ChatGPT weighs in on Chapter 8

I thought I'd take a bit of a different approach to today's blog entry by asking ChatGPT what it thought of various sections of Chapter 8 - The Moon Princess. The AI was surprisingly capable of interpreting the subtext and implications the chapter provides. I was quite impressed. Here are some excerpts for you to enjoy.

Regarding the passage about the tragedy at Luna's school, I asked:

I would like a deep analysis of the following passage I have written in my story. There are significant emotional themes being portrayed here and I want to know the impression the reader will get from the text. See if you can understand the full extent of what is being spoken of here.

The reply was:

This passage is emotionally charged and conveys a deep sense of sorrow, regret, and conflict within the characters, especially Luna and Nyx. Here are the key emotional and relational themes expressed in this passage:

1. Loneliness and Isolation: Luna begins by expressing her difficulty in dealing with her emotions due to the absence of someone to confide in. This highlights her loneliness and isolation, despite her position as a princess.
2. Shared Burden: Nyx recognizes the significance of Luna's unspoken pain, particularly related to the tragedy involving the school. This moment of understanding signifies their shared burden and shared grief over the loss.
3. Tragedy and Loss: Luna's recounting of the school tragedy underscores the immense loss of innocent lives and the profound impact it had on her. Nyx also reflects on the tragedy, emphasizing the emotional toll it took on both of them.
4. Guilt and Responsibility: Luna reveals her guilt and responsibility for choosing the students and staff, which adds to her anguish. This guilt is further exacerbated by her belief that her students were subjected to a horrific fate.
5. Blame and Frustration: Nyx questions why the zebras wouldn't listen to reason, highlighting her frustration and anger at the ongoing conflict. Luna's response shows her own frustration and a sense of helplessness in the face of the zebras' aggression.
6. Desperation: Luna's emotional breakdown when discussing the fate of her students underscores her desperation and pain. This moment reveals a vulnerable side of the usually composed princess.
7. War and Violence: Luna's revelation about the consequences of her actions and the violence she has unleashed on the zebras adds a layer of moral complexity to the narrative. This revelation challenges Nyx's understanding of her mentor and the choices she has made.
8. Sisterly Bond: Luna's explanation of why Celestia entrusted her with the war effort shows a deep sisterly bond between the two princesses. It also reveals the stark contrast in their approaches to ruling Equestria.
9. Ambiguity and Uncertainty: The passage ends with Luna's determination to continue her course of action to restore Equestria's strength, leaving Nyx and the reader with a sense of ambiguity and uncertainty about the future.

Overall, this passage effectively conveys a range of complex emotions and explores the deep impact of war, tragedy, and difficult choices on the characters' lives and relationships. It adds depth to Luna's character and raises moral and ethical questions about the cost of preserving a nation's safety and the toll it takes on those responsible for such decisions.

Digging in further, I asked a specific question about Luna's reaction to the event. Though the AI assumed Luna took military forces into Arkadia because it is not aware that Luna is powerful enough to do what she did by herself...

What implications are provided about what Luna did the night after the school tragedy?

The response:

The implications provided in the passage strongly suggest that Luna took aggressive and possibly violent actions against the zebras in response to the school tragedy:

1. Flight South Beyond the Border: Luna's statement that she flew south beyond the border after learning about the tragedy indicates that she left Equestrian territory, likely crossing into Arkadian territory. This suggests that she took the war directly to the zebras.
2. Far Fewer Zebras: Luna's cryptic statement that "By morning, there were… far fewer zebras in the world" strongly implies that she engaged in military actions against the zebras that resulted in significant casualties among their population.
3. Turning Equestria into an Engine of War: Luna's admission that she has turned Equestria into an "engine of war" reinforces the idea that she has initiated a more aggressive and militaristic approach to the conflict with the zebras. This includes mobilizing Equestrian forces for combat.
4. Killing Zebras: Luna's statement that she would kill as many zebras as necessary to make them stop suggests that she has engaged in actions that resulted in casualties among the zebras. It implies a willingness to resort to violence and destruction in pursuit of her goals.

These implications portray Luna as someone who has taken drastic measures to retaliate against the zebras and escalate the conflict. Her actions are fueled by grief, anger, and a desire for revenge in response to the tragedy at the school. It highlights the grim and morally complex nature of the ongoing war and Luna's role in it.

I was surprised that the AI even understood the meaning behind some of the environmental elements such as Luna's fireplace!

I'm curious if you can interpret the actions going on between Luna and the fireplace in the passage. Keep in mind that this is a world where telekinesis and various magical powers exist.

