Game Skyrim Forum

This is a quest focusing on the theoretical side of Necromancy, trying to put aside the unethicality that it is practised with due to it's shattered reputation with the authorities and the people of Tamriel. Put that aside when answering the poll.

I don't think Necromancy is inherently evil in and of itself. We have medical students who study dead bodies and there's nothing evil about that. As with most things problems arise when you make it illegal as that in this case could push some to kill people just to get bodies to work on. If they were supplied the same way as in medicin I don't really see a problem with it. Then there's the issue of respect for the dead. I think as with donations one could choose to donate one's body to students of Necromancy after one is dead.

However, soul trapping is another thing completely and I do not support that in the slightest. If anything, Soul Trap spells should have been outlawed instead of the school of Necromancy imho.

We know dualism exists in Tamriel. The Soul is distinct from the Body. Necromancy predominantly focuses on the body, the animation and control of the corpse. And, frankly, i don't see a problem with that. It's a corpse, not a person. If anything, the shadiest ethical side of standard Necromancy is the abuse of Daedra, shoving them into rotting meat-suits and playing them like puppets.

When you start getting into Soul Trapping and such, you start to get into some shadier territory. But i don't think that's really an issue specific to Necromancy. Any sort of conventional Enchanting deals with that.

I concur consensual soul trapping is wrong. What about consensual soul trapping?

I have a hard time seeing anyone accepting that but sure, if you find someone who agrees to it without being pushed or coaxed somehow.

I'm assuming that the first one is supposed to be 'non-consensual.' Consensual soul trapping is tricky since they would need to have full informed consent, meaning they would need to know about the Soul Cairn and the Ideal Masters, neither of which seems to be common knowledge. As Mirocu points out, proving they weren't coerced is also an issue. Perhaps they would have to sign up for it in advance with something along the lines of an organ donor card?

I'm kind of interested in the ethics of soul trapping creatures with white souls. Do they have emotions to some extent, like real world animals, and are therefor capable of being abused, or are they more like biological machines?

Yes, I think he meant to write "non-consensual."