dystopia : examination through modern film
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Stories have always had a large degree of power within society. They are records of
the past and dreams of the future. Today stories are told through film and books, and these
like the oral stories of the past have come to define our societies. In some instances stories
personify the things that we fear the most. Dystopian stories mirror societys fears of the
future, and are often based on the events occurring in the world at a specific time period.
These stories exist not only show the fears expressed in society, but more significantly serve
as a warning of the impending future if we are blind to what is currently occurring. They
often suggest solutions that can be enacted in order to ensure that these events do not occur.
However, while some fears are eternal there are also specific fears that arise out of specific
important events in out cultural consensus. Such events underscore a deep seeded emotional
response on both a conscious and unconscious level.
In this paper we will discuss dystopian societies as presented in literary novels and
films arguing that these stories are minfestations of specific cultural fears. In order to do this
we will firstly discuss the novels, The Sheep Look Up, Children of Men and the film Soylent
Green will be arguing that these works are exemplifications of the fear that environmental
catastrophe may rise out of the advent of environmentalism in the 1970s and 1990s.
Secondly, we will discuss the novel, 1984 and film, V for Vendetta arguing that the images
of political dystopia shown in these two works are exemplifications of fear that grew out of
the post Cold War period and the post September 11th period respectively. Thirdly, we will
discuss the novel,Neuromancer and the film, The Matrix arguing that the images of
technological dystopia exemplify a larger fear of technology in two important periods of
technological innovations.
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Dystopia is defined as the opposite of utopia, a civilization that is characterized by
misery and hardship. It is a society that demonstrates a humanity only barely surviving with
the basic necessities of life. A dystopian society is usually distinguished by human misery,
poverty, violence, and pollution. Dystopia consists of visions of dangerous and alienating
future societies that explore social and political structures. Often government oppression is
widespread and a lack of basic rights and freedoms exist. These societies are often highly
stratified between the have and the have-nots, be it based on economic status of racial status.
The reasons for these dystopian societies are as varied as the fears that create them. Of these
reasons there are several dominant themes: environmentalin which society fears the
destruction of their humanity to environmental degradation;politicalin which society fears
oppression and the loss of their rights and freedoms; and technology in which society fears
their loss of humanity and their loss of control over their own creations. These fears are
fueled by a belief that all things we have come to cherish in society will be lost, including
our own of humanity. These three dystopic visions all display an intrinsic fear of the
unknown future and the misery that it may be associated with them.
Chapter 1: Environmental Dystopia
Destruction by our own hands is a critical factor in the world of Dystopia, this global
destruction has in many cases occurred because of the very nature of man. The earth is the
one resource that all, regardless of any distinguishing factor, depend on for survival, with its
destruction the world is sent into chaos and the Dystopic vision is realized. A variety of
dystopian novels and films have exemplified such societal fears. In this chapter we will
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discuss the societal fears which have been exemplified through the 1972 novel The Sheep
Look Up and the 1970 film, Soylent Green. We will then examine a novel from a different
time period, the 1990s, Children of Men.
The Sheep Look Up and Soylent Green
Introduction
The Sheep Look Up was written by British author, John Brunner and published in
1972. John Brunner was a prolific British author of science fiction novels who contributed
short stories and novelettes to all leading Science Fiction magazines in Britain and America.
His dystopian novel, Stand on Zanzibar, which was based on the overpopulation of the
earth, won a Hugo Award in 1969, for best science fiction novel. It was described as
perhaps the most important work to emerge from the science fiction ghetto since it was
formed in 1926. 1 The novel, The Sheep Look Up deals with the deterioration of the
environment and was also nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1973. The
Sheep Look Up is a story framed within a world that has fallen into environmental crisis.
This has led to the formation of a corporate sponsored government, as a major pollution
situation has risen in the cities and most people's health is in jeopardy, because of the
conditions they are forced to live in. The Sheep Look Up, paints a picture of a not-so-distant
future, when our food, air and water have been polluted as a consequence of corporate greed.
Soylent Green is an American film that was released in 1973 directed by Richard
Fleischer. Born in Brooklyn, Fleischer began his career by directing short animated
productions by his father:Betty Boop, Popeye and Superman. Fleischers early films were
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thrillers and later on worked for Walt Disney productions. He also directed many action
adventures, and serial killer series which focused on the theme of capital punishment.
Soylent Green was based on the 1966 Harrison novelMake Room! Make Room! This novel
has a similar theme of overpopulation and over consumption of resources, leading to social
disorder and maximum poverty. Its 2022, and New York City is overpopulated with 40
million people. Society finds itself under the dependency of the Soylent Corporations,
who has created a new food product; Soylent. A New York police detective is assigned to
investigate a brutal murder of a corporate official of the Soylent Corporation, and in doing,
so he begins to dig deep into a state secret involving the truth about Soylent Green.
Counter Culture
The Sheep Look Up is set in the beginning of a civil war between the government and
an environmentally conscious population, who refer to themselves as the Trainities.The
Trainities are a group of environmental activists who live off the land in small agrarian
societies awaiting the end of civilization. In addition they carry out bombing and commit
acts of terror against industrial complexes for environmental reasons. The conservative
elitists focus most of their time and money denouncing the environmentalists, as a group of
socialists who aim to destroy the nation. The story depicts the view that the world is ruled by
the business/government elite who are largely to blame for the existing environmental
problems.
