Over the holidays I found my mind wandering to old Disney titles as it often does this time of year. I landed upon Pinocchio and while there are many worthwhile strings to tug at in the movie his nose has been focus today.
For anyone not versed in pinnochio lore he is a puppet brought to life by a wish upon a star. Since puppets don’t have a sense of morality a cricket is assigned the job of being his conscience and Pinnochio is also cursed so that whenever he tells a lie his nose increases in size. Now let’s get onto the meat of my mental wandering.
Fundamental truths?
In the lore of the Pinnochioverse there is magic that can discern truth from lies however it is not clearly stated the extent of this power. Is the power limited to personal truths? Or perhaps only lies you know are blatantly false? Do half truths cause nose growth? What about lies of omission? The liars art is rich and full of complications and like many fables Pinnochio is simple and straightforward.
Let’s assume for a minute that due to this simple nature the magic itself is what determines if a lie is spoken or not. Pinnochio does not need to have the knowledge of a lie nor will he be able to utilize the finesse of half truths and omission to thwart the curse. A lie is a lie and the truth must be whole and complete to be true. The consequences of this assumption are staggering and should scientists ever get their hands on Pinnochio it would irrevocably change the world.
If Pinnochio’s curse applies to all the truths of the universe then suddenly regardless of Pinocchio’s own knowledge he can be used to ascertain fundamental universal truths. How you ask? Simply by saying out loud a hypothesis and claiming it is true. If the nose grows the hypothesis is false and its back to the drawing board.
Fallout
Theologians, philosophers, scientists, all would desperately hunt down Pinnochio. Wars between countries and militant factions would explode. For every person that sought Pinnochio there would be another out to destroy him. For every truth he revealed so to would every lie be exposed to the world. If you had a way to find out once and for all of God existed would you want that answer given to the world? Could humanity accept an answer as to what our purpose is if there was no purpose at all? As a species could we contend with the knowledge that we are truly alone? We are species that seems to thrive on questions they push us, make us excel, drive our societies ever upwards. What would happen when we have all the answers? Thankfully this is not something we will ever have to worry about, as by the end of the movie. Pinnochio becomes a real boy and sheds the curse of truth.