Item from Severance by Dan Erickson
Vision, Verve, Wit, Cheer, Humility, Benevolence, Nimbleness, Probity, and Wiles — Kier Eagan's commandments, recited daily, enforced through the Break Room.
The Nine Core Principles are Lumon's moral code, attributed to Kier Eagan: Vision, Verve, Wit, Cheer, Humility, Benevolence, Nimbleness, Probity, and Wiles. They are recited during Break Room punishment sessions. They are displayed throughout the severed floor. They are the only ethical framework the innies have access to. The principles sound reasonable in isolation. Who could object to Vision or Benevolence? But their enforcement turns them into instruments of control — the Break Room forces employees to apologize 'in keeping with Kier's principles' until they internalize the company's values as their own. The principles don't guide behavior. They replace personal morality with institutional doctrine. 'Wiles' is on the list. The company explicitly values cunning as a principle. Nobody on the severed floor seems to notice the implications.
Displayed on plaques throughout the severed floor, printed in handbooks, recited during Break Room sessions. They appear as text on walls, as words in ceremonies, as the unquestionable framework for all behavior on the severed floor.
Also known as: Kier's Principles, The Principles