3/31/2010
【英史】feedbacks on Stan's course on Utopia (deadline: 4/9, 12 p.m.)
After Stan's 3-week course on modernist utopia, I think you have learned a lot about the British utopian tradition, the significance of the two World Wars, and the changing attitudes towards culture and literature in the 20th century. If there is a "lesson" to be learned from Stan's course, what do you think it is? Are there discussions or readings in or out of the classroom that shed new light upon things you used to think or opinions you used to hold?
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"Brave New World" and "1984", to be frank, are not the type of novel that I like. Therefore, when I was reading these two stories, I felt a little bit boring and I was just not that into them. However, Stan’s interpretation of the novels makes me realize that "Brave New World" and "1984" are deep in meaning, and they also reflect the condition of the society back at that time.
I always think that we are living in a time of liberty since compared with the past, people nowadays have much more freedom and enjoy many rights. After reading "1984", nonetheless, I somehow hold doubts about this idea. It’s clear to note that the "big brother" in the novel is actually the monitor today. To put it another way, we are watched as those in "1984" are. In addition, based on a piece of lately news, a naked woman on her balcony was photographed by the Google Street View Cars. Then, Google Map was denounced because it violated people’s privacy. Therefore, it seems to me that perhaps wherever we go and whatever we do, we are under surveillance to some level.
Claudia 49602011
Stan’s 3-week session brought us insight into the two major works of dystopian literature. The two novels both create fictional societies of different types: Brave New World depicts a society that provides comfort and indulgence whereas in 1984, characters are highly oppressed and live an unpleasant life. Characters in these two novels share something in common: they are all brain-washed and live under great control either with or without knowing that.
When I first read these two novels, I was fascinated by the two author’s vision and imaginations concerning the era they lived in is significantly different from today’s environment. They depicted two extremely advanced future worlds: wide use of cameras, well-developed biochemical and medicine technology and so forth. I can’t help to wonder, when they wrote these novels, have they ever thought that what they wrote about, those were seem unusual and impossible back at their age could actually be realized and seem normal as time goes by? For example, nowadays people are indeed surrounded by cameras everywhere and are using medical technology to prolong their youth, ease pains and even produce babies- test-tube babies.
While reading 1984, it reminds me of North Korea, which is one of the few communist countries around the globe. I remember back in the winter vacation, my older brother and I watched a clip on YouTube about North Koreans. In the clip, women and men lined up, marching on the road, shouting their leader-Kim Jong il’s name with their emotionless faces as if they were possessed. I found it appalling knowing how affective brain-washing is and I really wonder how the residents of the land would react if they ever get the opportunity to read 1984. Another interesting fact is that, Stan also brought up that 1984 was also banned in Taiwan decades ago.
Last but not least, “War is peace; freedom is slavery; ignorance is strength.”, the slogans in 1984 may seem ridiculous for the ironies. Yet, the United States of America started a war with Iraq in the name of peace-pursuing, which is very ironic, too.
Brave New World and 1984 examined the modern societies through the authors’ telescope and genius writing and I believe there still are too many unsolved problems of human civilization. Thus, I learned that it is important to observe, inspect and consider carefully as modernists do and that is also what we go to university for.
Nowadays, everyone pursues to live in the perfectly organized society like those who are in Brave New World and 1984. However, I don’t think it’s completely good for human after listening to Stan’s 3-week course which brings me an insight into utopia. To achieve harmony, even an ideal state must be ruthless and violent. Thus, elitism and fordism appear to eliminate “bad” people; whereas, we shouldn’t judge one only by seeing his differences from the standard. When reading totalitarianism in 1984, I first think of North Korea, because I’ve heard news about new rules in North Korea recently. It seems that North Koreans are like those in 1984. Everyone has to worship the leader, and all aspects of one’s life are controlled and regulated by the state. Thankfully, though “Big Brother” always watching us and society becoming a place where cameras are everywhere result in loss of privacy, I live in an era of liberty. I believe that there’s no perfect society in the world. Human can improve the systems, but cannot achieve utopia. Thus, after reading the two novels, I think keep pursuing utopian society may cause more problems and disasters.
