Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 993 Ancient Society and Historical Cycle (First Update)

Salomon forced down the sweet, hot tea to avoid damaging his clothes and the precious books in his hands.

"This is a breakfast book club, is that all you have to say?" He glanced at little Lorna, who was huddled in a seat to the side.

Little Lorna scratched the skin above her socks and shrugged casually. Initially, Salomon and Athena wanted to enroll her in the Mutual Aid Society, but after learning of its relapse rate, he abandoned the idea and instead placed her in his morning reading group—at least once a week during the vacation. On those days, Salomon would force himself to leave his bed with the witch, get up, sit at the table for breakfast, and then begin studying. Little Lorna didn't exactly dislike the reading group, and Salomon's private library contained many rare books from hundreds of years ago, acquired from collectors—books others could only find in university libraries.

But compared to Salomon's mechanical modifications, historical research, and even magical experiments in his study, little Lorna welcomed the gray shorthair cat that would punctually jump onto the desk and sweep the ink bottle off. "A bit too rational, not very endearing, lacking in human touch," she said. "If you could arrange for Robbie Reyes to meet his brother, even secretly, the story would have a better ending, and Ghost Rider would be more willing to serve you. Immortal City can do it, why don't you?"

"Because of responsibility. After Robbie Reyes became Ghost Rider, his personal significance disappeared, replaced by the function of Ghost Rider. It sounds cold, but it's quite realistic. The responsibility of Ghost Rider has long surpassed the significance of Robbie Reyes' identity. If he can't fulfill his responsibility, then he will be just as miserable as Johnny Blaze, and seeing Gabe Reyes will only make him more upset. There's a reason why Johnny Blaze stays away from his girlfriend. Even if Kamar-Taj could allow him to be with his girlfriend, he still has to run around completing missions because he must bear his responsibility."

Are you sure?

"This issue can be extended to the balance between collective and individual interests, and also to the different emphases of patriarchal and matriarchal societies. The concept of the nation-state, a non-blood-related concept, only emerged after patriarchal societies, as did the concept of a human community. This issue is so complex because these two aspects are inherently inseparable. To understand this issue, we must return to the very beginning of human civilization and examine our problem from the perspective of the environment before the concepts of nation and ethnicity arose. At the dawn of human civilization, the unstable method of obtaining food through hunting and fishing was dominant. At that time, the strongest individuals controlled all resources, which was the earliest form of patriarchal society. Allowing strong individuals to control more resources, and having them responsible for maintaining the group's security and obtaining more food, was the optimal solution for survival in a primitive society living in a hunting environment. However, this patriarchal society existed for a very short time, perhaps only a few decades, and didn't even have time to leave behind a civilization, because primitive agriculture arose. This was a step towards human evolution, allowing us to begin calling ourselves humans rather than animals."

Salomon took a sip of tea and continued, "With the advent of primitive agriculture and animal husbandry, matriarchal societies began to emerge. Women were respected in production and economic life, and in society, achieving a dominant and controlling position, and practicing a very primitive system of communal ownership. Matriarchal societies cared for everyone; even individuals who couldn't obtain food for themselves could survive. At that time, there were only collective interests, not individual interests, because everyone received equal things. Doesn't that sound wonderful and correct?"

One drawback of listening to Salomon's lectures is that the listeners must possess the corresponding knowledge, and since the orphanage's curriculum doesn't include a reading list at the beginning of each semester, the children often find themselves suddenly unable to understand what the lecturer is saying. Fortunately, Lorna was (forced) to read all the books Athena had placed in the orphanage, which allowed her to keep up with Salomon's pace.

"Everything I've said is based on a crucial premise: the survival of the species. Discussing anything outside the context of the productive forces of the time is meaningless." Salomon beckoned, and his invisible servant retrieved several books and photographs from the bookshelf. "While primitive matriarchal societies align with our modern humanistic ideals, the reason they distributed food equally was simply because there was no food left over. Without equal distribution, people would starve. Primitive matriarchal societies established bloodlines, which brought trust and security, thus enabling the equal distribution of food. If patriarchal societies and private ownership had emerged at that time, the tribe's fate would have been extinction."

"Productivity determines everything."

"That's right." The sorcerer nodded in satisfaction. "Moreover, in matriarchal societies, men were responsible for hunting, maintaining security, and waging war. However, the core of the tribe was held together by the highest point of the matrilineal line, the grandmother. In matriarchal societies, there were more men than women. In addition to their work in production, women were also responsible for absorbing genes from other tribes to continue the tribe's lineage. Coupled with the high risks of childbirth at the time, this gave rise to the earliest form of fertility worship. If you believe those fools who boast that humanity will stop fighting once it returns to a matriarchal society, you're incredibly naive—there is no such thing as peace outside of matriarchal tribes. War captives were taken as food, not as human beings. It was from the tribe's wars against other tribes that the seeds of patriarchal society began to reappear. But the reappearance of patriarchal society would only come with the redevelopment of agricultural technology, leading to an agricultural society, which is the second step in the development of human civilization: slavery. The reason why male muscles can attract women's attention is because strength means the ability to obtain more food and protect the tribe."

