The following quote from 1984 is rather intriguing: "Who controls the past controls the future: who controls the present, controls the past." (pg 37, Orwell) After first reading it, it left me under the impression that it was the type of quote that leads one in circles, and does not have a definite answer. But now, after examining it and looking beyond those words, so that the meaning of it would be less ambiguous, its significance is far more clear.
Winston Smith was referring to the world that he is living in when he said that. That's because Big Brother controls the past through the workers at the 'Ministry of Truth.' He does so by asking them to "correct" certain minor or major events from newspapers, or books. Events that supposedly never occurred, or articles that mention people which never existed. By doing so, the residents will be far more gullible, since they will always be under the control of the government because of believing that the leaders have always kept the promises. And the leaders will be able to lead the country or "control the future" however they wish. That's because every promise that is broken, is "corrected" soon afterwards, or in other words "re-phrased", in the old article that holds proof of the promise being made, and not carried out as it was declared.
In addition to that, the "who controls the present, controls the past" part, makes a reference to the fact that the Oceania's current leaders which "control the present" have the ability to rewrite the past, which of course, leads into their ability of shaping the future however they wish.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Order!
This is the order that I'll be reading my novels in:
1. 1984
2. Farenheit 451
3. The Chrysalids
4. The Children of Men
I've decided to read 1984 first, simply becaue it's a world renowned Dystopian novel and I wanted to start off with a novel that is considered a 'classic' because I thought that by doing so, it will be a perfect way of commencing with the Dystopian genre. I'm also starting with 1984 because it's the novel that I'm most familiar with. Not because of having read it before, but because of having heard a lot about it, and having read numerous reviews on it.
Farenheit 451 is the perfect novel to read after 1984 because the two novels have one large element in common- irony. For example, 1984 the 'Ministry of Peace' deals with war, while in Farenheit 451 the firemen which reside in that futuristic society don't extinguish fires, instead they initiate them.
I thought that picking The Chrysalids will add a refreshing perspective to my novel selection because one of the main themes of this novel seems to be apperance, particularly a society's obsession with perfect apperance. I thought that this theme can be related to the current world that we live in today, which is what makes the scenario in the book so realistic.
The Children of Men is another book that I thought creates a rather credible scenario. Even though infertility is not currently a major world wide issue, it is still an issue due to the fact that infertility is indeed on the rise, and more childless couples than ever are left to turn to their only alternative- artificial reproductive technologies. This type of technology often gives them no results either. Because of that,I think that a scenario such as the one in The Children of Men seems likely to possibly occur in the distant future.
1. 1984
2. Farenheit 451
3. The Chrysalids
4. The Children of Men
I've decided to read 1984 first, simply becaue it's a world renowned Dystopian novel and I wanted to start off with a novel that is considered a 'classic' because I thought that by doing so, it will be a perfect way of commencing with the Dystopian genre. I'm also starting with 1984 because it's the novel that I'm most familiar with. Not because of having read it before, but because of having heard a lot about it, and having read numerous reviews on it.
Farenheit 451 is the perfect novel to read after 1984 because the two novels have one large element in common- irony. For example, 1984 the 'Ministry of Peace' deals with war, while in Farenheit 451 the firemen which reside in that futuristic society don't extinguish fires, instead they initiate them.
I thought that picking The Chrysalids will add a refreshing perspective to my novel selection because one of the main themes of this novel seems to be apperance, particularly a society's obsession with perfect apperance. I thought that this theme can be related to the current world that we live in today, which is what makes the scenario in the book so realistic.
The Children of Men is another book that I thought creates a rather credible scenario. Even though infertility is not currently a major world wide issue, it is still an issue due to the fact that infertility is indeed on the rise, and more childless couples than ever are left to turn to their only alternative- artificial reproductive technologies. This type of technology often gives them no results either. Because of that,I think that a scenario such as the one in The Children of Men seems likely to possibly occur in the distant future.
