This work is meant to be written in a colloquial manner to make Ms. H laugh a bit. Its also cool to do so.

Analysis of Balram and his Immoral yet Possibly Justified Actions

Krishnan Rajeej Castillo
I have a good friend, currently living in Bangalore, who used to be a driver for Mr. Ashok
and his family. He is an individual with an interesting and controversial story regarding how he
came to be an entrepreneur. Instead of meddling in the unimportant details concerning how he
got to work as a servant for Mr. Ashok, I, a successful and professional Indian entrepreneur, will
tell you about Nietzsche and Machiavelli. You see, such an intelligent individual as myself
enjoys discussing philosophy, the fancy name for asking questions. I particularly appreciate
philosophical questions about morality, which is why I find my good friend Balrams story so
intriguing. Going back to Nietzsche and Machiavelli, I notice that two of their most significant
concepts are well illustrated in Balrams actions; the will to power and the ends justify the
means, respectively. Through my extensive research, I was able to use my superior intellect to
find that Balram is an immoral fellow that has the mentality of the end justifies the means,
You see, following his beginning of servitude to Mr. Ashok, Balram hears about the
opportunity of going with the Ashok family to New Delhi. Although he lives in relative luxury
compared to Laxmangarh and earns much more money than any of his siblings, Balram desires
more; he wants to get out of the Darkness altogether, showing he craves power. With the
possibility of going to New Delhi and making 3000 rupees a month, Balram sees an opportunity
of increasing his power and of getting a step closer to becoming an independent entrepreneur.
This mentality demonstrates Friedrich Nietzsches will to power, in which individuals are always
trying to have power over others (see, Im an incredibly deep and complex man!).
Coincidentally, just as the opportunity to go to Delhi arises, Balram finds out that Ram Persad,
the #1 driver, is a Muslim. So what does he do with this knowledge; does he utilize it to

This work is meant to be written in a colloquial manner to make Ms. H laugh a bit. Its also cool to do so.

understand a different culture and thus increase his tolerance towards others? Ha! Thats funny
(Im also a comedian you see!). Nope! As put in Balrams odd letters to the Premier of China:
I have won. But if youre going to do these things its better to do it in style. I was servant #1
from now on in this household. (Adiga, 92). He uses this newfound knowledge to blackmail
Ram Persad and the Nepali guard, not only demanding them to accept him as the #1 servant, but
also forcing them to serve him. Although never mentioned explicitly, using my incredible
intellectual capabilities, I was able to decipher Balrams justification for his actions. Balram
thinks that the ends justify the means, thus he sees the act of ruining Ram Persads life by forcing
him to lose his job as a justified action since it results in him having a better life. This is again
seen in his letter to the Premier: You never did anything to hurt me. Forgive me brother. I turned
to the other side, farted and went back to sleep. (Adiga, 93). My not so good friend Balram sees
his comfort and pleasure as more important than the effects his actions have on others, again
demonstrating his justification through Machiavellis philosophy. Balram uses this philosophy
again when he decides to not send his family the money he made, and instead opts to use it to
change who he is to be able to get into a mall. Balram lies to Mr. Ashok, by telling him that the
money he is given will be used for, Just what I need to eat and drink here, the rest [of the
money] goes home. (Adiga, 121). Following that, he uses the money to buy liquor, a t-shirt,
shoes, and toothpaste, all in an attempt to erase the fact that he comes from the Darkness; in an
attempt to get more power by getting into the Light. Surprise, surprise; he uses the idea of the
ends justify the means to also justify this act, figuring that the result of being able to increase his
power justifies the economic loss his family feels without his money. Well then, arent his actions
extremely controversial and his justifications up for debate? Yes, yes they are.

This work is meant to be written in a colloquial manner to make Ms. H laugh a bit. Its also cool to do so.

Which is why I will use my extensive knowledge on morality to formulate a flawless

opinion on whether Balrams actions were justified. Quite frankly, I feel that the end justifies the
means is a philosophical idea that should be reserved for situations in which the final product
helps more people than the actions hurt. Considering this, Balrams actions not only hurt more
people than those the end product helps, but to make matters worse, a lot of the harm it caused
could have easily been avoided. Balram could have used his knowledge on Ram Persad more
carefully; he could have blackmailed Ram and the Nepali guard through some sort of
agreement/contract that would have allowed Balram to be chosen for Delhi all the while Ram
Persad kept his job and secret safe. Balram could have kept most of the payment he received to
himself while still supplying his family with enough money for it to be of use to them. All in all,
Balrams immoral actions are not effectively justified by the idea of the end justifies the means
due to the simple fact that his actions were not justified. Seriously, Balram could have easily
thought about his actions a bit more so that it could minimize the impact it had on others.
Something so simple, yet he didnt do it! Beats me!
So, my not so good friend Balram, you have some thinking to do; reflect on your past
mistakes (and by mistakes I mean unjustified immoral actions that harmed other human beings)
so that they are not repeated again. This is coming from your knowledgeable and morally
superior friend, Krishnan Rajeej Castillo, so do take my advice seriously. But it is now late,
10:48 pm to be precise, and I must go. Take care, Balram and whoever else read this, may the
34,000,005 gods be with you.