The Sheep Look Up was written in the early 1970s which was a seminal time that
would change the focus of the American view towards environmentalism. The space
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program had allowed pictured to be seen of our planet from space, which in addition to
showing the beauty of our planet demonstrated that the earth was a continuous
interconnected ecosystem.2At this period in time the hippie movement was in full swing and
with the bloody wars going on in Vietnam and Southeast Asia this movement was markedly
anti-establishment. One of the tenants of this movement was a deep seeded respect for the
earth and the natural planet as a whole. It was felt that the government did not care about the
planet in the same way it did not care about the soldiers it sent to Vietnam of the innocent
Vietnamese killed in the fighting3. The Environmental movement in turn grew out of the
hippie movement as a movement that was also anti-establishment. Within the novel we see
that this exact situation occurs where the government is at odds with a group of
environmentalists, however this is only after their planet has been destroyed. This hippy
movement was an anti-government movement, just as how the Trainities rallied against their
government. This issue exemplifies a fear that the government will collude with business
interests and ignore the interests of the planet.
Environmental Degradation
The Sheep Look Up begins with a discussion of the environmental hazards present in
the world. The novel describes a wide range of environmental problems from acid rain and
air pollution to anti-biotic resistant bacteria, and a variety of diseases. The air pollution is so
tremendous, that wearing gas masks is a natural part of life. In this nightmare society infant
mortality is rapidly increasing and everyone seems to be suffering from some sort of illness.
The water as well is extremely polluted, and only the rich are able to afford unpolluted,
filtered water, while the poor drink water from the tap.
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In Soylent Green the cities are overpopulated, most housing is rundown and
overcrowded, and the impoverished homeless fill the streets and line the fire escapes and
stairways of buildings. In such a society in despair, natural foods like vegetables, jam and
meat are now a rare commodity and people are starving. A jar of real strawberry jam costs
$150, and only available on the Black Market since supermarkets no longer exist.
Temperatures in city have risen due to the greenhouse effect and people are forced to live in
such unbearable regions. The citys infrastructure has broken down and the conditions of
living have become extremely intolerable. In such a society an average person only gets an
opportunity to see a blue sky and green forest in a video during the last 20 minutes of their
life in a government euthanasia center.Thorns friend Sol, is an older man who lived in theworld when there conditions were not so dire. He vividly remembers the world before the
famine struck, when I was a kid, you could buy meat anywhere!4 He is our link to such a
sordid future, as he is as horrified as we are at the view of such a horrid society
This fear that is exemplified here is that our society will crumble if the importance of
the environment is not recognized. Awareness must exist that the tendencies of over
consumption and the consumer culture may lead to the destruction of our very standard of
living and way of life. With this should be a recognition that decisive actions must be taken
in order to avoid a general environmental disaster. The base fear is that through our actions
we will destroy our world. These actions include a disregard for the valuable life on the
planet and the essentiality of these resources for our very survival.5 A number of legislative
acts were introduced in this time that demonstrate the growing awareness and recognition of
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environmental issues, such as the Clean Air Act(1973) and the Clean Water Act(1974).6
The Clean Air Actfurther built upon the 1972 The Clean Air Amendmentwas and was
aimed at preventing or reducing water pollution. It also laid a foundation for future efforts to
preserve water, that would become The Clean Water Act. Section 101 of the act
emphatically states, The objective of this Act is to restore and maintain the chemical,
physical and biological integrity of the Nations water.7 The establishments of these Acts
demonstrate the societys awareness to improve the way they treat the earths resources so
that they may live a long and healthy life. In 1960s American president, Theodore
Roosevelts words, the nation behaves well if it treats the natural resources as assets which
it must turn over to the next generation increased, and not impaired, in value, further shows
societal recognition of the growing importance of maintaining a sustainable environment.8
Corporate Governance
The novel, The Sheep Look Up is based in a world in which the corporate sponsored
government tries to keep the utmost control of their society.These corporations aremotivated by greed and seek to make profit under the poor health and environmental
conditions. They attempt to take advantage of the health security situation by charging
people for health equipment and services. Some of the signs posted throughout the novel
read such absurdities as, Filter-mask Dispenser : Use Product once only- maximum 1 hour,
Oxygen 25 cents.9 The elitist community tried to demonstrate that the environmentalists
were simply terrorists and criminals. It is clearly in the corporate-governments interest to
keep the level of environmental degradation as it gives them a level of social control and
they are able to profit off the dire situation.
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In the film Soylent Green, people are dependant on water rations and a mysterious
food called Soylent that has been supplied by the Soylent Corporation. The Soylent
Corporation controls the government and everyone else. The government gives out the
rations of food: Soylent Yellow, Soylent Red, and the newest product, Soylent Green which
they claim is "made from the finest undersea growth."10 Due to the chaos when distributing
the Soylent, riot police are always dispatched by the government as people tend to get
violent when the food runs out. It is evident that our over consumption has lead to the
current lack of resources. The Soylent Corporation however seems to profit from this set of
circumstances in both a power and financial sense, as is seen through the opulent living
conditions of Soylent executives who eat meat and have apartments that are furnished with
prostitutes. With the help of Sol, Thorn conducts some further investigation and uncovers
the conspiracy, where he discovers the truth about the Soylent Corporation and its newest
product, that Soylent Green is actually made out of people who undergo Euthanasia at the
government sponsored euthanasia clinics and the corpses are processed into the edible green
wafers.