"You still haven't gotten to the point."

"Don't rush, let me explain slowly. You'll definitely finish before lunch." Salomon pushed the book "The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State" in front of little Lorna. "History is cyclical; we can see the future from it. After this lesson, this book will be your assignment. You will write a paper on patriarchal society and private property, but I must remind you that private property is not the exclusive domain of patriarchal society. As long as productivity is sufficient, matriarchal society can also have private property. If we are to discuss why patriarchal society in the agricultural era triumphed over matriarchal society, it is because of productivity, war, and reproduction."

"population?"

"Race that dominate the world multiply like rabbits, just like humans. Wars consume population, and the slavery system of the agricultural era greatly increased the population by privatizing women and children, including those from rival tribes. At the same time, patriarchal societies that absorbed matriarchal societies began to develop the concept of the state. Patriarchal societies with clearly defined rights and responsibilities formed communities of interest and cooperated with each other, possessing extremely strong war potential. This is also the origin of the nobility in human civilization. Those people you see on the internet today who call for a return to matriarchal societies and oppose childbirth are either so selfish that they don't want to take on social responsibility, or they foolishly believe that matriarchal societies are matriarchal privilege societies, peaceful and beautiful societies, completely unaware that women in matriarchal societies must bear the responsibility of procreation, whether they like it or not."

"That's amazing." Lorna blinked. "I've never heard Ms. Minerva tell a story like this before."

"The weapons of mass destruction that humanity now possesses render the aggressiveness, population reproduction capacity, and war-generating capacity of patriarchal societies ineffective. After the advent of the atomic bomb, large-scale warfare gradually disappeared, and with productivity decoupled from individual strength, characteristics of matriarchal societies re-emerged. Although the Earth's population has expanded dramatically, the proportion of illegitimate children in Europe is as high as 60%, all of which indicate that modern society is moving back towards a matriarchal system. Engels' prediction was quite accurate. The invention of agricultural technology abolished the matriarchal system, and the invention of the atomic bomb abolished the patriarchal system, but—"

"—But everything before that word is utter nonsense!"

Salomon glared at little Lorna.

"But we all know that the survival crisis of the human race has never disappeared. Those predators lurking behind the veil of reality are watching our souls closely, and extraterrestrial species are eager to acquire resources and labor. Under these circumstances, the human race must cooperate and unite to deal with the threats—we must become one, shedding all attachments, such as assets, gender, etc. Only in this way can we survive and expand in this dark universe. Everyone is equal before death. Extradimensional predators and aliens will not care how much wealth you have. Only when we overcome death, successfully ascend, and rule all races in the galaxy will we usher in true equality and peace once again."

"I think I understand what you're trying to say."

"So let's go back to Robbie Reyes's problem. Regardless of the system, Ghost Rider's function is war, so he must bear the responsibility to his race. He must protect his loved ones from those terrible threats in a way that protects the human race, because if he doesn't, no one knows if his family will be the next to suffer. You could say that whether Ghost Rider is male or female, they all have to bear this responsibility. This isn't some so-called 'grand narrative,' but a survival problem that is closely related to us. To solve this problem, Robbie Reyes had to become Ghost Rider. Being away from his loved ones is both an emotional consideration and a rational need, not entirely the kind of rational judgment you think it is. That's why he agreed to my conditions. I will take Gabe Reyes back from S.H.I.E.L.D. and let him receive an education from a wealthy family—this is my responsibility as his ruler. We all have to bear a part of it; no one is an exception. For Robbie Reyes, my responsibility is to take good care of Gabe Reyes."

"You're pursuing Platonic justice; you want to build an ideal state where everyone does their job and fulfills their duties," Lorna said. "But mutual understanding between people is difficult. Don't think I haven't seen EVA."

Salomon shrugged nonchalantly. "Then I'll start."

To avoid my readers getting caught up in a vortex of foolish arguments (which I know will happen), and given that some have criticized the book for "promoting human supremacy," I can only use this opportunity to deconstruct the most basic issues and recommend essential reading. Reading makes one wise—that's a truth. I know that being a rational and objective person will certainly draw criticism, but that doesn't prevent us from seeing through the surface to the essence. This argument further proves, and explains, why emperors would promote imperial truths.

There's no need to reason or argue online; just be a source of amusement. The problem won't be solved anyway, and it won't happen unless we do it.

(End of this chapter)