When asked which Black Butler storyline ranked high among fans’ minds, a majority of them would say that it was the Noah’s Ark Circus arc. The storyline had it all: great characterization, action, and very dark overtones. One of the highlights in that story were the revelation of the Phantomhive household staff being some of the toughest warriors in England. Their shining moment is a lesson in empowerment for those uncertain of their roles in life.
The servants of the Phantomhive household, Baldroy, Mey-Rin, and Finnian, are considered to be inferior to the main character and head butler, Sebastian Michaelis. Baldroy is the head chef, but burns his recipes. Mey-Rin is the housemaid, but is clumsy. Finnian is the gardener, but destroys things around him. Sebastian, most often than not, cleans up their mistakes whenever necessary. However, their time to shine came when members of the Noah’s Ark Circus attacked the Phantomhive manor. The trio revealed their hidden (and violent) strengths and proceeded to defeat their opponents with style. Man, what is it about dark folks that become happy idiots later on in life?
All three experienced terrible pasts before becoming servants. Baldroy was a soldier who lost many comrades during wars. Mey-Rin was a contract sniper. Finnian was a human experiment infused with super-strength. Yet when they met both Ciel Phantomhive and Sebastian, their lives changed for the better.
People forget that an organization can not function if the head is the only member working. It relies on various parts that specialize in certain areas, so the head can concentrate on making the whole body stronger. However, those parts need a sense of motivation to get them moving in the proper direction. Sebastian empowers Baldroy, Mey-Rin, and Finnian to aid Ciel in his mission to be a feared tool of dark justice.
There are a few things that Sebastian does that empowers the trio. One, he allows them to make mistakes. Yes, the three have favorable odds of ruining big events. This became apparent during the introduction arc of Black Butler, where they almost ruined an important gathering at the Phantomhive household. Sebastian, however, is patient and doesn’t yell at them much, perhaps to an extreme. You can’t have success without some failures along the way, right?
Second, Sebastian is shown to delegate others when he has to. He assigns Baldroy as head of the trio if something happens to him. Almost every employee wanting to make a difference loves it when they are delegated. A later moment in the story had Baldroy take command and remind Mey-Rin and Finnian that they have to be self-reliant for the future of the Phantomhive manor. Having some autonomy is key to have someone feel empowered.
The following storyline after Noah’s Ark Circus had Sebastian entrusting important tasks to the three during a situation involving several murders at their manor. The trio carried out his instructions without goofing up. How is that possible? What Sebastian and Ciel did was to build a system with a vision and goals based on trust that maximize the talents of each employee involved. It didn’t hurt that one hell of a butler was coaching them (Sebastian said that he chose the three personally), but a set of specific goals can develop chemistry among people and gets them excited to do more to meet them. This leads to the next and final point.
Ciel calls the three clumsy servants his own “private army” for his mission, yet the three are allowed to re-integrate themselves into society. This serves as a reminder of the many war veterans who are left for dead after coming back home. It hurts to know that your country doesn’t care about you despite serving their purposes. Even worse, if life on the battlefield becomes your mindset, a normal day becomes threatening to your psyche if trivial matters are treated like life-or-death.
While Baldroy, Finnian, and Mey-Rin have a role to protect their household using any means necessary, they get to become “human” again. Some sins should be forgiven. Everyone deserves some chance of happiness and acknowledgement if they paid their dues, right? Finnian once said that the trio would have had no home, friends, or freedom if their two masters weren’t around.
Empowerment can be time-consuming to some, but the feeling you get from making people feel useful is priceless. Put it this way – you may have had a friend/peer/colleague who put a lot of time and effort out of genuine care to make sure that you became an outstanding person who values him/herself. Why not do the same for others?
If a normally cruel and heartless demon like Sebastian found some joy in motivating human beings, you can too.
(c) Manga Therapy – Where Psychology & Manga Meet – Read entire story here.