You know, with all the Civil War wank floating around this popped in my head: What was the main lesson we should take from the Civil War stories? I always thought it was that compromise is not a bad thing. I got that because in the comics there was a universe where Steve and Tony came to a compromise and everything turned out okay. What do you think?
I definitely agree that a willingness to compromise is not only a good thing, but a necessary reality for life. Whether compromise in and of itself is a good thing is pretty situational. I mean, the world spent a long time compromising with Hitler, so...yeah. There are times when compromise is weakness or appeasement, so I really believe that a willingness to compromise is important, but there are times when you have to hold to your values as well. Compromise can be both bad and good, depending on the circumstances.
As for Civil War, while I haven’t read the comics, I am, at least, aware of how it went down.
Sidenote: I see a lot of people criticizing Steve as being unwilling to compromise in CACW...I think that is a bit unfair. We saw a barely five minute conversation, in which he expressed a willingness to consider compromises, in an extremely tense and emotional situation. The two of them did not reach a compromise, but people rarely do on the first try. It is a process. Do people really believe that those two, absent Zemo and everything that went down, could not have, over time, sat down at various points and worked something out? Particularly once it became clear how the Accords were going to work in practice.
Back to your question, Anon. For me, I think the lesson that I take away is the importance of a voice of dissent. These two men work best when they work together, even when they don’t see eye to eye. Especially because they do not always see eye to eye. They moderate each other’s entrenched extremes, which is key. There are actually a number of studies on this. Decision-making is vastly improved when there is a rich atmosphere of dissenting voices, and, for me, that is why Tony and Steve desperately need each other to make themselves better leaders. When they come together and find a path, that path is usually going to be far better than the one they would have taken on their own. They need each other. However you envision that relationship, these two men are at their best when they are standing side by side, having earned the other’s agreement.
