In the Penal Colony: The Officer Quotes

Guilt is always beyond a doubt. Other courts could not follow this principle, for they are made up of many heads . . . It’s true the New Commandant has already shown a desire to get mixed up in my court, but I’ve succeeded so far in fending him off.

When he describes his system of justice at the beginning of the story, the Officer shows support of a fascist system and serves as a leader within it. He takes ownership over the entire judicial system, referring to it as his own court. He believes in beginning with the position that an accused person is guilty and gives him no opportunity to defend themself or even be made aware of the charges against them. The Officer is unwilling to allow for any hint of democracy. He believes his form of justice is superior because it is efficient. He does not need to consult anyone else, appeal to higher powers within the system, or even allow the accused to tell their side of the story. The Officer even resists the new leadership of the Commandant currently in power, “fending him off,” despite the fact that no one attends executions anymore, indicating there is no longer popular support for the practice. Instead, the Officer clings to his beliefs to the very end.

If the judicial process to which the Officer clung was really so close to the point of being cancelled—perhaps as a result of the intervention of the Traveler, something to which he for his part felt duty-bound—then the Officer was now acting in a completely correct manner.

When the Officer releases the condemned man and takes his place in the apparatus at the end of the story, he shows the sincerity of his beliefs and reveals himself to be a true zealot. He is completely fanatical and uncompromising even when it means he himself must be executed. In his willingness to die in support of his ideology, the Officer shows that he is no hypocrite. His plan to have “be just” carved into his skin emphasizes the Officer’s absolute and unerring belief in the system. He understands that his time as judge, jury, and executioner is ending and that he will be made obsolete. His acceptance of that and his willingness to carry out his own execution underscore his own zealotry to the end. The Officer’s brutal death with a spike through his forehead without any enlightenment highlights the ridiculousness of his fanaticism.

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