. When he forfeited ownership of the notebook for a period of time, you can clearly see that his attitude is way different than that of him, as Kira. In my opinion, this is so because he already sees himself as a god. He even claims himself as a “god of the new world” on which, in his perspective, gods are meant to be always “just” and must not be defied in any way and death is what awaits those who defied got. He’s pretty confident, conceited, twisted and cleaver at the same time. That’s what makes him and the story interesting.

    @ Talamasca ~
    Yami no Matsuei? So you’re a yaoi fan too? ^_^ You’ve seen YnM at AXN at 2002? I remember that night. I was also watching that one. And yes, I would definitely come by for a visit again. =3

  5. Spoiler!! X-P

    Sorry sis, but I’m not a pro-life. Honestly, I don’t wanna be a pro-life. I still prefer seeing people lose their life rather than seeing them living but in great pain. And yes, it’s safe to say, I approve of Euthanasia.

  6. anti-life?
    i used to think like that..but imagine life without pain. do you think you will be ‘happy’ without it?.
    i suggest to see the Southpark Gothic Episode(Nevermind the graphics and the Language).. just get the idea .. .

  7. I’m really not a fan of yaoi. I just happen to know terminologies and have some friends who are hardcore fans (mostly girls like you). In fact, Yami no Matsuei’s the only yaoi I’ve ever seen in my entire life, and it’s been censored and stuff like that. But I’m open to anything anime-ish, say yuri or hentai? LOL.

  8. I’ve started reading the manga last year.. however, since my sched’s hectic, I got stuck on page 66? Or somewhere on the 8th volume, I think. Rawr. But I’ve heard and read some spoilers about it.. yeah, tragic deaths, if you ask me.

    In my opinion… Death Note perfectly relates the reality of our time. Sure, there are people out there who’d think that criminals like those should be punised eternally, ruthlessly, unlike what they experience right now, (and that includes me) but still, there are cons about this one.

    I like L, actually. hehe. I’m not being biased when I say he has a point – that what Kira’s doing is plain mass murder. But Kira has a good “reason” on why he’s doing those things to criminals. But towards the middle of the series, he somehow got away from his ideal, or main reason to purge the world of criminals only – he simply got overboard and simply wanted to get rid of all those people getting on his way, and that included the FBI agents, the innocent people, among others.

    Though he might have succeeded in one way or another, I think he got what he deserved… Nobody in this planet like him, who did such an atrocious act, who would never get punished.

  9. Ross,
    First, please reread carefully what I said earlier. I’m not an anti-life. It’s simply not a pro-life. I’m not even interested in life, for that matter. Or do you think that those who are not are automatically anti? Also, I’m not claiming that people should live without pain. After all, one would not be contented for the lack of pain in his life. What I was saying was that instead of seeing people living in a dead body painfully, it’s better to see them real dead. On one account, what’s the point of them living like that? Not even knowing what goes around, can’t even move their body, etc. On another account, practically speaking, maintaining a person in that state needs a lot of money and you won’t even have anything but pain in seeing th person like that in return. I know you may not get exactly what I am saying, until you yourself could experience the situation, so I will leave the thinking to you.

    Chette,
    Brother Blue? Who’s that? Do I know the guy? 🙄

    Talamasca,
    Yuri or hentai? Depends. I’m not really after the sensual scenes. I’m more of the story and smut scenes. 😉

    Aruki,
    Yes, I also think that it’s somehow related to our time. We are the same, I agree to Raito’s idea at first as well until he killed innocent people. Although, in my opinion, that what he did is a kind of a natural reaction from him, so I kinda expected that. Since he is scared of being found out.

  10. Wow what’s with all the Death Note craze going around. Many of my friends have mentioned about it. I’ll try watching it someday but right now I’m not finished with Pita Ten(the most awesome anime ever). Oh yeah and um, welcome back, Euri! I missed Beyond Eternal lots!

  11. @euri
    Oh, youblurted out right what I had in mind~! Hehe.. Just kidding… I agree with you, though, him killing those innocent people were just part of his self-defense since, yes, as you have mentioned, he was plain scared.

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