And how were the people to be free? How were
they expected to leave The Village even if they wanted to? It was alright for
Number 6, he could fly a helicopter, or perhaps take the jet boat. But what
about the ordinary citizens, how were they expected to breakout of The Village?
A few might get away in Mini-Mokes, but all most citizens could do, would be to
run away, and that would beg the question how far? And it would be worse for
the senior citizens in the Old people’s home, those in wheelchairs. And what about
the patients in the hospital?
“This is our chance.... this is our chance
take it now. I have command, I will immobilise all electronic controls....
Listen to me......You are free to go.... You are free to go..... I am in
command, obey me and be free.... You are free to go...free to go…free to go."
That would be right. Free to go where, and how? In the end it’s just as Number
2 suspected, Number 6 lacked the administrative ability to manipulate a
community such as theirs!
Be seeing you
I've recently started to imagine the quote in question is a tongue in cheek reference to the west's notion of freedom. Do what you're told, don't speak up, but be free. Freedom under our political system is not possible. We are free not to.work, just to starve. As McGoohan intended, if you think it, that's what it is.
ReplyDeleteHello,
DeleteApologise for a delay in replying, but decorating has taken precedent these past couple of days. However here I am…. “Obey me and be free.” The trouble is there is no democracy in the village, every citizen is conditioned and manipulated into voting for No.6, but can they trust him? No, because No.6 is only out for himself. In ‘Free For All all he wants to do is to incite the citizens into rioting, running away, while he can slip away in the confusion, such is my personal thinking. “You are free, free, free to go, obey me and be free.” Yet not one citizens is listening as No.6’s voice booms out over the village, such is the control over the citizens. Yet even had the citizens taken No.6/no.2 at his word and ran away, where would they go? And that counts for the evacuation of the village in ‘Fall Out’, citizens running all over the place and away from the village…..where would they go? Some 20 years ago I had a book of short stories published based on the Prisoner, and one story shows what might well have happened to some citizens after that ‘Fall Out’ evacuation of the village.
In the outside world there is no perfect democracy anywhere, as for freedom, we are all free to some extent, yet prisoners of something or other. Freedom can be a state of mind, at least in the West there is protest, freedom of speech. No.6 wanted the people in the village to be free, yet he was simply looking out for himself, and in politics politicians are often out for what they can get!
Regards and be seeing you
David