Thus the fear expressed is that governments will increasingly be influenced by
corporations whose modus operendi is that of profit and not the best interests and protection
of the people. On January 1st, 1969 the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), was
established and signed into law by President Richard Nixon. Under this law all federal
agencies were required to monitor, evaluate and control, their actions in order to protect
and enhance the quality of the environment and set the stage for much of the environmental
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legislation that was passed in the 1970s. 11 However many argued that it did not go far
enough in terms of corporate responsibility. This led to establishment of such provisions in
both aforementioned Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act. This was proof of mans
recognition that the impacts of his actions were interrelated with the profound influences of
population growth, industrial expansion, resource exploitation and further recognition of the
critical importance of restoring and maintaining environmental quality in their society. This
was a sign that the environment could not longer be abused in search of profits and that
companies were responsible for their actions in respect to the environment.
The Sheep Look Up ends with of the minor character Dr. Grey, stating that the only
way their society may be saved from this nightmare is if 200,000 of the most wasteful
citizens of the world, the Americans, are eliminated. Soylent Green, ends with seriously
wounded and nearly hysterical Thorn screaming out to try and warn people about the
horrible secret behind Soylent Green, "Soylent Green is people! We've got to stop them
somehow!" In both the book and film we may see negative views of environmental
degradation and a fear of societal degradation; however a sense of hope is implicit, as we
still have power to change the direction in which we are headed, and have not yet reached
that point.
Children of Men
Introduction
Children of Men was written by P. D James, in 1992. This British novelist began
writing in the mid-1950s and is known for her mystery novels based on the UKs
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bureaucracies such as health services, and the criminal justice system. Her popularity in this
genre is based on her insider knowledge and experience within the bureaucracy, as she
worked in the government service until age of retirement. James was not familiar with
writing science fiction, however she wrote an invigorating science fiction novel, Children of
Men. This novel was written from the perspective of the main character, Dr. Theodore
Faron. Part of the story is narrated from Dr. Theodores diary, in a near futuristic British
society, set in 2021. Children of Men is written in both the first and third person, and is a
glimpse of possible future results if we do not modify our behavior, in which pollution has
the potential to cause the end of our civilization.
Environmental Degradation
Dr. Theodore Faron, known as Theo, the main character of the novel, is a doctor of
philosophy and a historian of the Victorian age at Oxford University. He is living in a
society where the human race itself is coming to an end. In Theos first entry he writes that
the last man to be born on earth, a young Argentina man has just been killed, making it
virtually impossibly for the human race to survive. He continues to write in his diary, "The
four billion life forms which have existed on this planet, three billion, and nine hundred and
sixty million are now extinct. It really does seem unreasonable to suppose that Homo
sapiens should be exempt. Our species will have been one of the shortest lived of all, a mere
blink, you may say, in the eye of time." 12In the novel, Theo takes us back to 1994, when,
for some reason men were unable to reproduce, and there is an epidemic due to mass
infertility. It is implicitly understood that people are unable to procreate because of health
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degradations caused by environmental destruction, and this will lead to the very extinction
of humanity itself.
The fear reflected by Children of Men is that humanity may indeed cause its
extinction through its abuse of the planet. While pollution has since the Industrial
Revolution threatened our planet, the threat that global warming poses is one which actually
threatens our very future of humanity. Many would argue that environmentalism has become
a part of our lives to an extent never seen before. The implications of global warming with
the possibility of ending human existence mirror the situation in the film.
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Infertility in
Children of Men is an analogy to climate change, as there is an implicit recognition that
climate change has the power to affect our world in a disastrous way and this may lead to a
devastating future. This recognition led to the development of the Kyoto Protocol, which is
an international agreement linked to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change. The world came together to establish a treaty to achieve stabilization of
greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous
anthropogenic inference with the climate system14 The Kyoto Protocol was arguably only
partly successful as the United States, the worlds largest polluter, never ratified it. Thus the
question of climate change remains unanswered and the dire consequences of inaction
increasingly seem more likely, In the end, in thing is certain: The future will be
changing.15
Religion
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In the novel, Children of Men James describes sharply a social disorder and
pessimism, in which science has failed to explain, or even cure, the infertility, that may
bring about the extinction of humanity. Science in the novel could not solve or explain the
infertility problem, even though procedures such as natural and artificial hormones or in
vitro fertilization were utilized. In the novel a torrent of religions has sprung up hoping to
fill the void of hope that existed within the populace. Though we live in a modern advanced
society, we like those of the novel, cannot solve our problems through the use of Science. In
present time, science was more than just a policy tool or a profession16. Like theology,
science reveals transcendent truths about a changing world, however this is not the case in
Children of Men.17Religion is a solace to some individuals but not to others. Through this
society has surrendered their control to such authority.
Conclusion of Children of Men
Children of Men bring to light the contemporary fears of environmental destruction,
nuclear warfare, terrorist attack, and the sense of cultural loss that accompanies rapid
globalization. There is also the threat that humanity is coming to an end with the inability of
human beings to reproduce. Civilization itself is crumbling as suicide and despair become
commonplace. Even though societal fears of extinction exist, the novel ends with a sense of
hope through the birth of a child. This sense of hope transcends the novel and demonstrates
that it is at extreme moments that the will of man to survive exists and that humanity will
find some way to survive.
Conclusion of Environmental Dystopia
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A constant theme present in The Sheep Look Up, Soylent Green and Children of
Men is the idea that the devastation of the planet causes a deep seeded sadness and loss of
hope within the people. Not only has their planet been destroyed but they seem to have
nothing to live for, and the conditions are impeccable. There is an implicit societal fear
that has been exemplified in these three stories, one of which people are afraid that
environmental degradation, and misuse of our natural resources, may lead to the ruin of our
society and the very end of humanity. The novels and film do reflect such a fear of
humanities destruction, however there is still a sign of hope present for our society. If
humanity is to act together and maintain the value and appreciation for the environment,
they may never have to reach such an environmental disaster.
