Matter Of Perspective: Dishonored

The following article contains spoilers for the main plot of Dishonored.

The city of Dunwall is a cracked jewel in a rusted crown, corrupted by greed, murder and disease. As you explore the crumbling ruins from behind the mask of the assassin Corvo, you experience a place where power is key, and the poor are expendable pawns in a war between those higher up. The most obvious group that perpetuates the oppression are the leaders of Dunwall, who come to power after the Empress’ assassination, though Corvo’s motivations aren’t so innocent either.

Corvo’s original fall from grace occurs immediately after the Empress dies as he is accused of her murder and sentenced to death. However, he escapes and a being known as The Outsider grants Corvo powers to exact revenge on his captors, and rescue Princess Emily from the usurpers of the throne. It’s an understandable path for Corvo, even if the means to pursue it are handed by a mysterious, all powerful entity.

So, Corvo begins his quest for revenge against the self-appointed Lord Regent and his allies, slowly thinning the ranks either through killing or other means and weakening the power this group holds. During this quest he is helped by the Loyalists – those who wish for Emily to become the Empress and bring order to the city, at least that’s what is alluded to.

However, once Corvo gets rid of the Lord Regent and the other powers, he is betrayed by the leader of the Loyalists, Admiral Havelock, who wishes to install Emily on the throne but to use her as a front in order to implement his own ideas and laws. It’s a double cross that though unexpected is unsurprising as it perfectly represents the wider themes.

Dishonored’s central theme is about struggle: you have the power struggle between the ruling elites for power, Corvo’s struggle to clear his name and rescue the princess, and the struggle of survival that the lower classes must face against oppressive rulers and deadly disease. It’s these aspects that are especially interesting when looking at the perspectives of the involved parties.

Starting with the ruling elite, the control of Dunwall is their main cause of worry and greed. The fate of the lower classes and long term fate of the city do not matter to this group, because all they want is power and recognition. Behind the gated mansions and protected estates, battles aren’t fought with swords and guns, but with reputation. Show even the slightest bit of empathy and the rest of the group will sense weakness and opportunity to climb the social ladder. This is a struggle of worth, both financially and socially, and being on top of that ladder is all anyone in this group cares about.

The poor are the real forgotten victims of the power struggle, with it being made known during the course of the game that the plague was manufactured to wipe out the lower classes. Obviously, this was not a smart long term move by the elite classes as it effectively wipes out a lot of the workforce, but power corrupts. Anyway, the poor are the often ignored group within Dishonored and used by the others for their own means.

Corvo joins the Loyalists, many of whom are just regular people. He doesn’t do this out of compassion for their plight but instead to get closer to his own goal of revenge. Admiral Havelock uses the poor as a shield to hide his true intentions, and the rest of the world looks down on them. The poor have no say in how their world is run, instead left to navigate the obstructions put in front of them.

Corvo himself is more of a victim of the power struggle than the survival struggle. He has spent the majority of his life in the elite ruling class, having access to a lot of power. His downfall is temporary and his struggle to clear his name is more of a quest to return to his place in high society, and be in the thick of it when it comes to managing the empire.

There are various endings in Dishonored dependent on Corvo, with at least two of them showing Corvo at Empress Emily’s side, helping to rule the Empire. Corvo’s motivations aren’t alturistic at all and he isn’t a pure hero, but instead just another person who grew up navigating the power struggles and building his own reputation, and rescuing that could be considered Corvo’s main motivation.