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Critically analyse Margaret Atwood as a novelist
Critically analyse Margaret Atwood as a novelist
Critically analyse Margaret Atwood as a novelist
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The Sci-Fi genre often centers on the theme of control. Oryx and Crake, by Margret Attwood, highlights Crake’s ability to manipulate his friend Jimmy to allow Crake to control the current and future generations of inhabitants on planet Earth, whereas Octavia Butler’s Kindred focuses on Dana’s inability to control when she pulled back in time by her ancestor Rufus set against her ability to scare herself back through time. Control can be seen as a manipulation of current destiny, or an adaptation to the current set of circumstances. The use of science can be extremely useful in these manipulations. Man’s degree of adaptability has been in direct correlation as his knowledge of the known elements, properties, and physical laws of nature increases. …show more content…
The idea that “the end justifies the means’ is another common theme in Sci-Fi, and can be seen in Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake and Olivia Butler’s Kindred. The protagonist of each novel is pulled by outside forces to improve current status quo according to another’s mindset, while simultaneously saving the generations to come. Both Atwood and Butler use control and autonomy in their plotlines and characterizations, insomuch as Atwood’s Jimmy is forced to kill his best friend out of revenge, while Butler’s Dana is forced to save, then kills Rufus to protect her future. Though self-governing and change are a constant in the genre of Sci-Fi, authors can choose to manipulate the vehicle by which this change or control occurs, whether by allowing their characters to react thereby taking their power back through personal action as seen in Kindred, or by adapting to the current system according the value system of the protagonist, as seen in Oryx and Crate. The concept of control and autonomy converge in Oryx and Crake which whose theme is the illusion that man has the power create better than God, an idea that creates an unending obsession of the mind. Improvements and change are not always necessary, and although well intended, can be fueled by pride and possessiveness, which in turn only satisfies one’s personal theory, while ignoring the true needs of the masses. A sick mind cannot repair a sick mind. An outside force or entity must allow an alternate perspective to raise the consciousness of the sick mind, which in turn allows corrections to be made in an effective manner. There is an unexpected by-product as the protagonists seek autonomy in both novels, whereby their lack of control is balanced by responding and reacting through altruistic behavior. In Margaret Attwood’s, Oryx and Crake, as the idea of attainable human perfection by scientific means becomes the predominate view in society the moral human compass of compassion, empathy, and connection is replaced by the idea of the next best thing.
Crake plans to control the future of the world by destroying it, leaving his friend Jimmy to tend to the Crakes, his created race of supposed improved purity. Crake also invents the BlyssPluss pill which will cause an airborne disease of epic proportions, supposedly wiping out the entire human race except for Jimmy and the Crakes, who will survive in the air-locked dome called …show more content…
Paradice. Crake assumes his own personal right to govern the masses by using the ego mania of current his generation to bait and kill that generation because he deems them unworthy to reproduce given their current idealism and lack of character. With the assumption that Crake is absolutely correct in his personal analysis that the current generation shows no sign of improvement, Crake willing takes on the project of autonomy to readjust to course of the world by resetting the value system according to his own beliefs. The first way Crake accomplishes autonomy is by the manipulation of his surrounding by estimating the lack of a moral compass in his current generation.
Crake takes advantage of this lack by invention the BlyssPluss pill, which promises protection from “all known sexually transmitted diseases” . . .” would provide an unlimited supply of libido” . . . “and prolonged youth” (Atwood 294). Crake knows human nature to never be satisfied, therefore he can manipulate man’s lust for power by providing a vehicle to ensure man’s elusive concept of “more”. Crake discovers the parasitic human desire for more is as powerful as gravity, destructive as cancer, yet can be invisible to even the consciousness and conscience of its host. As the concept of more is considered the constant, Crake can then manipulate the masses to poison themselves by using false claims to appeal to their pride and fear of not being in possession of the newest and most effective remedy of the
times. The next manipulation Crake uses to control the future is Jimmy. In hindsight, Jimmy realizes that Crake has been playing on Jimmy’s nature to accomplish his goal of global resetting. Crake gave Jimmy clues early on saying, “As a species we’re in deep trouble, worse than anyone is saying” (Atwood 295). Snyder identifies four areas that Crake pulls Jimmy against his will: “from his recruitment of Jimmy as his second in command, to Oryx’s supposedly clandestine seduction of a sexual liaison with Jimmy, even to the denouement of Oryx’ mercy killing and Crakes assisted suicide on the threshold of the dome.” (481). The first thing Crake has to do in his plan for global resetting is to find a predictable personality which he
Such controlled environments provide examples of humanities belief that it is more sophisticated and indeed more powerful than the wild. Despite being written some fifty years apart both Brave New World By Aldous Huxley and Blade Runner Directed by Ridley Scott present the same message. Both texts argue that with advancing technology humanity feels itself more sophisticated and more powerful than the natural rhythms of the world. However, at the same time aspects represented in each text point out that Humanity can never be completely isolated from nature.
