In the end did Gats really 'grow' ?

[Nagha's revenge]

Now I came up with this one a while ago while I was watching my Beserk DVDs (I'm very proud of em .. can you tell ?? :P ). Anyway, in the series Gats sais that he wants to fight for a purpose and he doesn't want to fight just to get someones attention. So at first he pledges his sword to Griffith. Later on he wants Griffith to see him as an equal, so he goes away and finds his own purpose in life. Something to fight for.

Now my point is .. Did he really grow in the end ? I mean everything he did was still for Griffith's attention. He sais he wants something for himself but in the end he just wants Griffith to see him as an equal, so he still wants Griffith's attention. He may have found a purpose but is it still valid ? Or maybe he thought he found his purpose, an answer that would be an easy and 'quick' fix ?

Am I missing the logic here ? If so .. someone plz .. tell me .. ?

[Rulakir]

At the end, I think Gatts did grow. Not only did he want to be looked at as an equal to the rest of the party, he was fighting for Caska, which is why he came back if I remember correctly. This was not seen when Gatts first met the group.

This probably does not answer your question clearly, but excuse me for not seeing the series for months.

[schauni]

I would say yes since he did find his place after he came back. I felt that he had a feeling that the Hawks was all wrong for him after he heard the conversation between Griffith and Charlotte and so he needed to run away to gain something for himself. Unfortunately, when he realized that the Hawks was the place for him it was too late. He lost everything. :(

schauni

[John Faulkner]

Well,according to the manga/comic,the reason why Gatts survived the monster-infested hell in the last episode was that the arch-rival of Zodd the Immortal (a knight apparently) came to Gatts aid.Everyone else was destroyed except Gatts,but he is now branded with the mark of the demons.This means he is being tracked by by the demons until he dies....so we see Gatts busting up that snake demon and trying to find Griffith (probably to destroy him/it).There was no 'solid' ending as the manga hadn't been finished yet when the anime was completed.

Anyway,I think Gatts became wiser as to who to trust after Griffith stabbed him in the back,so to speak (although you could say Gatts stabbed Griffith in the back after his unheralded exit from the band of the Hawks).Also,he finds another reason to live (love for Caska) apart from destroying people.So yeah-in that sense-he does 'grow'.

[Shenrezade]

At first, Gatts was a little brat who was good with a sword, and didn't care about anybody, not even himself. When he joined up with Griffith, he learned about the value of having friends who cared about him, and the responsibility of having to take care of other soldiers. Later, he realized that he didn't have his own dream. I thought at first that Gatts left because he wanted to be Griffith's equal and friend. But now I don't think that was the case. He left because he was fighting for someone else's dream. Someone else's reasons. Gatts wanted to find out what he wanted out of his life, and his reasons for fighting. He knew that he could never find it while helping Griffith with his dream. When he realized that the Hawks were in danger, he knew Griffith and the others needed his help. At the beginning he would've said "screw 'em." But he knew there were friends that needed him, so he left to help. He didn't want to stay, though, not even for Caska. He wanted to be his own person, and helping Griffith wouldn't accomplish that. So, in the end, I think he did grow as a character.

[Griffith]

Originally posted by Shenrezade
At first, Gatts was a little brat who was good with a sword, and didn't care about anybody, not even himself. When he joined up with Griffith, he learned about the value of having friends who cared about him, and the responsibility of having to take care of other soldiers. Later, he realized that he didn't have his own dream. I thought at first that Gatts left because he wanted to be Griffith's equal and friend. But now I don't think that was the case. He left because he was fighting for someone else's dream. Someone else's reasons. Gatts wanted to find out what he wanted out of his life, and his reasons for fighting. He knew that he could never find it while helping Griffith with his dream. When he realized that the Hawks were in danger, he knew Griffith and the others needed his help. At the beginning he would've said "screw 'em." But he knew there were friends that needed him, so he left to help. He didn't want to stay, though, not even for Caska. He wanted to be his own person, and helping Griffith wouldn't accomplish that. So, in the end, I think he did grow as a character.

Well said, except for the part of Gatz not staying behind for Caska, at first he wanted her to go with him, then Caska told him to leave her behind and go on w/o her, finally Gatz started thinking of staying when the strike raiders told him that they wanted to go with him, Gatz realized at that point that no matter what, he would not be able to leave his past behind...he also realized that, "Why do I always I only realize something when I've already lost it" a great quote that you will see in my profile soon. Gatz has learned, and over the years he has bonded with the band of hawk, like no other, keep in mind that Gatz never had a family, and never knew what love/friendship was until now, that's why it took so long for it to register in his mind and for him to acknowledge it and start showing signs of returning that behavior.

Also you could tell Gatz had matured greatly from the start of the series till the end. He now had a sense of humor, he had pride and was confident in his abilities as a leader instead of being a loner, and finally the most important detail, was that he became aware of his humanity, in other words, when he left the band of hawk to attain his dream, he finally knew what he wanted and how to get it; a stark contrast to just wandering around before fighting aimlessly to whoever would offer the most money, just because all he was able to do was swing his sword, and nothing else.

[Ckrisz]

I agree with everything Griffith said above. Guts finds his purpose in his own humanity and the humanity of those around him. Unlike Griffith, who pursues a selfishly individualistic dream of his own, Guts in the end is fighting and living for those around him. He fights for Caska and for his comrades, for those who love and care for him. That's how I read the comment he makes about only finding his place after he's left.

Remember, he includes Griffith in this group, perhaps as the chief member of this group except for perhaps Caska. He fights to save Griffith, not to impress him. Remember how he asks Caska to leave with him after they rescue Griffith. Guts has found his purpose: not some "dream" of his own imagining, but the folks he loves. When these are taken away in the most horrible manner possible, it acts on him in a similar way to when Griffith was tortured. He regresses into brutal savagery, though not yet total moral degradation. It'll be interesting to see how his character continues to progress. I wonder now if Guts will make a Griffith-like decision at some point, especially if he loses Caska (God I hope not, Caska's my favorite character!).

[Gouki Akuma]

He wasnt that old when he joined up with the Hawks, 19 I believe during the series, guys still grow then, so like everyone else yes.