by David McKee

Questions for Philosophical Discussion
by Sulaiha Schwartz
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The morality of violence:

The black and white elephants kill each other because they do not like each other. The peace-loving elephants run away.

1. Have you ever hurt someone because you didn’t like them?
2. Has anyone ever hurt you because they didn’t like you?
3. Is it good to hurt someone because you don’t like them?
4. Is it always wrong, or do you think that it is okay to use violence to solve problems sometimes?
5. Can you think of examples when it would be wrong?
6. When would it be acceptable?
7. Should the peace-loving elephants have run away, or could they have done something to help solve the elephants' problems?
   

Character versus outer appearance: Does one's appearance or physical characteristics reflect one's inner characteristics?

The elephants in the story did not like each other because they looked different from one another.

1. Do you think the elephants’ skin color or the size of their ears means that they are bad elephants?
2. Do you think that the way you look on the outside reflects your inner qualities (i.e. your personality)?
3. Can you dislike someone before you even get to know them?
   
   

The moral implications of prejudice: Is discrimination wrong - independent of the context within which is occurs?

The elephants in the story did not like each other because of the color of their skin.

1. Would you dislike your friend if s/he had bigger or smaller ears than you?
2. What if s/he had a different color skin than you?
3. Do you think it is okay to judge someone because they look different than you do?
4. Is it the same thing to not like someone because they look different than you as it is to not like someone because they were mean to you?
   
   

The nature of humans and prejudice:

At the end of the book the grey elephants don’t like each other because they have little and big ears.

1. If you were to continue writing the story, what would you write?
2. Do you think that the elephants will stay peaceful or will they wage war against each other like their grandparents did because of the color of their skin?
3. What does it mean to be peace-loving?
4. If the grey elephants were peace-loving, why were they still finding fault with one another’s appearance?
5. Would you still consider the elephants to be peace-loving even though they were prejudiced towards each other?
6. Do you think it is possible to not be prejudiced at all and to never judge someone based on a character trait?
   

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