We now live in a convenient and fast era due to the development of technology and industry. I usually think that they have many benefits because many inventions make life more comfortable. Nevertheless, “Modern Times” (1936), Charlie Chaplin’s film that I saw in the class, reveals satirical view of industrialization. All people behave in the same manner ridiculously, and can hardly get rid of that life style. It’s worthy to rethink that whether our lives are similar to the situation in the film, and maybe we should not rely on technology and industry all the time.
Literature plays a crucial role in human thinking. It reveals in-depth “true world”. After Stan’s three-week session, I justified my own stance about what is so-called “normal society”. The two novels portray utopia-like world. “Brave New World” depicts people live in a “stable society”: they share everything, and everything is controlled. It looks like that people who follow the “normal rules” can live smoothly. However, someone broke the peaceful pace. His ideology brought an impact into the “normal world”. “Brave New World” is an impressive novel to me. We live in a progressing generation. We consider lots of facets for granted. Whether or not we just make ourselves to adapt the “normal society”, but resist the pro and cons of the real world.
In “1984”, its plot described people are watched by the government. The leader infuses odd thoughts into people’s brains, just like war refers peace; freedom intends slavery; stupid is power. Totalitarianism is the mainstay in that society. Professor Stan presented the film about Chaplim to relate to the similar concept. The humorous film showed comically; oppositely, it demonstrated the fact of the world. Nowadays, it is easy to expose our privacy. We don’t live under totalitarianism. However, we never doubt or explore what is the truth which we used to think it as an invariable religion.
It is a paradox that novelists convey their ideas via writing, and readers receive the new concept to transform the world. Tranquil verbalism brings out multifarious societies. Letters not only are written on the paper, but also inspire people to create another possibility.
After Stan’s 3-week course, I start to think more deeply about the danger of technology and thought control.
Actually, I felt very uncomfortable when I read “1984” and “Brand New World”. In “1984”, Big Brother’s thought control let me think of the Cultural Revolution in China- the chairman of the Communist Party of China, Mao Zedong, used this movement to make the public to adore him as a god and oppress lots of intellectuals. Moreover, lots of similarity between Mao and Big Brother let me fear that some day China government may control Taiwanese as the way Big Brother did in “1984”. To me, losing the freedom of thought is more horrible than losing my own life.
On the other hand, in “Brand New World”, people rely on technology too much and lose ordinary emotions in their lives. It’s ironic that people seem to live without pain in “Brand New World”, but no one in reality would really want to live in that way. However, modern society is similar to “Brand New World” in some way. For example, the hatchery in this book let me think of the technology of human cloning. I’m really afraid that if this technology is used, people’s ethical values would distort. Moreover, human’s precious affections and relationship may be destroyed by cloning technology as what happen in Brand New World.
Julia 69704010
In the three-week lecture, I learned a lot about the real concepts of utopia and distopia. Stan also introduced us the two novels about utopia, and made me think about our own society, and the real reason why people hate “Communism” and scared of Mainland China.
The original concept of utopia is a very human desire to live in a better world, to live in a peaceful and harmonious way. Take the recent famous movie, Avatar, for example. The Pandora Planet, where the Navi- human live in, is a natural world, just like a paradise. However, some dictators, like Hitler, Stalin and Mao Zedong, they told people that they would create a beautiful society, people would live happily in it; but actually, they misunderstood the concept and distorted it. They killed more people to achieve their goal to control people. And that is why “utopia” in modern time often represents a negative political term. And later on, this concept affected Karl Marx and his Communism. On the other hand, the concept of anti- utopia, distopia, had brought up to against the changed “utopia” idea.
After reading the two navels, 1984 and Brave New World, I feel shock and terrible for the society there in the books. In 1984, we saw a gray and cold world. Everyone would encounter violence, secret police and paranoia. This novel makes me understand the mechanisms of Communism, and the pain that the leaders give to their people. In Brave New World, people seemed to live in a peaceful and happy society, because their mind, social status and figure are fix ate the very beginning in the hatchery. People are conditioned and they take “Soma” to ease their sorrow. So everyone is happy. However, they are completely and sadly controlled by their state and leader.