Forever Aging
The Children of Men drops the reader right in the middle of the action. It starts off powerfully, in the year 2021, when a major infertility crisis is the reason for no more children being born. On the first page, it is also stated that the youngest human being that was born on earth was killed around midnight on the first of January, althouh the reason why is not stated.Shortly after, the reader also learns that the story is being told by the protagonist who is writing all the events in his diary because of two factors: his birthday, and the fact that it's a new year.
While Theodore is telling the reader about the current state of the world crisis, he also states that many nations are momentairly storing their books, artifacts, and instruments in order to preserve the memory of the people that once lived on this planet. So that in case the extraterrestrials would land on earth once all humans will cease to exist, they will know what type of civilization once resided there. While pondering, Theodore also comes across the thought of whether the aliens would be awed and intrigued by our creations, or whether they'd simply think nothing like us, and not be touched at all by our creations. The protagonist also states how the case of infertility became a global crisis, and that soon after it was recognized that there was no pregnant woman throughout the world, the hunt for the youngest human being begun. The youngest human being that was discovered was Ricardo, and he continued being the youngest one until he was shot the previous day.
This novel seems very intriguing. Out of the four dystopian novels that I've chosen, I think that this one creates the most realistic scenario. Because of the increasing number of genetic diseases, and overall diseases in this world, I wouldn't be surprised if in the future, infertility would also become a world wide issue. Afterall, I think we're coming across more diseases than cures, nowadays, and I don't think that will change at all in the future.
While Theodore is telling the reader about the current state of the world crisis, he also states that many nations are momentairly storing their books, artifacts, and instruments in order to preserve the memory of the people that once lived on this planet. So that in case the extraterrestrials would land on earth once all humans will cease to exist, they will know what type of civilization once resided there. While pondering, Theodore also comes across the thought of whether the aliens would be awed and intrigued by our creations, or whether they'd simply think nothing like us, and not be touched at all by our creations. The protagonist also states how the case of infertility became a global crisis, and that soon after it was recognized that there was no pregnant woman throughout the world, the hunt for the youngest human being begun. The youngest human being that was discovered was Ricardo, and he continued being the youngest one until he was shot the previous day.
This novel seems very intriguing. Out of the four dystopian novels that I've chosen, I think that this one creates the most realistic scenario. Because of the increasing number of genetic diseases, and overall diseases in this world, I wouldn't be surprised if in the future, infertility would also become a world wide issue. Afterall, I think we're coming across more diseases than cures, nowadays, and I don't think that will change at all in the future.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
The World of Pefection
I've just finished reading the first two chapters from The Chrysalids, and I have to say- I was rather impressed. Even though this novel is far more simplistic when compared to 1984 and Farenheit 451 in terms of vocabulary and the subject matter, I find it very well written. I like the fact that in this novel, the people seem to be overly obsessed with the apperance of everything. Which I think is something that can be applied to the current world which we reside in as well. Due to the amount of time and effort that most people invest in their apperance, and the dissatisfaction that they get if they're having a 'bad hair day' or if they've put on an extra pound, or if anything else prevents them from obtaining their perfect image of themselves.
In the first chapter the protagonist, David, re-tells the story of the day when he met a little girl named Sophie, which changed his life. David met her when he went to the bank which was a place he often visited in order to slide down the runnel. But that day, (when he coincidentaly met Sophie) he invited her to try sliding as well; which she did, but during the third time when she slid, her foot got stuck between two stones. This is why when David tried helping her, the only way which he could've succeded in doing so would've been by taking her shoe off. Which was something that Sophie objected to at first, but when she realised that there was no alternative she made David promise that he wouldn't tell anyone of what what he was about to see- her six toes.
Later on, when David walks on his way home he is confronted with his beliefs, and what the bible stated on any creature that did not fit the definition of a man. It stated that ''any creature that shall seem to be human, but is not formed thus is not human. It is neither man nor woman. It is a blasphemy against the true Image of God, and hateful in the sight of God.'' Which he thought completly contradicted the way that Sophie was, because there was nothing remotely frightful about her: she was a sensible, and brave little girl. But because of that definition, David's judgement was clouded, and he had a hard time knowing whether that definition held any possible truth to it.
