I don't think it is something to get worked up about.

Definitely didn't mean to make things sound like I was worked up about anything. I just put a lot of thought into my responses & they didn't get much exposure since the thread was down voted so I thought I'd put them up in a self-post here. :)

I would like to think that most would stand up and protect Theresa

I would too. I think the clincher is that societies have, historically, both protected and subjugated more vulnerable individuals/groups.

So, since there's precedence in real life for both avenues of behavior (meaning both avenues would be and should be considered equally realistic), why not go with the one that endears you (as the author, the reader, or the audience) most to the group & main character?

I also tend to think stories featuring kids/boys as violating savages - I think certain people take that concept way too much to heart and say, "yes I believe this is natural behavior when there's no built-in social law" & then feel justified saying anything that doesn't depict kids/boys as violating savages as "unrealistic." I think this is both inaccurate & cynical... not to mention impossible to prove either way. There has never been a circumstance in the real world like Maze Runner or Lord of the Flies.

What's especially interesting also though is thinking about author intent. I'm pretty sure William Golding, author of Lord of the Flies, wanted to convince people that humans are naturally inclined to violate & slide backwards into savagery without civilization. He tried to make his story as psychologically plausible as possible in order to achieve that very political & religious message.

Unfortunately, I think he succeeded... and the echoes of his belief are still around today, with people on Reddit claiming any similar scenario would naturally & realistically feature a slideback into violatory & cannibalistic savagery... and any alternative behavior featured in a similar scenario gets tagged as "naive"/"unrealistic"/"way too idealistic."

One more thing: I'm a huge fan of post-apoc stories (fiction, tv, film, etc) and there's almost always a mention & exploration of certain survival groups that do backslide into savagery. Resident Evil, The Walking Dead, 28 Days Later, Book of Eli, etc. come to mind. I am totally okay with incorporating bad/evil groups who rape & cannibalize in a post-apoc universe... but the idea that all of humanity falls to raping & cannibalizing each other because it's the "natural" thing to do when civilization crumbles... Doesn't that sound strikingly inaccurate? I tend to think it does.