After Stan’s lecture, I understand more about these two novels and why they are called the “classical”. And I also feel sad that the original beautiful idea of utopia had been twisted, and became an excuse for dictators to kill and control people. I remember that I had read “The Diary of Anne Frank” when I was young, and was shock by the description of Nazi, and I would never thought about that the terrible idea was come from the concept of “utopia’. I found that I am interesting in this kind of theme, and I would like to read other literature for future study.
Every human desire to live in a better world or environment, and want to create a better society, and that is the motive power which can make our society better.
When I first read these two books” Brave New World” and “1984,” I never thought about that I will feel happy and satisfied to live in those two new worlds, on the contrary, I thought that those two worlds are shivering. However, after classes, I realized that actually the world which we live right now resembles those two fictitious worlds. Nowadays some of the governments revise the history in order to legitimate their political power, just like the plot in “1984,” and we also have the ubiquitous cameras to monitor us, the function resembles in “big brother,” our personal privacy is all gone. .
In “Brave New World,” Huxley creates a whole new society which overthrows the present moralities and concept, he creates a perfectly organized society where everyone is happy and satisfied, and has no disease, the old, and even no pain. I think we also can regard our society as the society in “Brave New World.” Nowadays people have more open attitude toward divorced couples, premarital pregnancy…etc, and we also overthrows some old mortalities which prevail in centuries, furthermore, the invention of science and technology also help us to do the abortion, plastic surgery, human cloning, and genetic engineering which were considered as impossible, unbelievable and immoral things to the past. Every new technology we have and innovative moralities we accept now makes the old generation feel uncomfortable, just like the reformed moralities in “Brave New World” makes us uncomfortable. Perhaps in the future, people will feel happy to embrace the world in “Brave New World,” and in that time, people has no more to believe that human you need to suffer, or you cannot experience and understand the inwardness of life, “soma” can help us to solve everything, since values are always changing.
Ivy 49602038
I feel difficult to realize when I read “Brave New world” and “1984”. I really don’t understand why people in that era do those things: they developed technologies, they made some incredible experiments, and they created unbelievable products. After three lessons of the professor, I comprehend some background and meanings behind the books. In “Brave New world”, it existed a benevolent dictatorship in the society. The society was ruled by conformism and natural tendency to seek comfort. And in “1984”, the cruel regime based on exploitation and terror. The book existed “a wonderful world”—Utopia, is a desirable and ideal political regime to live in, and people who live in will lead a happy life, just like heaven. However, some politicians misused the concept to cheat people and caused people great hardship and sufferings. For example, the politicians stirred up wars to control people and diverted their attention. And they made people in poverty on purpose so that it was easier to control. Moreover, the politicians suppressed sexual relationship and family life which is the most natural humanity. Using ubiquitous propaganda is also a tool for those brutal dictators to manipulate with history and news broadcasts. I learn the meaning of communism and realize that how the two books depict the society and how people lived in that era and that kind of society. I also feel sad for the fact that a concept of a perfect and flawless world had distorted the real meaning by totalitarians.
During Stan’s 3-week course, I actually learned a lot because not only the two books that he chose for us to read, "Brave New World" and "1984", helped us experience different kinds of world that we have not got the chance to really experience, but also his thorough introduction of the two authors makes us admire and inspired by their talent and remarkable attitude toward life. For instance, the author of 1984, George Orwell, believed that only those who really experienced life can wind up a good writer, and because of this belief, he traveled many countries, and worked through many jobs of different classes such as an imperial police in Burma, a worker, a teacher, a journalist, etc. And he even joined the Spanish civil war in 1936 though he is not a Spaniard but a British. He was always felt passionate toward life, and it is no doubt his plenteous life experiences helped shape him into an extraordinary writer.
When I was reading "Brave New World", I was completely shocked by the future world in it. In "Brave New World", there is no such thing as love between human beings which I think is extremely terrifying. There is no love or any connection between parents and children because everyone is “made” not “born”, and saying something like “mother” is even consider to be obscene in the Brave New World, in addition, love between men and women does not exist either because they only date each other for a few days and when the passion disappear, they move on to date others (one of the character, Lenina, who likes to date a man for several months which is very bizarre in the Brave New World). After reading these parts, I could not help but associate it to the world that we now lived in. Nowadays, we can produce babies through IVF, we begins to ignore the essentiality of family (the news of someone killing some family members is almost visible everyday), and many people’s attitude toward relationships is started to lean toward “fast food love”. I never concerned any of these issues before I read "Brave New World", nevertheless, after reading it, I begin to see the possibility of our world slowly transforming into a real Brave New World!