Chapter Two: Political Dystopia
Our societies are governed by a group of individuals and institutional structures
vested with specific powers. We depend on these individuals and structures to represent our
interests and protect us, however it is the very power associated with these organizations that
often make us fear the very potential for corruption and misrepresentation. In this chapter we
will examine the novel,Nineteen Eighty Fourand the Film, V for Vendetta and explore how
these stories are exemplifications of the fears felt due to specific historical events and time
periods. For each narrative we shall begin with a brief description of the work followed by a
reference of specific events within the narrative that relates to a specific societal fear
expressed.
1984
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Introduction
1984 is perhaps one of the most famous novels in existence today. It was written by
George Orwell in 1948 at the conclusion of World War 2. Orwell was himself a former
solider, having fought in the Spanish Civil War and railed against both Communism and
Totalitarianism. 1984 tells the tale of a dystopic society governed by a totalitarian regime
and its effects on the populace of the nation. It takes place in England, now part of a larger
nation known as Airship One which is locked in a never ending war. The story is framed
against a backdrop rife with themes of propaganda, war, misinformation and
misrepresentation in the lived experience of the main protagonist.
Soviet Influence
Airstrip One, is the mainland of a huge country, called Oceania, which consists of
North America, South Africa, and Australia. The Party in control is led by an entity known
as Big Brother which is as commonly known as always watching18. The population of
Oceania is deeply stratified and is divided into three groups, the Inner party (1%), the outer
party (18%) and the Proles (81%). The Inner Party is the controlling government whose
members live luxurious lives, while the Proles live lives of poverty and squalor, constantly
working to feed the never ending war effort. The Proles are those who are mainly employed
in industry and on farms, and without their labor Oceania would break down. However even
members of the Inner Party were not free from Big Brothers influence. The last three
survivors of the original leaders of the revolution, Jones, Aaronson and Rutherford, were
arrested in 1965 and were made to confess to all kinds of sabotage during their trial. They
were pardoned, and a while later they were arrested again and executed.
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These elements of the plot exemplify the fear of what we shall term the Soviet
Influence that began to occur at the conclusion of World War 2. It would become
exemplified by the Communist witch-hunt and Commissions of the McCarthyist Era. InRed
Scare or Red Menace, John Earl Haynes documents the overwhelming fear that had began to
develop in the minds of the American people over a possible Soviet invasion in that in many
ways the communist way of life was the prototypic anti-American way of life and in their
minds stood in stark contrast to the intrinsically personal set of values that an individualistic
America stood for
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. Oceania is a perfect mirror of the Soviet Union. The setting of the
narrative occurs in what is unmistakably the former democratic world, the city of London,
one of the bastions of the democratic freedom implying that the world of democracy has
fallen to the Soviet Influence. The world itself is structured in the image of the former USSR
with its large working peasantry and its dominant party elite. Just as in the former Soviet
Union a gap between rich and poor exists between the party elites and the peasantry who
represent the mass of the population. The original leaders of the revolution who were
arrested and executed mirrors the exact situation that occurred under Stalin in which the
intellectuals, who initiated the Revolution and were members of the party, were summarily
arrested and executed on the direct orders of Joseph Stalin20. Thus the novel brings to light
the very real fear that the Soviet Union would gain control of the West and that the very
nature of Western civilization would be forever altered.
Conflict
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The world of1984 is one in which a perpetual never ending war is being fought
between three equally powerful nations. The purpose of the war is to consume human labor
and resources so that a high standard of living cannot be reached in each nation. The nations
are so powerful that even when two nations join forces they cannot defeat the third. In the
1950s all three nations used atomic bombs but have since ceased to do so, possibly because
of the sheer level of destruction that they caused. It has been hinted that the conflict itself
may not have even existed and may simply have been created by the Party, the simple fact is
that it remains unknown because of the Partys control of information.
The idea of an unending conflict mirrors the post-war period in the United States in
which two equally powerful nations arouse from the ashes of World War 2. With a
devastated Western Europe there arose two superpowers in the Post War period with two
very different ideologies. The United States and The USSR who were ideologically opposed
would soon engage what would come to be known as the Cold War21. The fear was that
these two equally powerful nations would go to war and that this war would not only cause
hardship and strife but also be a perpetual war with both sides so ideologically grounded that
loss was simply not a viable option. A hypothetical war between the Soviet Union and the
United States would be as equally un-winnable as the wars seen in the novel 1984. At this
time the Korean War, a proxy war between The Soviet Union and the United States had
already begun. As the United States saw the expansion of Soviet Influence after the Second
World War it became apparent that the growing power of these two states with the prospects
of a large conflict growing and if so the prospects of a short conflict shrinking.22Thus it is
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clear that the establishment of bi-polar superpowers led to a deep seeded fear of a protracted
global conflict. [[Cold War Martin Walker]]
Propaganda and Control
An interesting aspect of the novel is the way in which truth and information are
handled by the party. Winston Smith, the protagonist of the novel, is a member of the Outer
Party, and works in the Records Department of the Ministry of Truth. He rewrites and alters
the records of the past, as the Party changes history constantly to their own benefit. One
interesting note is that Winston finds it hard to remember anything just after the World War,
when the party came into power, due to the party constantly altering history. Another impact
of the recently fought war was that of propaganda. In the novel the government is an agent
of mass propaganda and often feeds its people false information about the war and the
economy and often re-writes history when it sees fit. One prominent example of this is when
it changes war allegiances and asserts that their former enemy has always been their ally.23
The party tries to control everything, even thought and emotion. For example Winston is
punished for thinking unorthodox thoughts about the Party and is tortured until he admits
that he loves Big Brother and will continue to work for Big Brother without resistance24. In
this story about a bleak future, personal freedoms are heavily curtailed and the government
has ultimate control over its citizens. Everyone is under complete surveillance by the
authorities, mainly by telescreens, and are constantly reminded that, Big Brother is
watching you.