I believe that the definition of a human raises some interesting questions; whether or not everything that's written is true. Which of course, the answer to is that not everything that we read is true, which raises an even bigger question: how can we differentiate the truth from the lies? Especially if the lies are worded in such a way that they appear as true. And how can we know what to believe?
In the first chapter the protagonist, David, re-tells the story of the day when he met a little girl named Sophie, which changed his life. David met her when he went to the bank which was a place he often visited in order to slide down the runnel. But that day, (when he coincidentaly met Sophie) he invited her to try sliding as well; which she did, but during the third time when she slid, her foot got stuck between two stones. This is why when David tried helping her, the only way which he could've succeded in doing so would've been by taking her shoe off. Which was something that Sophie objected to at first, but when she realised that there was no alternative she made David promise that he wouldn't tell anyone of what what he was about to see- her six toes.
Later on, when David walks on his way home he is confronted with his beliefs, and what the bible stated on any creature that did not fit the definition of a man. It stated that ''any creature that shall seem to be human, but is not formed thus is not human. It is neither man nor woman. It is a blasphemy against the true Image of God, and hateful in the sight of God.'' Which he thought completly contradicted the way that Sophie was, because there was nothing remotely frightful about her: she was a sensible, and brave little girl. But because of that definition, David's judgement was clouded, and he had a hard time knowing whether that definition held any possible truth to it.
I believe that the definition of a human raises some interesting questions; whether or not everything that's written is true. Which of course, the answer to is that not everything that we read is true, which raises an even bigger question: how can we differentiate the truth from the lies? Especially if the lies are worded in such a way that they appear as true. And how can we know what to believe?
Thursday, September 25, 2008
The blazing flames devouring novels
Farenheit 451 is an intriguing novel, which I believe I will read right after 1984, since both novels have an element of irony in them.
The way that Farenheit 451 is ironic is because the protagonist, Montag, is a fireman. But not a normal type of fireman that we're accustomed with nowadays; he's a fireman that starts fires, rather than extinguishes them. The reason behind that is because he, and other firemen like him, start fires in order to burn any literature that's present in their society, due to the fact that reading is illegal.
During the first chapter, Montag, meets a 'strange' seventeen-year-old girl by the name of Clarisse. She asks him questions which he percieves as peculiar, questions such as, 'Is it true that long ago firemen put fires out instead of started them?' (pg. 8, Bradbury). Which is a question that Montag immediatly diseregards such an answer to, because of believing that the houses in the past, just like the ones in their world were fireproof. Before the two of them parted after their discussion, Clarisse asked Montag a crucial question- if he's happy. Which left Montag perplexed. After Clarisse first adressed the question to him he simply thought to himself that he was surely happy, but it was only after he arrived home, that he acknowledged the fact that his state of happiness was merely a mask that he wore. He did so in order to cover up the fact that led an empty life throughout his day at work, and when ariving home to his wife.
The way that Farenheit 451 is ironic is because the protagonist, Montag, is a fireman. But not a normal type of fireman that we're accustomed with nowadays; he's a fireman that starts fires, rather than extinguishes them. The reason behind that is because he, and other firemen like him, start fires in order to burn any literature that's present in their society, due to the fact that reading is illegal.
During the first chapter, Montag, meets a 'strange' seventeen-year-old girl by the name of Clarisse. She asks him questions which he percieves as peculiar, questions such as, 'Is it true that long ago firemen put fires out instead of started them?' (pg. 8, Bradbury). Which is a question that Montag immediatly diseregards such an answer to, because of believing that the houses in the past, just like the ones in their world were fireproof. Before the two of them parted after their discussion, Clarisse asked Montag a crucial question- if he's happy. Which left Montag perplexed. After Clarisse first adressed the question to him he simply thought to himself that he was surely happy, but it was only after he arrived home, that he acknowledged the fact that his state of happiness was merely a mask that he wore. He did so in order to cover up the fact that led an empty life throughout his day at work, and when ariving home to his wife.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Creative thoughts are unacceptable..