As analyzed by social critic Neil Postman, Huxley's vision of the future, portrayed in the novel Brave New World, holds far more relevance to present day society than that of Orwell's classic 1984. Huxley's vision was simple: it was a vision of a trivial society, drowned in a sea of pleasure and ignorant of knowledge and pain, slightly resembling the world of today. In society today, knowledge is no longer appreciated as it has been in past cultures, in turn causing a deficiency in intelligence and will to learn. Also, as envisioned by Huxley, mind altering substances are becoming of greater availability and distribution as technology advances. These drugs allow society to escape from the problems of life instead of dealing with reality. With divorce rates higher than ever in the past few decades, it has become evident that lust has ruined the society's sexual covenants. People are indulging in their sexual motives; lust runs rampant, thus strong, long-lasting relationships are becoming a rarity.
Chemicals are excessively used to achieve youth and happiness in both Brave New World and in Canadian Society. The prime example being the use of drugs to achieve a euphoric feeling and to escape something versus dealing with it in both societies. In Brave New World, Soma, a hallucinogenic drug, is a pertinent part of life that is a necessity to keep their world in order. When a member of society is unhappy, it is a natural instinct to consume soma. When Lenina is upset John does not join her after their date, Lenina thinks, “One gramme, she decided, would not be enough; hers had been more than a one-gramme affliction” (Huxley 171). Lenina uses soma to prevent unacceptable unhappiness in the Brave New World, as many Canadians use antidepressants as a simple fix to their unhappiness. The utilization and prescription of pharmacotherapy for depression has increased from 3.2 to 14.5 million between 1981 and 2000 in Canada (University of Toronto Magazine). ...
In his novel Brave New World, Aldous Huxley illustrates ways in which government and advanced science control society. Through actual visualization of this Utopian society, the reader is able to see how this state affects Huxley’s characters. Throughout the book, the author deals with many different aspects of control. Whether it is of his subjects’ feelings and emotions or of the society’s restraint of population growth, Huxley depicts government’s and science’s role in the brave new world of tomorrow.
From the moment he is introduced, Crake is described as “more adult”, which really is a nod to the sociopathic nature of Crake’s character. His character does not change throughout the novel: he is intelligent, but egotistical and detached. His nature is mostly portrayed through the fact that he never dates, as far as the reader is aware, and obsessively plays logic based games such as Extinctathon and Barbarian Stomp, in which he always had to be the best, playing Extinctathon until he gained the title of Grand
Additionally, these two very different plots built on the addiction to cortisone portray opposite types of genres. Roueche’s “Ten Feet Tall” is a short story written for the New York Times under the title “The Annals of Medicine” and illustrates the true story of a schoolteacher, Robert, who becomes critically ill. While Bob’s story could fall under the category of science fiction, revealing medical advantages in drug productions and their side effects, Ed Avery’s addiction to drugs displays his manic consumerist society as a scientific, horror film. Cortisone, in Ed’s case, is a manifestation of the American dream gone wrong. The diabolical intake of large, societal doses of rules, discipline, religion, education, non-dependency, life standards, status and power, demonstrates the thin line between living the dream and manic behavior. Specifically, ...
With the advancement of technology and science, we are now able to genetically modify animals. Mary Shelley found a way to make science an epitome, and confirms what could happen if science is taken too far. In conclusion, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is considered to be a historical novel, based on scientific advancements. In this novel Shelley depicts her own definition of human nature, by showing the creature and the ways that humans react to him. The novel also showed the differences between morality and science.
.... The Savage could see that it was nothing but valueless vice, and when he accidentally succumbs to that which he so detested, he commits suicide after waking from his 'soma holiday.' Aldous Huxley is also sending us many warning messages with his novel. If we spend too much of our lives pursuing happiness through physical fulfillment, we will miss out on what is truly important, our relationships with other people and with God. He is also telling us to be careful with our science, or we may end up like the Utopians, mass producing identical citizens, then brainwashing them to think alike, and to think exactly what the government mandates. Huxley tells us not to cheapen sex through promiscuity, because it is supposed to be something to express a deep and undying love to someone, not a simple carnal pleasure. These were just some of the mistakes the Utopians made, all of which contributed to their lives being shallow and meaningless. They were not truly happy, because they misplaced their values and failed to see what brings true joy and peace in one's life. The apparent blissfulness in which they lived turned out to be nothing, their Utopia was not worth the high price they paid.
Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein cannot merely be read as a literary work of the early 19th century. It represents the workings of young Shelley's mind. Further, it represents the vast scientific discoveries of the time, combined with Mary Shelley's intuitive perception of science. She views science as a powerful entity, but also recognizes the dangers if uncontrolled. Shelley demonstrates this fear in the book as science drives Victor Frankenstein to create his monster. In the end, it is also his use of science that inevitably becomes his demise.
While more empathetic than Crake-both positively and negatively-Jimmy was often a bystander himself. He shows this in his outrage on Oryx's behalf for the wrongdoings she endured during her life. Before then Jimmy used to be sad at the prospect of hurting the pigoons having been so familiar with them (24).When waiting for Crake to arrive to the Paradise building during the spread of the BlyssPluss plague Jimmy tricked and killed the remaining scientists to prematurely ensure his well-being. In his desire for affection, he charmed women using their sympathy for him regarding his relationship with his estranged mother. Before that in his need for attention and to receive a reaction from his mother he often would push her until he received one relating in his need to get a reaction from others. He often attempted this with Oryx, looking for her to get upset to justify his need to after discovering her childhood porn video. And attempted unsuccessfully to do the same wooing to Oryx at first their first official meeting. Snowman played his part in that in an effort to survive in his deliberate action went against Crake in helping establishing him as a higher power with Snowman himself as a messenger. It allowed him to hold sway over the naive species for sustenance and company. Though even then it seems that the Crakers may be starting to have their doubts starting with their somewhat leader
In Oryx and Crake, Crake creates a disease that destroys almost all of humanity. He does this in order to make way for his new humans, the crakers, who he sees as superior in every way. The disease breaks out when Oryx and Crake are away from the office. Jimmy gets a call from Oryx as it is happening, apologizing to him, saying she did not know it was in the pills. Crake then shows up one day, well after the plague has spread, with an unconscious Oryx in his arms. Jimmy meets him at the door. Crake says one final thing to Jimmy, “‘I’m counting on you’” (394) His final words show that from the start, Crake had been manipulating those around him so his plan would succeed. Jimmy often beats himself up for not catching onto Crake’s plan sooner, remembering all the hints he had dropped throughout their lives. Jimmy also wonders if Crake was right in destroying humanity. It is a disgusting society that cast away those who were not smart enough or inventive enough to help them advance further. But on the other hand it was beautiful what mankind was able to create and Jimmy cannot stand the fact that it is fading all away. “Strange to think of the endless labour, the digging the hammering, the drilling, day by day, year by year, century by century; and now the endless crumbling that must be going on everywhere. Sandcastles in the wind” (51-52) It is at this point that Jimmy realizes his own mortality, realizing that when he dies, no one will remember him. No one will be left to recall the time of the homo sapiens. Humanity ends with him. This is something that he again thinks about at the end of the book when the he pursues the humans the crakers came across while he has gone. The news that other humans have survived gives hope to Jimmy, that all of human
Psychological control creates the star spangled background of science fiction. Those of lesser intellect become oppressed through following spiritual leaders. Western Marxism develops in Dune in the form of people seeking answers to their endless suffering as critic Seigaj writes, “. . . pervasive Western belief in realizing ultimate goals—in an authority, object, state of mind, system, or machine that will provide the final answers . . .” (201).
“SF characteristically transforms scientific and technological ideas into metaphors, by which those ideas are given cultural relevance.”(Istvan Csicsery-Ronay, page 6). This quote exemplifies texts such as The Time Machine and Solaris as they highlight the different ideas of scientific reasoning and how future adaptations may play its part on how humanity prevails, given cultural relevance. It is natural for the reader to become engrossed within Well’s and Lem’s writing style and how as authors, they manage to incorporate the futuristic tones through their characters and settings. Although many readers believe the future seems as though it will improve the way in which mankind develops especially with technological advancements, these two
"People and Events: The Pill and the Sexual Revolution." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 12 May 2014.
In the Time Machine, the effect of science caused the Time traveller to be captured within Time. Thus, the creation of the Time Machine caused the disappearance of a human being which led people to fear science because it could lead to the destruction of humanity. Another novel in which the immense interest in science led to the death of a human being and provoked its readers to fear the effect of science in the nineteenth century is Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Basically the novel is about a doctor named Henry Jekyll who wanted to experiment (using science) with the theory that every man has a dual personality, that there will always be an evil side and good side of a person. In proving his theory, Dr. Jekyll mixed up a potion using chemicals that would break the chain of good and evil.