Assume, for the sake of this discussion, that the genie is of the I Dream of Jeanie type, though not as powerful. That is to say, the genie can give an unlimited number of wishes to whoever has custody of the bottle; but the genie is not omnipotent, lacking the ability to create ex nihilo or to affect people’s free will (except perhaps by tricking them as a mortal might). So the genie has the powers of teleportation, telekinesis, and transfiguration, but can’t end world hunger.
The genie is irresistably compelled to obey the owner of the bottle in all ways and cannot be wished free for however long the bottle is owned. The only way to get the genie out of your life forever is to order the genie to return to the bottle and then abandon the bottle, whereupon the genie will (a) be trapped in its confines until released by another person, and (b) obliged to take whoever released it as master. Also take it as a given that the interior of the bottle is a miserable place–rather like being solitary confinment.
Lastly, assume the genie has a basically human psychology except for two things. One is the aforementioned binding to the owner of the bottle; the genie feels frustrated, lonely, afraid, and bereft if not regularly given tasks. The other is that it has no inherent gender but rather thakes on a sexually attractive form for whoever opens the bottle. If a straight guy opens it it’ll be a hot chick (however he defines those terms) for as long as he owns the bottle; likewise for a lesbian. For a straight woman or gay male, a hot guy.
Do you keep the genie in your life? Do you let it call you Master (or Mistress)?
Half of it was wanting to accomplish stuff his own self, for which the help of a super-powered genie was contraindicated. I think that word “master” made him leery of sleeping with her pre-marriage.
I figure if I don’t abuse the privilege, or the Genie, then, considering all the caveats, there’s no harm or guilt.
Yes I’d keep the Genie. Not so sure about the subservience associated with calling me “Master,” but if it’s built into the Genie’s inherent nature, I can accept that too.
The OP seems pretty slanted in favor of keeping the genie by stacking all the factors towards that direction.
But given that, sure, why not? If, as the OP posits, the genie doesn’t want to be free or confined to the bottle and wants to grant wishes, why wouldn’t I accomodate it? It certainly benefits me to do so.
ETA: I don’t have any desire to have anyone call me Master so I wouldn’t want that.
My treatment of the genie would probably depend on its personality. If it/she seemed like a nice person, I’d try to set it up with an apartment and its own life and just be friends. If it was more a cranky bastard, I’d tell it to call my Master and simply use it as a servant.
You know, you’re right. Subtract the bit about the genie feeling compelled to be a slave; rather, he/she/it s compelled to obey the orders of the master, but can live perfectly happy without getting any.
Well, first thing I’d do is use my “I own your bottle/lamp/ring and you must therefore obey me” powers to compel the genie to answer a few questions fully and truthfully: How did the genie come to be trapped wherever I found it, and subject to whoever possesses the ring or the lamp or the whatever it is? Is this one of those genies that is really a demon or fallen angel and is basically evil and wishes to harm humanity given the chance, or what? Does the genie inwardly yearn for freedom, and if so, is it even possible to free it in any meaningful sense? (Referring back to the previous question; if freed, will the genie immediately kill me, mass-murder as many humans as it can manage, plunge the entire world into Lovecraftian horrors, etc.)
I reckon what I did next would depend on the answers to my questions. I don’t think I would want to enslave a basically good or at least neutral creature that resented slavery the same as I would and wished to be free. Conversely, I might have a duty to keep something powerful and malevolent closely in check.
I’d probably (OK, after some self-indulgent wishes ) spend my time trying to come up with loopholes to wish the genie free, like “I wish you were a normal woman”, “I wish you’d be free when I stop owning the bottle”, then give the bottle to a trusted partner in Genie Rights Activism, etc…
I’d really hope and pray (and wish ;)) that, were I to find an exploitable loophole, it doesn’t somehow make the genie’s internal cogs loudly go CLUNK and it either dies (uncool) or goes all crazy omnicidal maniac on me (very uncool)
If I fail to free the genie until the end, my last words would probably be “I wish you painlessly ceased to exist”, although I’m still very conflicted on that one. I’d surely ask it what it wants, hopes and dreams for before actually wishing it dead.
One caveat : if the genie has either the power to make me omniscient, or to fulfill knowledge-based wishes (e.g. “I wish I knew who killed JFK”), disregard all of the above. That genie’s gonna have to remain my bitch, 'tis a cruel necessity : “I wish I knew the best way to end world hunger forever, and the best way to convince the world of it” regretably trumps its right to freedom. I think.
As to the master thing, not sure. I’d be very uncomfortable with being referred to as “master”, but then this very unease would remind me at all times that not doing everything in my power to free the genie is Wrong with a capital W.
I’m not sure how much point there is in asking directly if the genie is a basically evil demon. If it wishes to harm you or humanity, and can lie, it will. If you suspect it’s hidng the urge recreate Hurricane Katrina or make Ann Coulter President, why are you going to believe it when it says it isn’t? Just toss it back in the bottle and place the bottle in a safety deposit box to be opneed only upon event of your death or something.
You have to judge its character based on its behavior.
Oh, and if it’s one of those trickster genies who obeys its orders in the worst possible way (e.g. “hey, you wished for world peace. No humans left but you, that’s world peace”), fuck it. It can rot in its bottle until such time as it learns to work with me and not try to make anvilicious points to the amount of “careful what you wish for”.
Well, granted, this is sort of the problem with powerful supernatural entities; how can you really be sure? Even if it’s granting your wishes, and isn’t obviously screwing you over in doing so, how do you know it’s not part of some subtly malicious plan to slowly corrupt and win you over to the Dark Side as part of some ages-old nefarious plot? For that matter, how do you know there’s a genie and a bottle at all? Maybe you’ve just lost your mind.
Still, in at least some folktales about genies (the Arabian Nights and such) ordering it to give you straight answers will work, even though the genie is evil to the core: “Master, since you command me to answer truthfully and fully, I must say that I hate you puny humans with an indescribable passion, and spent many centuries visiting terrible plagues upon humanity. I especially enjoyed doing horrible things to the young of your kind, as well as to those creatures called ‘kittens’ of which your wretched species seems so inordinately fond. Finally, however, after untold ages of visiting mankind with unspeakable torment, I was bound in this ring by Solomon the Wise by means of an unbreakable spell in the Name of He Whom All Must Obey; now, I must obey whoever wears this ring, following his orders scrupulously and exactly, though it fills me with inexpressible pain to be so bound to such a loathsome insect as yourself.”
“Oh, OK. Shiny! First off, there’s a few FOX TV executives I wish to pay a visit to…”
Could I buy back the old family plantation in Georgia and run it entirely on genie power - all while being referred to as “Master”? Is that ethical? What if my argument is that it’s the genie’s nature to serve?
It sounds pretty cool, but I have enough stuff I have to keep from my parents and family without involving supernatural beings.
Plus I tend to come off as kind of weird anyhow and the Major Nelson thing about trying to keep the genie’s antics a secret from my version of Dr. Bellows would make me look even weirder.
Plus the one thing I’d wish for, that nobody else in my family ever dies, would be a catch-22 because the people I’d have to keep the damn genie a secret from would always be around for me to have to keep the genie a secret from.
Absolutely I’d keep it. I hope I’d be a benevolent master. I would investigate ways of freeing the genie. But simply the services of keeping the house clean and tidy and being a decent cook would be most appreciated. And the tales it could tell! I’m sure the collection would prove profitable.
) spend my time trying to come up with loopholes to wish the genie free, like “I wish you were a normal woman”, “I wish you’d be free when I stop owning the bottle”, then give the bottle to a trusted partner in Genie Rights Activism, etc…