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?