Upon reading the first few pages of the book, it took me a while to get adjusted to it and to picture the setting and envision everything that was being described; probably due to the lengthy amount of description which the novel contains. But a few pages after that I slowly eased into Orwell's futuristic society, and I became quiet captivated by it.
What I like the most is the fact that even though this book is set in the future, it contains a lot of elements from our current world. Which is something that I prefer over a novel that's set in an extremely distant future, so distant that everything has changed. Such as the means of transportation, the homes, etc.
The first chapter starts off with the protagonist, Winston, as he goes to 'The Ministry of Truth' which is where his workplace is. A place which, 'concerned itself with news, entertainment, education, and fine arts' (Orwell, pg 6). Although it is not specified what Winston's exact job is, (at least not in the first chapter) the reader learns that there are many other existing Ministries in Oceania, such as the 'Ministry of Peace' and the 'Ministry of Love'. But what is ironic, is that what these places concern themselves with the opposite of what one would expect. For example, the 'Ministry of Peace' concerns itself with war, while the 'Ministry of love' is all about law and order, and it is also illustrated as the most terrifying ministries of all.
What I also like about the story is that throughout the first chapter it is depicted how Winston Smith, and the rest of the characters are always aware of their actions because they fear that they might be watched through the 'telescreen', or that they might be caught by the 'Thought Police', while saying something unorthodox. Which is interesting, because that can be easily related to the current world that we live in today. For example, even though we don't have rules that go to such extreme measures, the only reason why most people behave and don't act spontaneously by doing the first thing that crosses their mind, is because they fear the consequences; just like the characters do in 1984.
What I like the most is the fact that even though this book is set in the future, it contains a lot of elements from our current world. Which is something that I prefer over a novel that's set in an extremely distant future, so distant that everything has changed. Such as the means of transportation, the homes, etc.
The first chapter starts off with the protagonist, Winston, as he goes to 'The Ministry of Truth' which is where his workplace is. A place which, 'concerned itself with news, entertainment, education, and fine arts' (Orwell, pg 6). Although it is not specified what Winston's exact job is, (at least not in the first chapter) the reader learns that there are many other existing Ministries in Oceania, such as the 'Ministry of Peace' and the 'Ministry of Love'. But what is ironic, is that what these places concern themselves with the opposite of what one would expect. For example, the 'Ministry of Peace' concerns itself with war, while the 'Ministry of love' is all about law and order, and it is also illustrated as the most terrifying ministries of all.
What I also like about the story is that throughout the first chapter it is depicted how Winston Smith, and the rest of the characters are always aware of their actions because they fear that they might be watched through the 'telescreen', or that they might be caught by the 'Thought Police', while saying something unorthodox. Which is interesting, because that can be easily related to the current world that we live in today. For example, even though we don't have rules that go to such extreme measures, the only reason why most people behave and don't act spontaneously by doing the first thing that crosses their mind, is because they fear the consequences; just like the characters do in 1984.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Gazing into the past
Now that I'm nearly finished with the Annotated Bibliography (all I have left is to type it up), I just have to focus on finding the four books which would be the most suitable for my reading selection. I have three of them so far, which I have selected by researching, and by linking them to the genre that they belong in. They are 1984 by George Orwell, Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry, and Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury,all of which are Dystopian novels.
As for the fourth book, I'm a little bit puzzled; although I would love to read the written version of Fight the Future, which is based on the X-files film with the same title, I'm not sure if I could make it blend in with the rest of the novels. If I would pick Science-Fiction as the main genre, then I could. But then again, after researching I couldn't find out what type of Science-Fiction Fight the Future would fit under. But I believe that it would be categorized in a diffrent Science-Fiction sub-genre then the other three books,therefore, there would be a greater diffrence between the three novels which I have already picked, and Fight the Future.
Another option that I could possibly have, is to pick another Dystopian novel; so I might have to look into that.