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V for Vendetta was released in 2005 to critical acclaim and was directed by James
McTeigue and produced by Joel Silver and the Wachowski brothers. The Wachowski
Brothers have also directed the critically acclaimed Film The Matrix. The film is set in a
near future Britain, in the year 2038. Where a Far Right party known as the Norsefire Party
has risen to power and rule as a totalitarian regime. The protagonist V, is a freedom fighter
who seeks to simultaneously free Britain from the totalitarian grips of the party and exact
revenge, he alone dares to rise up against the tyranny and oppression. The narrative is both
complex and profound and delves into an extreme yet possible set of circumstances.
Freedom verses Security
The Britain ofV for Vendetta is ruled under the totalitarian regime of The Far-Right
Norsefire party. The party came to power fourteen year previous; however initially the
populace did not accept their sweeping reforms to eliminate Jews, Muslims, and
homosexuals from their community. Following the rejection of their reforms a massive bio-
terrorism attack occurs in Britain which results in the death of 80,000 people. This terrorism
attack capitulates society enticing them to give up their freedoms in return for security. With
this the party gains the tacit acceptance of the people and begins their total control over
society. This security state takes the form of a Britain filled rife with surveillance by the
secret police, torture cells, unjust punishments and prejudice against minorities. V describes
this as he hijacks a local television station and broadcasts his message to the masses
the truth is there is something terribly wrong with this country, isnt there, cruelty and injustice,
intolerance and oppression, and where once you had the freedom to object to think and speak as you
saw fit you now have censors and systems of surveillance, how did this happen you need only
look into a mirror. I know why you did it you were afraid who wouldnt be, war terrorfear got the
best of you27.
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The narrative ends with Only when you have no fear are you free. Thus it is clear that the
citizenry of Britain have given up their freedoms in order to ensure that they have security.
These exemplify the security versus freedom dichotomy that exist in the world. It is
generally accepted that freedom and security are diametrically opposed, in simple terms that
in order to ensure security freedom must be sacrificed that freedom will have to be given up
in order to ensure security. It is unknown to what extent these security measures will be
taken and what effect on freedoms that these will have. This fear is that we may freely give
up our freedoms in the name of security, thus giving up much of our political power along
with it. However the freedom verses security discourse is not the only significant fear that is
expressed through V for Vendetta.
The theme of sacrificing freedom for security intrinsically involves the tragic events
of September 11th
2001 .Frank Fredi, discusses in his novel, Culture of Fear, that the tragic
event of September 11th will make millions of people, Americans and others, fearful of the
world around them. 28 One of the most significant events that was an outcome of the
September 11th attacks was the creation of the US PATRIOT Act. While the act is ostensibly
far reaching we shall explore two of its elements. This act of Congress allowed the US
government to detain American citizens and foreign nationals as enemy combatants for an
indefinite period of time without the right to legal consul.29 Secondly Section II of the US
PATRIOT Act allowed the government to conduct sneak and peek searches of homes and
offices, track emails and internet usage, and conduct roving wiretaps in addition to
expanding the governments access to financial and banking records. 30 These two provisions
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of the US PATRIOT Act violate one of the most important documents in the US democratic
tradition, the US Bill of Rights a seminal part of the US Constitution. Indefinite detainment
without trial violates both the Fifth Amendment which guarantees due process and the Sixth
Amendment which guarantees the defendants right to a fair and speedy trial. Section II of
the Act violates The Fourth Amendment which guarantees against unreasonable search and
seizure. 31 What is striking is not that such an act was passed but it was done so with the
support of the American people. In the simplest sense the American people were willing to
sacrifice certain levels of freedom for security.
Governmental Lies
As explained previously the Norsefire party came to power after a bio terror attack
that killed 80,000 civilians. After the attack a cure was discovered by the Party and it swiftly
gained power. It was only after this attack that they were able to push their racist and
conservative agenda. What was unknown by the populace was that this bio-terror attack was
perpetrated by the Norsefire party itself in order to gain power. Thus the Norsefire party
planned on gaining power through any means necessary, even murder, so that they could
push their radical agenda.
The second event which occurred in the post 9/11 period was the events surrounding
the invasion of Iraq as part of the US led war on terror. The US invasion of Iraq was based
upon the fact that Iraq had secret weapons programs to create biological and chemical
weapons, or what came to be known as Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD).32 It was later
discovered that the justification for war was false and that Iraq did not have such weapons.
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Scott McClellan an insider within the Bush Administration details in his bookWhat
Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deceptionthe various
ways in which the Bush administration pushed the war in Iraq knowing that information was
suspect at best and undertook a propaganda campaign to sell the war to the American
people33. In effect WMDs were made into a crisis of global security.34 The fear that is
expressed here is the fear that governments lie in order to achieve their own agenda. In the
film the Norsefire Party creates the epidemic in order to gain control of the government and
in order to gain widespread support for their ultra right wing policies. The government is
supposed to work in the interests of the people as their representative. The fear existent is
that this will cease to be the case and that government will push their own agenda with little
regard for the people they represent.