Compare to the benevolent dictatorship of "Brave New World", "1984" presents us a world ruled by ruthless totalitarianism which constantly reminds me of communism and of Taiwan during the martial law period. After reading it, I begin to understand the kind of pain and suffering when someone’s privacy and also freedom of speaking and thinking are deprived, and thus makes me feel that all the rights that we have now is even more precious. Both predictive masterpieces of Huxley and Orwell present us the worlds that are undesirable, and I believe they both wrote the books for some cautionary purposes; therefore, all we got to do is keep their warnings in mind and try not to create a world like the worlds in their books.
The two important and significant masterpieces of dystopian writing, Huxley’s Brave New World and Orwell’s 1984, both created, or we should say predicted a blueprint of future world. Though Orwell’s 1984 only set the future time in the year 1984, actually the predictions in 1984 are still happening after 1984, as well as Brave New World. These two novels both show us the ugly and terrible side of communism and totalitarianism. Human beings kept trying to create a utopian world and live happily ever after, however, utopianism, with the desire and greedy in human nature make the scaring consequences.
In Brave New World, people seemed to live in a well conditioned and peaceful world. There are no pain and sorrow in that world. However, when we read the novel, we can clearly see the world is actually a dictatorship, and the unconsciousness of people is much more terrifying to me. The society is totally inhuman. I feel very uncomfortable because such human as me, who has family and was given birth by mother, is considered uncivilized, brutal, and the lowest race in that world. The science and technology in Brave New World is highly developed. Everything is in the order. However, the answer to weather the well developed science and technology can bring happiness to human beings is very evident in novel.
In Orwell’s 1984, also represents highhanded and ruthless governance. Through the protagonist, Winston Smith, we can see that the society controlled by Big Brother is totally without freedom. Anytime and anywhere you are under surveillance, even your thought. Professor Stan also mentioned that the three slogan of the party in 1984 is really a big irony, for example, “WAR IS PEACE”. This blind and ironic thought is just the reason of many wars. Many governors claim that they have to start the war in order to achieve peace. Hitler was also boring the similar idea and so that make the genocide and World War II. Stan also said that even in modern time this ridiculous thought still exist in many government, for example, Bush’s America. Orwell tried to tell us the danger terrible of communism. Its way to achieve a better world is actually terrible and ruthless. A lesson I learned from Professor Stan’s session and the two novels is that: any consequence that make our world terrible or unhappiness is by our greedy desire and ignorant.
People always try their best to pursue a perfect world in which they want to live, and everyone has the blueprint of wonderful world in their own mind and thinks about how to “create” an ideal world. In fact, we don’t really understand what the definition of wonderful world. In the traditional Utopian symbolizes a world is full of happiness, no war, and peace, just like in heaven. This kind of ideology is Utopianism which is unrealistic. However, after reading the Brave New World and 1984, both of the significant anti-utopian works make me redefine and reconsider the meaning of pursuing the Utopia.
In Brave New World, technology is omnipotent so that even human can be produced and classified. Human beings can get rid of their emotions, reconstructing their life. The dictatorship disguised itself as benevolence to manipulate people and tell them that it is the best way to live. However, in that book human beings are nothing but just robots without thinking and emotions. The rapidly development of technology seems the key of open a civilized world but the civilization is what we called and defined. Does technology means everything? On the other hand, in 1984, there is a big brother symbolizes Totalitarianism which controls human beings. Watch is kind of power, on matter where people go, they are watched but they still worship the big brother. They cannot have their own property and thoughts. Those two works are very extremely ironic to judge the Utopianism, and make me to think what the real wonderful world we want to build. In twentieth century, the values people used to believe was gradually collapsing and reversing, and we can have the further thoughts on today’s society though those two books.
