#shoutout to diana for the phrase “ambiguous authority” i thought it was very concise and eloquent 🫶🏼

[innocentartery]

it's very significant to me that hal jordan's origin stands in contrast to the stereotypical superhero—one who independently pursues vigilantism—in that he did not become a green lantern his own volition, but was rather propelled into the role and limply adopted it as sacred doctrine. he navigates his entire heroic career while extremely susceptible to some ambiguous authority's tenet of morality. which is not to say he lacks principles or methodology,, but it's ollie's (yet another external influence whom hal holds in high regard) prompting that leads him to question the institution he's upholding for the first time. even hal's definitive tragic backstory exacerbates his desire to prostrate himself in the face of authority rather than yielding a moral code of his own (i.e. batman's no killing rule)!! the innate qualities for which he was selected were the very traits that primes him for indoctrination; he was dutiful and doomed from the start