Addendum:
1984 is one of the most famous Dystopian novels throughout the world. It is a story that warns it's readers of the harmful potentials that totalitarianism can have. One of the influences that George Orwell picked up on prior to writing this novel, was the Spanish Civil War and World War Two. Many of the elements from 1984, were also based upon the Soviet Union. For example, the "Two Minutes Hate" was based on the demonstrations that the Soviet Union used to have of their enemies. While the physical description of Big Brother closely resembles Stalin's, and the party's arch enemy, Goldstein, resembles Leon Trotsky, mainly because they are both Jewish.
Ray Bradbury's Farenheit 451, is a novel that is mainly about "book burning". This element was a symbol for anti-intellectualism, and was largely influenced by the book burning that took place during the Nazi period (in World War 2) due to the anti-sematic feelings that were shared among part of the German population.
Writing Brave New World was a turning point for Huxley; it was during this time that he synthesized his early writing style of satire, with his fascination for Science-Fiction.This allowed him to move onto writing novels with deeper meanings. A theme that's prominent in several of his novels is the interest of individuals and the society. Such a theme was present in Brave New World, which is a story that is mainly about a fictional futuristic world where individuality and free will does not exist, because they have been sacrificed in order to create social stability within the society. In this novel, the totalitarian goverment controls the society with the use of Science and Technology. Huxley skillfully argues that certain progresses in science, such as the development of technology are very likely to reduce individuality.
P.D James is a British novelist that released two very succesful books; Innocent Blood, and The Children of men. Throughout the book, The Children of Men she presents the shocking idea of what it would be like if the population would turn inexplicably infertile, which would result in chaos in it's purest form. Which is due to the fact that there would be no reason left for anyone to live, if all the humans would perish in a matter of years.
As for the fourth book, I'm a little bit puzzled; although I would love to read the written version of Fight the Future, which is based on the X-files film with the same title, I'm not sure if I could make it blend in with the rest of the novels. If I would pick Science-Fiction as the main genre, then I could. But then again, after researching I couldn't find out what type of Science-Fiction Fight the Future would fit under. But I believe that it would be categorized in a diffrent Science-Fiction sub-genre then the other three books,therefore, there would be a greater diffrence between the three novels which I have already picked, and Fight the Future.
Another option that I could possibly have, is to pick another Dystopian novel; so I might have to look into that.
Addendum:
1984 is one of the most famous Dystopian novels throughout the world. It is a story that warns it's readers of the harmful potentials that totalitarianism can have. One of the influences that George Orwell picked up on prior to writing this novel, was the Spanish Civil War and World War Two. Many of the elements from 1984, were also based upon the Soviet Union. For example, the "Two Minutes Hate" was based on the demonstrations that the Soviet Union used to have of their enemies. While the physical description of Big Brother closely resembles Stalin's, and the party's arch enemy, Goldstein, resembles Leon Trotsky, mainly because they are both Jewish.
Ray Bradbury's Farenheit 451, is a novel that is mainly about "book burning". This element was a symbol for anti-intellectualism, and was largely influenced by the book burning that took place during the Nazi period (in World War 2) due to the anti-sematic feelings that were shared among part of the German population.
Writing Brave New World was a turning point for Huxley; it was during this time that he synthesized his early writing style of satire, with his fascination for Science-Fiction.This allowed him to move onto writing novels with deeper meanings. A theme that's prominent in several of his novels is the interest of individuals and the society. Such a theme was present in Brave New World, which is a story that is mainly about a fictional futuristic world where individuality and free will does not exist, because they have been sacrificed in order to create social stability within the society. In this novel, the totalitarian goverment controls the society with the use of Science and Technology. Huxley skillfully argues that certain progresses in science, such as the development of technology are very likely to reduce individuality.
P.D James is a British novelist that released two very succesful books; Innocent Blood, and The Children of men. Throughout the book, The Children of Men she presents the shocking idea of what it would be like if the population would turn inexplicably infertile, which would result in chaos in it's purest form. Which is due to the fact that there would be no reason left for anyone to live, if all the humans would perish in a matter of years.
