The Founder of the Seafaring People
Was Joy Boy the First Pirate and Founder of the Seafaring People? | The Founder of the Seafaring People
Joy Boy might indeed be considered the founder of the seafaring people. The term “seafaring people” refers to those who make their home on a ship, living off fishing and trading. If those activities become acts of plunder or invasion, they can be called pirates. However, both share the commonality of considering the ship their home.
In the modern world of One Piece, ships are the very network that connects nations and people. But before the Void Century, navigation technology might not have been as developed, and ships may have been seen merely as means of transportation rather than as homes.
Today, the World Government exists, and international laws likely apply even at sea. However, in a world without the World Government, the seas were filled with freedom. Those who found the land too confining might have ventured out to sea. In that sense, the sea could be considered Joy Boy’s “territory.”
This also clarifies why the Celestial Dragons live on the Red Line, the world’s only continent, and why they still treat the Fish-Men as “fish.” For humans who could only live on land, the Fish-Men, who can breathe underwater and live in the sea, might appear as mere fish. If such a view was paired with a value system that considered the sea as something barbaric or inferior, then the Fish-Men would naturally be looked down upon.
This discrimination and persecution of the Fish-Men, which persisted until 200 years ago and still lingers today, might stem from this very concept. If Joy Boy chose to live as a seafaring person, making his ship his home, then it wouldn’t be surprising for him to have formed a bond with the Fish-Men, or even with the ancient weapon Poseidon.
The Void Century may have been a time when humanity was incorporating the sea into their living space, creating a new way of life and extending their territory to include the sea itself—a period of transformation.
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