Certainly, the passage provides subtle yet powerful indications of Luna's emotional turmoil and her magical abilities in action. Here's an interpretation of what's happening between Luna and the fireplace:

1. Poking at the Flames: Luna's use of her levitation magic to poke at the flaming logs in the fireplace reflects her inner turmoil. The flames symbolize her intense emotions, particularly her anger, grief, and frustration over the tragedy at the school. Her magical actions can be seen as a physical manifestation of her inner struggle to contain these emotions.
2. Intense Flames: The description of the flames growing in strength on their own could be interpreted as an extension of Luna's emotional state. Her heightened emotions might be affecting the environment around her, causing the flames to burn more intensely. This could symbolize the intensity of her feelings and her difficulty in controlling them.
3. Darkening Room: The room growing darker despite the intense flames suggests that Luna's emotional state is affecting the very atmosphere around her. In a world where magic exists, it's not uncommon for a powerful magical being like Luna to inadvertently influence her surroundings when her emotions run high. The darkening room could symbolize the shadow cast by the tragedy and the weight of her responsibilities.
4. Faint Smell of Ozone: The presence of the faint smell of ozone in the air is often associated with the discharge of magical energy. In this context, it could indicate that Luna's magical powers are slightly losing control as her emotions become more overwhelming. Ozone is often linked to electrical discharge, which could symbolize the sparks of anger or distress emanating from Luna.

Overall, these subtle details in the passage convey the idea that Luna's emotions are so powerful that they have a tangible impact on her immediate environment. Her magical abilities, combined with her deep grief and anger, create a visceral and immersive experience for the reader, allowing them to feel the intensity of Luna's emotional struggle.

Amazing! The AI actually caught the meaning behind those details.
Next, I asked the AI if it could interpret the passage where we learn what Nyx's nightmares are all about.

I would like a deep analysis of the following passage I have written in my story. A key plot element is being revealed here, specifically, a change the protagonist (Nyx) is going through. I want to know the impression the reader will get from the text. See if you can understand the full extent of what is being spoken of here.

The response:

In this passage, several key elements and revelations about the protagonist Nyx are brought to light. The reader is likely to interpret the following:

1. Nyx's Nightmares: Nyx has been experiencing nightmares, and they are deeply troubling her. The nightmares are not ordinary; they seem to be pushing her toward a significant change or transformation that she is reluctant to embrace.
2. Magical Outbursts: Nyx has exhibited strange magical outbursts during moments of intense emotion, particularly anger. She describes an incident where she unintentionally incinerated two zebras with her mind. This suggests that there is something extraordinary about her magic, different from typical unicorn abilities.
3. Luna's Concern: Luna is genuinely concerned about Nyx's experiences. She recognizes the nature of Nyx's nightmares and the potential implications of her magical outbursts, hinting at a connection between the two.
4. Nyx's Transformation: Luna reveals that Nyx's nightmares are urging her to undergo a transformation, one that is beyond the scope of ordinary unicorn magic. This transformation seems to be a fundamental change in Nyx's identity and abilities, similar to the transformation that turned Luna into Nightmare Moon.
5. The Importance of Virtues: Luna stresses the importance of Nyx discovering her Virtue of Harmony, a trait that defines her character and will ultimately determine the outcome of her transformation. Nyx's Virtue is connected to her cutie mark and the promise she made to Luna fifteen years ago.
6. Time Limit: Luna mentions that Nyx has only weeks, at most, to discover her Virtue of Harmony before the transformation becomes inevitable. There will be signs indicating when the time is drawing near.
7. The Weight of Responsibility: Luna emphasizes that Nyx must go on the mission and face her inner struggles. She believes that the mission will help Nyx understand her true identity and discover her Virtue of Harmony.
8. Character Strength: Luna praises Nyx's character and resilience, indicating that Nyx possesses the inner strength needed to face her challenges and find her Virtue.

Overall, this passage is crucial in revealing Nyx's internal struggles, her unique magical abilities, and the impending transformation that she must confront. It adds layers to Nyx's character development and sets the stage for her personal journey and the larger narrative of the story. Readers are likely to be intrigued by the mystery surrounding Nyx's transformation and her quest to discover her Virtue of Harmony.

I then asked it about what is at stake with Nyx's transformation:

Is it clear if Nyx fails to stop her transformation, what the consequences would be?

Impressive response:

Yes, it is clear from the passage that if Nyx fails to stop her transformation, the consequences would be disastrous, not just for her but for everyone. Several elements contribute to this understanding:

1. Luna's Seriousness: Luna's demeanor throughout the conversation is serious and concerned. She emphasizes the importance of Nyx resisting the transformation and repeatedly stresses the gravity of the situation.
2. Nightmares: Nyx's nightmares are described as pushing her to become something terrible, worse than Nightmare Moon. This hints at the potential for immense danger and destruction if she were to succumb to the transformation.
3. Magical Outbursts: Nyx's uncontrolled magical outbursts, especially the incident where she incinerated two zebras in anger, indicate the potential for significant harm if she cannot control her powers during the transformation.
4. The Fate of the World: Luna's statement that "the fate of the world is at stake" makes it clear that Nyx's transformation is not just a personal struggle but a matter of great global significance. The consequences are likely to affect not only her but also the entire world.

Overall, the passage effectively conveys the idea that Nyx's failure to resist her transformation could lead to catastrophic consequences, adding tension and urgency to her character arc and the broader story.

