"Sons of Anarchy": Bikers and Hamlet

Last weekend I started watching on DVD the series “Son’s of Anarchy”. Bikers as a tribe. Outlaws. Violence. Outlaws in the sense that they make their own law, and have decided to not to obey the laws of the State; only the laws of the group. There’s the psychology too of the relationships and the dynamics of the group. The creator of the show, Kurt Sutter, said the structure of the show is “Hamlet”. Hamlet, now the character of “Jax”, reads from his father’s journal rather than listening to his father's ghost. In Hamlet, his mother marries the king, in “Son’s of Anarchy”, Jax’s mother marries the president of the club. We’ll leave the rest of the parallels, but it’s sure fun to connect them.

This is a smart series. Jax reads from his father’s diary:

“Anarchism…stands for liberation of the human mind from the dominion of religion: the liberation of the human body from the dominion of property; liberation from shackles and restraint of government. It stands for social order based on the free grouping of individuals.”

“The concept was pure, simple, true. It inspired me, lit a rebellious fire. But ultimately I learned the lesson the Goldman, Proudhon, and the others learned: that true freedom requires sacrifice and pain. Most human beings only think they want freedom. In truth, they yearn for the bondage of social order, rigid laws, materialism. The only freedom man really wants is the freedom to become comfortable.”

The Goldman Jax's father is talking about is Emma Goldman. Jax's father had written:

"First time I read Emma Goldman wasn't in a book. I was sixteen, hiking near the Nevada border. The quote was painted on a wall in red. When I saw those words it was like someone ripped them from the inside of my heard." 

 There’s lots of morality bending at play here. There are bad guys in positions where good guys should be; where what we would view as immorality is the moral thing. Where when the law breaks down, the outlaw brings justice.  Where the tribe trumps the State. When everything of self is invested in the tribe. When your friends are only in the tribe.

This is a thoughtful, literary expression of groups and relationships, mixed with harshness and brutality. The mix creates a brilliant and complex story.