Howard is a product of his times, and his views of the side of good coincide with the morals and ethics of the Judeo-Christian world. Although fierce and barbaric, Conan believes in the Golden Rule and holds mercy to be a high virtue. The evil wielders of black magic are not only nasty and unattractive people, but their own dark practices lead to their defeat and destruction. Howard makes it clear that people do not use evil magic; instead, the evil magic uses them, just as Xaltotun uses the men who had planned to use him.

Howard is also a product of America. For instance, even today, many, probably most, nations do not hold tolerance of different religions to be a virtue; yet Americans tend to hold religious tolerance to be one of their nation's highest virtues, and Howard's Conan is an American-style just ruler who...