Conclusion
V for Vendetta ends with the populace rebelling on November the 5th the day V chose
for retaliation, when those who wish to gain back their freedoms follow him will stand up to
the government and Parliament is destroyed by an explosion. The ending shows that within
the narrative of fear there is hope, that though freedoms can be lost they can always be
regained, though it is not without strife and often hardship. It is a demonstration that though
freedoms can be supplemented they can never be permanently removed. This is an
exemplification of the famous words uttered by Benjamin Franklin those who sacrifice
freedom for security shall have neither.35
Chapter Conclusion ---
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Chapter Three: Technological Dystopia
Computers and digital technology have increasingly become an indispensable part of
our lives. These technologies influence the ways in which we work, play, communicate and
learn. This is thanks in part to what some have coined the technological revolution in which
computer technology has come to play an increasingly important role in our world and in
our lives. However the sudden and rapid integration of technology into our society and our
lives has led to certain fears about how this technology will change the ways we live and the
extent to which it will modify our behavior, and the very nature of our humanity itself. In
this chapter we will discuss The NovelNeuromancerand the Film The Matrix which though
dealing with similar issues were released at very different times and represent a different set
of societal fears.
Neuromancer
Introduction
Neuromanceris a 1984 cyberpunk novel written by William Gibson. Gibson is a
Canadian American Author who is popularly regarded as the father of the cyberpunk genre
and is credited with the establishment of concepts such as the internet years before they
existed.Neuromanceris regarded as his most famous work and as a seminal Science Fiction
text. The novel presents an image of the future of a technology dominated dystopian society
in which advanced technologies are created and then used for material gain instead of the
well being of society. The novelNeuromanceris part of a new genre of Dystopia known as
Cyberpunk and is more generally one of the newer forms of dystrophic that has arisen.
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Technological Dependence
Neuromanceris framed in a world in which there is a loss of interpersonal
relationships and social lifestyles. This society willingly allows itself to be controlled by
technology. The protagonist, Henry Dorsett Case, is a 24 year old man who lives in
dystopian underworld of Chiba city in Japan. He lives in a corrupt society in which the very
essence of humanity is slipping away. Case is a former computer hacker who makes his
living by breaking into security systems. He is a known as a console cowboy who links his
brain to the computer in order to pirate information kept in cyberspace. Caught stealing from
his employer to feed a drug habit, Case was fired and lost his access to the worldwide
computer net. This causes him to become desperate as he slips into a deep depression fueled
by drugs and suicidal thoughts. He at this point is willing to do anything to return to his life
as a hacker. Thus it is clear that our protagonist is a computer addict who sees technology as
an intrinsic part of life.
Henry Case and the life he lives within the world of Neuromancer perfectly
exemplify the specific fears about the extent to which technology will become part of our
lives. In the last 100 years, since 1900, there has been a spectacular change in the way
people live their lives, with machines, such as the washing machine and automobile
transforming the ways we work, play and live.36 The early 80s for many represented another
level of this technological revolution. The advent of the computer age was another turning
point in human history as is it led to many different ways in which we carried out our lives.
For example a basic necessity of life such as communication was altered by the appearance
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of the mobile telephone. As Gerard Goggin notes in his text Cell Phone Culture the cell
phone even in the early development was positioned to become an essentiality.37 The
personal computer, first released in the early 1980s, was one of the first technologies that
were deeply feared to have an adverse effect on society and fueled fears that technological
addictions would permeate our lives at home, work or school. According to the study
conducted by Kimberely Young technological addictions accomplish something for the
person, however illusory or momentary these benefits may actually be. Underlying Internet
addiction is the anonymity of electronic transactions that provide a virtual context that
cultivates a subjective escape from emotional difficulties (e.g., stress, depression, anxiety) or
problematic situations or personal hardships38 Perhaps one of the best examples of this fear
is expressed by Davidson in his 1985 article Computer Fear and Addiction, in which he
discusses some of the possible effects of computer addiction citing a plethora of negative
effects from at the time the relatively new technology of the computer social withdrawal,
sleep disturbance, physical deterioration, spending huge sums of money on computers, and
anxiety over anticipated separation from the computer.39Thus we can see that even in the
early days of the digital technological revolution there were fears about the extent to which
these technologies would become part of our lives.
The Control of Information
The protagonist of the novel is a hacker who is able to reach all sorts of information,
including heavily encrypted and governmentally secured. He works for corporations who
seek to use his skill sets to obtain classified information. It is also reveled in the end that he
is working for Neuromancer, a far-reaching artificial intelligence, and is being controlled by
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the very technology he uses. In the end of the novel, Armitage is destroyed by Wintermute,
another artificial intelligence whose goals are to remove the Turing locks upon itself and
Case and Molly are handsomely paid for their efforts. They become aware of larger forces
working to control his activities. Thus it is clear the information and power are intrinsically
linked within the novel.
As Steve Jones argues, for the cyberpunk information is power40. Thus it is apparent
that with the advent of digital technology the security of the information that is disseminated
through digital technology is secured. In cyberspace walls and weapons do not exist as
weapons of protection and security. There is also an implicit fear that this information so
interconnected as the world had ever seen could fall into the wrong hands. Rolf Oppliger in
his bookSecurity for the World Wide Web details the importance of security in the digital
age as once our online data is accessed maliciously it can be sold to the highest bidder to
abuse as they see fit.41 The apparent fear exemplified by our hacker protagonist is that with
the apparent shift to a digital world that our information would be insecure and moreover
that the information necessary for our security would also be available to the highest bidder.
