There’s a Japanese anime entitled Frieren: Past Journey’s Finish. Whereas anime has a justly-deserved status for being over-the-top and goofy, this explicit sequence bucks the pattern. The plot follows Frieren, an elven mage. Elves on this universe are extremely long-lived; their typical lifespan reaches hundreds of years lengthy. Frieren was a part of a celebration of heroes who defeated the Demon King, the chief of a robust nation of predators who hunted people, elves, and the opposite humanoid races. Resulting from Frieren’s lengthy life, she outlives her companions and, as time strikes on previous their nice victory over the Demon King, so too do the reminiscences of their time collectively start to fade. The present is about Frieren’s grief and her sudden (to her) want to protect the reminiscences of her pals.
The present additionally has many financial themes and examples. I’ve a sequence of weblog posts deliberate discussing these as I progress by way of my rewatch. This put up is the primary of what I hope will likely be many. I’ll do my greatest to maintain posts spoiler free, however when crucial, I’ll label spoilers.
Within the episode Killing Magic (season 1, episode 3), Frieren and her human apprentice Fern head to a village the place a robust basic within the Demon King’s military has been sealed away because the struggle 80 years earlier. Through the struggle, this basic, Qual, devastated the human armies with a robust spell named Zoltraak. This spell may bypass all obstacles; there was no counter for it. Its very title struck terror into the hearts of the people. This was the stuff of legends. Certainly, Qual itself was so {powerful} that it may solely be sealed away; no magic may contact it.
Quick-forward 80 years (to the current) and the seal round Qual has failed. Frieren and Fern arrive to destroy Qual as soon as and for all. Qual, recognizing Frieren from the battle 80 years earlier, proceeds to threaten her and unleashes his omnipotent spell. Fern blocks the spell. Fern’s shock is palpable: “I don’t understand, Mistress Frieren. That was just ordinary offensive magic.” Frieren goes on to clarify: people, not like demons and elves, should not innately magical. They’ve needed to adapt and overcome the challenges going through them. Conversely, demons are innately and powerfully magical; they have no idea find out how to adapt. They simply bludgeon every part till it submits. When Zoltraak devastated human armies a long time in the past, the people devoted themselves to reverse-engineering it, understanding it, and perfecting it. Extra importantly, the people simplified it and it turned so frequent that this spell, as soon as solely within the arms of only one terribly {powerful} demon, is now commonplace in opposition to even the lowest-skilled human mages.
Right here we see an illustration of what Julian Simon calls “the ultimate resource,” particularly the human thoughts. People are insanely inventive when confronted with issues. When costs are allowed to fluctuate (signaling relative shortage/abundance) and correct establishments are in place that enable for and reward creativity, humanity is ready to accomplish superb issues. Consequently, the unimaginable turns into not solely doable, however commonplace. Coupled with the truth that technological change is a combinatorial course of, it turns into mind-boggling what issues free people can overcome.
Thus, we see one other implication: that issues sow the seeds of their very own destruction (or, as Frieren put it: “Zoltraak is just too powerful”). Confronted with challenges, people will overcome. If protected against challenges, stagnation outcomes. To cite the economist Mark Perry: “competition breeds competence.” Competitors not solely breeds competence, however breeds superiority. Allow us to unleash human creativity.
