10 Lessons to Live By From Doctor Who
Mark McCullough looks at some of the lessons Doctor Who has taught us.
Throughout its impressive fifty-one year tenure, Doctor Who has been classed as a family friendly show. This means that it has to be both child friendly yet still appeal to adults. This is something the show has managed to do with relative ease, attracting an audience of all shapes and sizes. Despite this fact, many still refer to the show as a predominately children’s programme. This got me thinking: what separates a good children’s show from a truly great one? The conclusion I reached was that the best shows are the ones we can actually learn something from. So what has Doctor Who taught us: (so far)
Learn from your mistakes, correct them if you can.
This message is the main one which comes out of the events of The Day of the Doctor and by extension the characterisation of the Doctor from the revival up until this point. It is established early in the series that Doctor regrets his decision in the Time War; he isn’t proud of it and perhaps thinks he did the wrong thing. As such, we see this define his actions and forge his decisions as he has learnt from previous experience and is unable to make a similar choice in The Parting of the Ways. Fast forward to The Day of the Doctor, and the Doctor is offered a chance to change many of his regrets about that day. With the help of his best friend he is able help himself and relieves the burden which had been plaguing him since. The lesson to take from the Doctor’s story is that if an opportunity arises to right a wrong, take it with open arms. If it doesn’t, try to take something positive and don’t make the same mistake again.
Don’t judge someone based on their decisions
Again this point is another direct tie in with The Day of the Doctor, this time in relation to the treatment of the War Doctor. In short, the future incarnations of the Doctor refuse to recognise their War counterpart; they are ashamed of him and try to hide him. Interestingly the reason behind their exclusion of him turns out to be unjustified as when placed in the same situation and faced with the same choice, they would have done the same thing but for Clara’s intervention. In real life, we don’t have thirteen incarnations of ourselves, but what almost all of have is a group of friends or family around us. What we can take from the War Doctor narrative is a sense of awareness that those around us will be struggling with difficult decisions, and it is not fair of us to judge someone especially if we don’t know how we would react in the same situation. As also shown by the War Doctor, your support can mean a lot.
With great power comes great responsibility
It’s a somewhat clichéd lesson that is particularly prevalent with the superhero genre; however it is one which is very true and important to abide by. Doctor Who covers it in many areas, but the one which springs to mind the most is The Waters of Mars. Here we see the Doctor at arguably his worst when he lets his position as the last of the Time Lords get to his head and abuses the power he has with a potentially catastrophic effect. Power doesn’t have to be a super power though and we will all be positions of power throughout our lives, even if it is just as simple as someone trusting you with a secret, or being a leader of the group. What Doctor Who (and most superhero films) teaches us, is that it is important not to abuse this.
No one is unimportant (especially yourself)
It’s very easy to be dismissive of someone, I’m sure we are all guilty of it at times. What’s arguably even worse is that we can be project this to ourselves, write off our value and think the worst about ourselves. For this reason importance and self-worth is recurring theme throughout the revived series of the show. Donna Noble is a character who was very hard on herself, but it took the Doctor to make her realise her potential and just how important she already was. Clara Oswald is just a regular girl, yet she has accomplished wonderful things for the Doctor, the reason is nothing out of the ordinary, it’s compassion, something we are all capable of. In The Rings of Akhaten, the Doctor delivers a story to Merry about how she is unique and to sacrifice that would be a waste. We are all unique, and that makes us all valuable, perhaps that’s something we could do with reminding at times. It’s easy to get caught up in yourself; but it’s important to be aware of others and recognise their value too. What the show has taught us on countless occasions is that a small act of kindness to another can go a long way.
Good things come to those who wait
The perfect story within the show to demonstrate this lesson is that of the Ponds. Amy (dubbed as The Girl Who Waited) faced a long delay between first meeting the Doctor and him eventually coming back for her, it would have been easy for her to give up hope entirely. Thankfully she didn’t, despite facing opposition and others telling her she was crazy she stuck by the Doctor and he eventually came back to her. There is a similar story with Donna Noble who is offered a chance to travel with the Doctor but declines. She later decides that she made the wrong decision and actively seeks the Doctor. This too eventually pays off as she finds him again in the hilarious window scene. Rory is another character who experiences a wait for someone he loves when he undertakes a two thousand year mission to protect the Pandorica containing Amy. The message fans can take from these instances is that whilst the time may not be right at the moment, no one knows what the future holds and there is no reason to give up hope.