Wow... I'd say the AI is an incredible tool for writers to help them see an external perspective on their work and whether or not it is conveying the right impressions that the author intends. These replies above are also rather incredible in how accurately the AI was able to interpret complex emotional dialogue between two characters about very intense subjects. I recommend any writer make use of this tool to help analyze their own work.

Comments

[RandomCommentor]

Dont expect the ai to be too knowledgeable, the authors guild is suing them for plagiarism.

They discovered that ChatGPT had entire books in its code that weren't supposed to be there, placed there without permission.

[Recon777]

5747743
Oh I understand that the AI knows nothing. It has no true knowledge or understanding. But its response to a request for analysis is very impressive.

I do wonder though, what form the information it has consists of. From what I know, it's been trained on a significant portion of the internet's communication. Neural net associations are not quite the same as a direct data storage, which is why it gets so many things wrong or silly. The technology is very unlike anything we've seen in terms of data storage in the past. I still don't quite understand how it gets so many simple things very badly while other more difficult things absolutely brilliantly.

Humorously, I asked ChatGPT about this... lol

I'm not aware of specific details regarding the contents of the training data used for ChatGPT, but I can provide some general information about how models like ChatGPT are trained. They are typically trained on a large dataset containing text from the internet, books, and other sources. However, the models don't store entire books or copyrighted content in their code.

What happens during training is that the model learns to generate text based on the patterns it has observed in the training data. It doesn't retain specific books or texts as individual pieces of information in its code. Instead, it learns to generate text that is similar in style and content to what it has seen during training.

If there are concerns about copyrighted material being used inappropriately, it's important to address those issues with the organization responsible for the model's development and deployment, as they have control over the training data and any potential violations of copyright.

So really, it's an entirely new legal animal here. The question of whether the AI has unauthorized copies of copyrighted text isn't really the issue, I think. The real (and new) question here is whether it is legal or permissible to train an AI or expose it to copyrighted material at all. Because an AI's ability to learn from exposure to such material has different implications than a human being exposed to the same material.

Though if you think about it, we do learn from copyrighted material we are exposed to and THEN proceed to incorporate such ideas and tropes and general patterns in our own work in a somewhat similar way to what the AI is doing. Every work of fiction "takes inspiration from" other people's work.

[Recon777]

5747743
I'm intrigued by this lawsuit and its implications on the copyright system itself. We're all familiar with copyright limitations here on fimfiction because we're writing derivative works based on Hasbro's IP. But an important distinction is that we're directly using characters, settings, and stories belonging to Hasbro as the foundation of our own works, right?

Check this out from an article talking about the lawsuit:

The authors alleged that their writing was included in ChatGPT's training dataset without their permission, arguing that the system can accurately summarize their works and generate text that mimics their styles.

The lawsuit requested an unspecified amount of money damages and an order blocking OpenAI's "unlawful and unfair business practices."

Okay, so "writing included in a training dataset without permission". Hmm... is that really a violation of copyright? The way I understand it, in order to be a violation of copyright, the actual intellectual assets need to be copied into a new work. To say that the AI can accurately summarize works isn't really a copyright issue because anyone can summarize a copyrighted work in a professional article for profit. Likewise, anyone can write "text that mimics the style" of copyrighted works for profit, yes? As far as I know, style does not directly fall under copyrighted protection unless the likeness is irrefutable.

For example, take all the MLP knockoff products out there that Hasbro doesn't touch. People make pony videos on youtube that are monetized all the time. But Jan Animations made videos with ponies that are so perfectly imitating of actual MLP assets that he was issued a C&D by Hasbro (sadly).

The question then becomes, where do you draw the line with copyright? If we forbid the training of AI using protected works, then I think this sets a dangerous precedent in using novels to train ourselves in the art of writing. It's a dangerous thing because it could go in either direction. AI is arguably far better at imitating things than we humans are. And yet, if we are forbidden from taking inspiration from protected works, that will massively stifle human creativity. It also brings into question what exactly constitutes "training" and what the ethical limits of it are. AI opens up an entirely new playing field that we have no precedent for. I for one, have no idea where this will lead, but I think we as a society should exercise caution and not be too hasty with our regulation.

Oh, check this out!! I just did a test to see if these copyrighted stories truly are available to the public via ChatGPT.
cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/230227815750959106/1155463307013144667/image.png

Turns out you can't just get copies of these works by asking the AI for them. That, to me, feels like pretty solid evidence that it is not breaking copyright law.

What's funny here is that ChatGPT is probably good enough at communicating its own case and limitations that it would be qualified to take the stand in court in its own defense! Wouldn't that be something.

[TundraStanza]

I don't know. ChatGPT is just as likely to fabricate laws out of thin air that neither exist nor support its legality. I wouldn't trust it as a defense attorney.

[Recon777]

5747871
Haha granted. Although I did hear that it was skilled enough to pass the bar exam. But yes, it is prone to hallucinations, which can be quite bizarre at times. Also, hey there! long time!