Before Theo meets Count Las Bombas and Musket, he thinks of things in pretty specific terms—actions and people are either good or bad. In his defense, he's been in a tiny town his whole life until now. Though Las Bombas is a scoundrel, he's a sweetheart at heart. What do you think that means for Theo's understanding of what's right and wrong? Westmark invites the reader to challenge their definitions of ethics, either self or socially imposed, as our hero does the same. In the process, he learns a whole lot about himself and his friends.
Questions About Morality and Ethics
- Where did the characters of Westmark learn most of their morals? Do you think they are universal amongst all of the book's characters? Why?
- Are our characters always either moral or immoral? Can they be both?
- If someone in Westmark is immoral, does this make him or her a bad person?
- How do our characters' moral codes or ethics reflect on them as people individually? Considered together, how do they reflect on the society of Westmark?
Chew on This
Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.
No one—not even Theo—can uphold the morals they hold dear all the time.
As the book's characters grow, their definitions of morality expand beyond their initial perimeters.