Conclusion Neuromancer
The computer revolution had seemingly just began to take hold in the mid-1980s with the
advent of the personal computer and the rise of machines who seemingly could fulfill all of
our needs, but we see the far reaching of AI and the control it has in our future world.
The Matrix
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The Matrix is a science fiction film written and directed by Larry and Andy
Wachowski in 1999. The film is set in a futuristic society in which humans are controlled by
machines and live in an Artificial reality construct known as the Matrix. The narrative is
centered around Thomas Anderson who is unplugged from the Matrix by a group of rebels,
led by Morpheus, in order to end the war with the Machines. Thomas Anderson, also known
as, Neo is believed to be the one who can end the war, however the machines do not wish
this to happen and send a group of software programs, known as agents, to attempt to
prevent him from reaching his goal. The narrative of the Matrix is related heavily to our
current world.
Alienation
The main character of the film, a man named Thomas Anderson lives two lives. By day he is
employed as an average computer programmer and at night he is a hacker who works under
the alias Neo. He is determined to find out what the Matrix is, and in doing so he encounters
agents who lead him to a group led by the infamous Morpheus. Neo is offered a chance to
learn the truth about the Matrix and he takes the opportunity. He learns that all life on Earth
is nothing more than an elaborate pretense created by a malicious cyber-intelligence.
The Matrix is a film that in many ways has fulfilled many of the visions that were foreseen
in Neuromancer about the newfound dependence on technology as an indispensable part of
our lives. The protagonist and hero, Neo within the Matrix is an individual which like Case
within necromancer suffers from a life full of technology but otherwise empty seemingly
even devoid of happiness. While Neuromancer was framed by an unknown fear in a newly
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technological world, the Matrix is set in a very different frame. The fear associated with The
Matrix is not whether technology will become an indispensable part of our lives, as by 1999
this had already become the case. Digital technology including cellular phones, video
games, the internet and personal computers had become an integrated part of our daily lives.
The newfound fear expressed in the matrix was of a completely different nature. Anthony
Giddens discusses this in his novel, Runaway World, With the further development of
science and technology, the world should be more stable and ordered [but] The world we
find ourselves today, however doesnt look or feel much like was predicted. Rather than
being more and more under our control, it seems out of our control a runaway world.
42
While the intended purpose of these technologies appears to be to make our lives
more enjoyable and simpler the unintended consequences of these technologies may be that
like the opiates of the past they have simply brought about more of a complex existence
enamored with the stresses that such technologies were meant to deal with. The advances of
technology are assumed to have destroyed the environment in such as to store up potentially
catastrophic risks. The problems we face are so severe that it cannot be too long before
humanity becomes extinct.43Thus a more subtle fear exists that while these technologies
may seem on the onset to enhance our lives that they may just make them more complex and
less enjoyable.
Artificial Intelligence- Machines
In the Matrix Mythology these sentient machines were created in the 21 st century, to do the
work of man, however they were treated as slaves. When they rebelled and requested rights
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they were denied them and a campaign to destroy them was undertaken. The few surviving
machines isolated themselves from their creators and prospered, however Man would not
allow the machines to live in peace and pursued them intent on their destruction. Man
attempted cut off the machines supply of solar power by darkening the sky. However this
failed and in the war that followed the soft flesh of man stood no chance against the metal
circuitry of the machines. The Machines won the war and with the sky darkened turn use
human beings into their energy source by placing their bodies in pods and harvesting their
energy and body heat. The Matrix is created so that their minds will survive, a necessary
precursor to their bodily survival. In The Matrix Neo comes to learn that the year is
estimated to be close to 2199 and that they are in a middle of war between humanity and
intelligent machines. He understandably is reluctant to believe that most of humanity have
been captured by a race of sentient machines.
Much of our world depends on computer technology to function, the financial
markets would crumble if the integrated global system somehow failed. The unknown fear
was that too much faith was placed in a technology that we could not necessarily always
control. The fear of the Y2K bug is a prime example of it, because of one simple computer
flaw it was believed that our world would be thrown into chaos.44 In the late 1900s, the space
shuttle Challenger was destroyed and this turned full-scale panic that led to people losing
their nerves. This tragedy was proof that technology was out of control, and the US space
agency NASA was traumatized and it took almost three years to launch another space
shuttle.45
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The fear while embodied by the living moving artificially intelligent robots and
androids of the Matrix was in fact a much deeper concern. Technology around this time
moved to the ever advancing paradigm of Moores law, that core clock speeds would double
ever 18 months, and the common fear as to where all this advancement would lead. Many
believed that it would lead to the advent of Artificial Intelligence systems which would
become more and more complex. The fear was that at some point we would no longer be
able to control these complex beings that we had created and that such an event could lead to
the destruction of humanity itself. In the Matrix it is seen that the reason for the war with the
machines and the enslavement of man was caused by the very creations of man, which they
failed to control.
Conclusion - Matrix
The film ends with Neo surviving a near death experience, and continuing to battle
the computer simulated agents.
Chapter Conclusion
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1 John Brunner, The Sheep Look Up ( London: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1972), 458.
2Booker, 75.
