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Originally posted by humble:
just wondering if firefly kinda parallels ante-bellum and post civil war america in some respects, would the alliance be considered the "south" and the independents the "north"? in jaynes world and train job they speak of indentured servants. also, in shindig the magistrate spoke of owning slaves. if there is a historical parallel, wouldn't that mean the yankees of 500 years from now lost the civil war? even the alliance uniforms are gray. also, in ariel, mal uses the word "scruth". anyone know what this means? lastly, why is jayne so quotable an' such?

well now, i guess it's time for some thrillin' heroics!-jayne cobb.

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Originally posted by Gunslinger:
The American Civil War is one of the most misunderstood conflicts in history. The main cause of the war was the infringement of States Rights by the federal government, but the main right that was being infringed was slavery. At that time there were several new states joining the Union and territories soon to join. The fear that they would tip the balance was one of the major issues. So the guy saying the main issue was State's Rights and the guy saying slavery as the major issue are both right. JW has been a bit ambiguous on the legality of slavery in the Alliance. Near as I can figure it is legal, but they prefer to refer to it as indenture, a less loaded term. My ancestors in Scottland were slaves, though the English never used that term.

In some ways the Firefly universe is like the days of European colonialism. They want colonies, but they do not want them to be self sufficient. The Alliance seems to use passive oppression to keep them down. It is easier to govern a far-flung empire if the outermost provinces are provincial. I guess that is why you still see horses. The Alliance would not want there to be heavy industry in the colonies. They exist to provide raw materials and a market for manufactured goods.

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