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Exploring the unexplored
During the time spend at the library I've noticed that dystopian novels, as well as mystery novels tend to capture my attention. That's possibly because a book that's based on mystery, or has a slight amount of it, keeps me captivated until the very end because of wanting to find out the answer(s) behind the events that occured in the book.
What I've found the most surprising is that finding books that I'd be interested in reading takes far more time than I anticipated. Prior to starting this assignment, I thought that I could just walk down the isles at the library and find books that interest me everywhere. But i would've never guessed that the great majority of the time at the library would be spent just by picking the books, because I thought that I would not need to spend more than 10 minutes daily during the process.
While at the library, I have also been discovering some crime fiction novels which have always been a type of novel that i'd like to read. Mainly because of never having experimented with a novel like that before.
So far, I've discovered some new authors whose novels seem intriguing. One such author is Ray Bradbury, who wrote the novel, Farenheit 451. Another author that I've been examing closer up, is Stephen King. Not that I wasn't familiar with him before, I knew who he is, but I only read one of his novels until now, Carrie. And lately I've been more interested in looking into the other novels which he wrote, and seeing which one of those might be enjoyable to read.
I haven't done a lot of backround research to find out about which novels I'd like to read. But another way that I've been selecting which novels to read, is by asking friends and family members to recommend me novels which they enjoyed reading, or which they simply heard were good novels.
What I've found the most surprising is that finding books that I'd be interested in reading takes far more time than I anticipated. Prior to starting this assignment, I thought that I could just walk down the isles at the library and find books that interest me everywhere. But i would've never guessed that the great majority of the time at the library would be spent just by picking the books, because I thought that I would not need to spend more than 10 minutes daily during the process.
While at the library, I have also been discovering some crime fiction novels which have always been a type of novel that i'd like to read. Mainly because of never having experimented with a novel like that before.
So far, I've discovered some new authors whose novels seem intriguing. One such author is Ray Bradbury, who wrote the novel, Farenheit 451. Another author that I've been examing closer up, is Stephen King. Not that I wasn't familiar with him before, I knew who he is, but I only read one of his novels until now, Carrie. And lately I've been more interested in looking into the other novels which he wrote, and seeing which one of those might be enjoyable to read.
I haven't done a lot of backround research to find out about which novels I'd like to read. But another way that I've been selecting which novels to read, is by asking friends and family members to recommend me novels which they enjoyed reading, or which they simply heard were good novels.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
My comfort zone: literature that I've truly enjoyed
The type of literature that I enjoy the most has always been mystery. But not any type of mystery, the type that involves the supernatural. The first few books of that genre which I have read were probably from the Goosebumps series, which were written by R.L Stine. After reading those books I became hungry for reading more books in the same genre, but by a different author, which is when i came across an author named John Bellairs. I was fascinated while reading the stories written by him, and as soon as I finished one book I couldn't wait to get my hands on the next one.And from that point on, I began reading mostly mystery books, because the other genres didn't interest me as much.
'The Giver' is one of my all time favorite books, which is why I've always been interested in reading other Science Fiction books such as '1984'. But I would only be interested in reading Science Fiction books in which the action takes place in a Dystopian or Utopian world. That's because I find those two types far more intriguing than the other sub genres of that genre which I find far less credible.
One type of literature that I have never read is Romance, and I don't plan on reading any anytime soon because they seem to lack the mystery and suspence that I'm used to having in a book. I have also not read any Crime Fiction books, but I would like to read some in the future if I will find any that will grab my attention.
'The Giver' is one of my all time favorite books, which is why I've always been interested in reading other Science Fiction books such as '1984'. But I would only be interested in reading Science Fiction books in which the action takes place in a Dystopian or Utopian world. That's because I find those two types far more intriguing than the other sub genres of that genre which I find far less credible.
One type of literature that I have never read is Romance, and I don't plan on reading any anytime soon because they seem to lack the mystery and suspence that I'm used to having in a book. I have also not read any Crime Fiction books, but I would like to read some in the future if I will find any that will grab my attention.
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