3 Ibid, 76.4Soylent Green, VHS. Directed by Richard Fleischer (Los Angeles: Metro-Goldwyn- Mayer, 1973).
5
Frank Furedi, Culture of fear(Chicago: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2002), 9.6 Edited by Peninah Neimark and Peter Rhoades, The Environmental Debate (London: Greenwood Press, 1999), 211.
7 Ibid, 217.
8 John Cronin and Robert Kennedy, The Riverkeepers (New York: Scribner, 1997), 273.
9 Brunner, 5.10Soylent Green film.11 Neimark and Rhoades, 206.12P.D.James, Children of Men ( London: Alfred A. Knopf, 1992), 13-14.13
Furedi, 14.14 P.H Liotta and Allan W. Shearer, Gaias Revenge: Climate Change and Humanity Loss (London: Praeger,
2007), 95.
15 Liotta and Shearer, 110.16 Cronin and Kennedy , 273.17 Ibid, 272.
18George William.Nineteen Eighty Four, (London: Secker and Warburg, 1949),15.19Haynes, John E.Red Scare of Red Menace?: American Communism and Anticommunism in the Cold War
Era, (New York: American Ways Series, 1996), 154.20 Ibid, 155.21
Ibid, 253.22 Ibid, 255.23Gottieb, 260.24 Ibid, 261.252
Erika Gottieb,Dystopian Fiction East and West: Universe of Terror and Trial( New York: McGill-Queens University Press, 2001), 268.
262
Keith M. Booker, The Dystopian Impulse in Modern Literature: Fiction as Social Criticism (Westport:Greenwood Press, 1994), 72.
27V for Vendetta, DVD. Directed by James McTeigue (New York: Warner Bros., 2005).282
(Furedi 2002, 3)29
Cythnia Brown,Lost Liberities: AshAshcroft and the assault on personal freedom (New York: New Press,2003), 35.30 Ibid, 42.31 Ibid, 34.32 Richard Butler, The Greatest Threat( New York: Public Affairs, 2001), 7.33 Frank Furedi. Culture of Fear, (London: Continuum International Publishing group Ltd, 2006), 34.34 Butler, 7-8.35 Brown, 74.36 Winner, 996.37 Gerard Goggin, Cell Phone Culture: Mobile Technology in Everyday Life ( New York: Routledge, 2006), 29.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_A._Knopfhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_A._Knopf -
7/30/2019 Dystopia : Examination through Modern Film
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38Kimberly S. Young, Internet Addiction: A New Clinical Phenomenon and Its Consequences, TheAmerican Behavioral Scientist48 (2004): 402.
39 Robert S. Davidson, Computer Fear and Addiction, Journalof Organizational Behavior Management17(1985): 40.
40 Steve Jones, CyberSociety: Computer-Mediated Communication and Community(London: SagePublications, 1994), 201.
41 Oppliger, Rolf, Security Technologies for the World Wide Web (London: Artech House, 2002), 12.42 Anthony Giddens,Runaway World: How Globalization is Reshaping Our Lives ( London: Taylor &
Francis, 2003), 3.434
Furedi, 14.
44John L. Petersen, The Year 2000: Social Chaos or Social Transformation? TheCo-Intelligdence Institute 64 ( 2002) : 12.
45 Furedi, 7.
Soylent Green, VHS. Directed by Richard Fleischer, Los Angeles: Metro-Goldwyn- Mayer, 1973.
Furedi, Frank. Culture of fear. Chicago: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2002.
Smith, John Maynard. The Origin of Altruism.Nature 393 (1998): 63940.
Giddens, AnthonyRunaway World: How Globalization is Reshaping Our Lives, London:Taylor & Francis, 2003, 3.
Butler, Richard The Greatest Threat, New York: PublicAffairs, 2001, 7-24.
Neimark, Penniah and Peter Rhoades. Ed., The Environmental Debate London: Greenwood,1999.
Cronin, John and Robert Kennedy, The RIverkeepers. New York: Scribner, 1997.
Brunner, John, The Sheep Look Up. London: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1972.
Liotta, P.H and Allan W. Shearer, Gaias Revenge: Climate Change and Humanity Loss.London: Praeger, 2007.
.James, P.D Children of Men. London: Alfred A. Knopf, 1992.
Haynes, John E.,Red Scare of Red Menace?: American Communism and Anticommunismin the Cold War Era, New York: American Ways Series, 1996.
V for Vendetta, DVD. Directed by James McTeigue, New York: Warner Bros., 2005.
Furedi, Frank. Culture of Fear, London: Continuum International Publishing group Ltd,2006.
Jones, Steve, CyberSociety:Computer-Mediated Communication and Community, London:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_A._Knopfhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_A._Knopf -
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Sage Publications, 1994).
Goggin, Gerard, Cell Phone Culture: Mobile Technology in Everyday Life New York:Routledge, 2006.
Petersen, John L. The Year 2000: Social Chaos or Social Transformation? The
Co-Intelligdence Institute 64 ( 2002) : 12-33.
Young, Kimberly S. Internet Addiction: A New Clinical Phenomenon and Its Consequences, TheAmerican Behavioral Scientist48 (2004): 320-402.
Davidson, Robert S. Computer Fear and Addiction, Journalof Organizational BehaviorManagement17
(1985): 10-45.
Rolf, Oppliger, Security Technologies for the World Wide Web, London: Artech House,2002.
The Matrix, DVD. Directed by Wachowski Brothers, New York: Warner Bros., 1999.
Gibson, William.Neuromancer, New York: Ace Books, 1984.
Orwell, George.Nineteen Eighty Four, London: Secker and Warburg, 1949.
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