Mercy is better than vengeance
This is another example of something which gets widespread coverage across all forms of media, and something which Doctor Who also handled very well. A Town Called Mercy is an episode which examines the themes of mercy and justice. Although this episode directly addresses the topic, there are perhaps better examples within the wider context of the show. The Tenth Doctor’s tendency to offer an enemy a choice before acting against them is a sign of how high he holds mercy. Again, upon defeating the Master, instead of punishment being his first thought, it was words of forgiveness which came to the Doctor first. Conversely there are also examples of when the Doctor exercises justice, Solomon in Dinosaurs on a Spaceship is an example which springs to mind. However given this feels so out of character for the Doctor, we can still tell he predominately favours mercy.
Turn your weaknesses into strengths
Listen was one of the best received episodes since the revival of the show; perhaps the reason was the fact that it was an exploration into fear rather than an attempt to scare you. One of the reasons I love it is because of the message held within. “Fear is a superpower” is in my opinion one of the strongest ideas the show has presented us with. The thing with fear is that we perceive it as a weakness; no one likes to admit to being scared. It was such a refreshing concept to have Moffat turn this idea on its head. He took something you’re ashamed of and made it something you can draw strength from. Whilst it may have been applicable to fear here, it can be extended to any perceived weakness. The reality of Moffat’s suggestion is that a weakness is only due to a frame of mind, and that if you can change how you see things you can take strength in things which previously held you back. (You’ll still not get me to watch a paranormal horror film though. Ever!)
Appreciate what you have as you may not have it forever
“Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone”. This lesson is particularly evident from Martha’s journey with the Doctor. The Doctor is so caught up in what he has lost with Rose that he never takes the opportunity to appreciate how good a friend Martha is or to recognise her for her own merits. By the time he eventually realises this, it is too late and Martha has already decided to move on. The point is that it is quite easy to fall into the trap of not appreciating things or people and taking them for granted. Life can change in a flash and you can lose something before you even realise just how important it was to you. Another good example of this in Doctor Who was the impact which the Ponds ‘death’ had upon the Doctor. The moral of the story is to value what you have when you have it.
It’s OK to ask for help
It is a popular misconception that it is a sign of weakness to ask for help; as such many people are reluctant to ask despite being in need of it. Doctor Who goes some way to dispel this myth through its method of storytelling. The Doctor is a hero, he’s strong, he’s smart and he is obviously someone that the audience look up to. That is why it is a strong message to the viewers that the Doctor is always relying on the help of others and is always keen to give help whenever it is needed. The role of the companion is actually to help the Doctor, if that isn’t directly in an adventure; it’s by being a friend and being there for him. If that’s not enough to persuade you that even the Doctor knows when to ask for help, look at when the Doctor is in a difficult situation, he calls in more friends for help. Two examples off the top of my head would be A Good Man Goes to War, and Time Heist. The message here is that you should never feel ashamed to ask for help.
Never give up
Perhaps one of the strongest lessons that the show teaches us is that perseverance is one of the most important qualities you can have. We will face many struggles in life, but the worst thing we can do is give up. The very characterisation of the Doctor epitomises this message as no matter what situation he finds himself in, he sees it through until the end. This doesn’t necessarily mean hitting things head on; it’s more about making your decision about what you think is best and sticking to it. The Rings of Akhaten is a good example of both situations, fighting when you need to fight and running away when holding onto something precious. The underlying message from the show is that if you keep trying, there will be a way to get what you are working towards. This sentiment is echoed perfectly in The Day of the Doctor in one of the rare situations where the show makes a point of its message:
“Never cruel or cowardly. Never give up. Never give in.”