When utopia becomes extreme, it will develop in the opposite direction, and that is dystopia. We all know that people want to live in a better world and we all know that utopia is an ideal society created by human through political and social methods (education, social organization, advanced technology…etc.) This kind of thinking exists not only in past, but also in today. When utopianism first came out, it is a very efficient idea to help people build the best world; however, the idea becomes more and more radical, the government uses extreme ways which in names of harmony and peace to control people, just like the “big brother” in “1984,” people can’t have their own thoughts, they only can follow the “big brother,” and another dystopia- “Brave New World” also impresses me a lot. When I read this fiction, I felt a little bit boring with its beginning, however, the plot developed more and more interesting and the ending shocked me a lot. Actually, I don’t consider that the plot in “1984” will happen in the future, because the people who live in today have more right to do something, to say something, and the society is more open than the past; but I’m afraid the technology will bring us to the “brave new world.” The advanced technology is created by human but once human can not control it or over depend on it, it will destroy the human nature and morality. Through the 3 weeks of Stan’s lessons make me understand more about “one thing have two side,” one is good and one is bad, depending on how you use it.
“Brave new world” and “1984” both show a fictional world where is filled with machines, and everything seems to be stable and under control on the surface. What’s different is that people live in 1984 are limited in many ways, including their movement, relationship, and the always insufficient food, while in brave new world, most people are satisfied. The brave new world provides the perfect living conditions in a modern society. There are personal helicopters and machines which control baby’s birth. The most convenient invention is that children are educated during their sleeping. People pursue the most joyful sense of life to escape from painful feelings. The overuse of soma and having more than one sexual companion are the examples. There is also no disease or old- age, so beauty will not fade. The world has the peaceful, better society comparing with the times of wars, economic recession, or some revolutions. When I was reading the book, I felt odd about the way they think. Mother’s love is considered disgusting. The monogamy system, husband and wife, and having a family is forbidden. Despite those new concepts, I was a little fascinated by all these advantages of being an alpha or beta. But is this everybody’s paradise? This kind of future reminds me of some movies. With the high technology people can only see things in front of them because they are already satisfied with substance. There is no need to look for other things except for more entertainment. To live in such ignorance might be bliss, but one could never feel substantial or valuable for oneself, and become a slave of machines the whole lifetime. Eventually someone will find his or her consciousness, to fight against the governance.
In the second class of Stan, he told us that ”Anybody who wants to live in the way of life such as in Brave New World or in 1984 please raise your hand.” Not surprisingly, nobody raised hand. None of the classmates includes me want to experience that kind of life. The life in Brave New World is presented as perfectly organized. There is no pain, no education no diseases and no fear of dead. At the same time, people have no relationship with each others and having no idea of family. The government arranges people’s life and people seem happy and satisfied. On the contrary, the lifestyle in 1984 is horror and serious. The “Big Brother” is always watching you. No one can escape from the telescreens. And you can easily be caught by thought police if you speak or act suspiciously.
In the life the two novels, there is no freedom. You are like a puppet, manipulated by the government. Nowadays people may think that the phenomenons in the two novels are ridiculous and impossible. Ironically, there are many similar circumstances indeed happened in this 21st century. In China, the government controls the freedom of using internet that people can not use MSN or facebook. And the government wants to make a positive impression of their country that they block the mass media to present any negative news of China. Moreover, the government dominates the born of the child that each family can only have one child. The situation is more serious in North Korea. In fact, the life there is just like the life in1984. The pictures of the North Korea leader are posted no matter in public places or at home. The statues are also situated everywhere. They have no idols; the person they can worship is their leader. They have no internet; the government cut all the connections so that they get no information from the outside world. There are not any published books except the one written by Kim ll-Sung. People can not travel or leave North Korea. No one can escape his country, because the electric wires and bombs are surrounded around the board line. Anyone who tries to escape would be killed or sent into concentration camp. In Taiwan, the widespread of the monitors is also a problem of invading people’s privacy.
The classic novels written by Aldous Huxley and George Orwell bring a message to us. Totalitarianism doesn’t bring happiness to human beings; instead, it’s a disaster. It deprives our freedom and rights that people have no dignity and value. People may not notice it. However, it’s already happened around us! Therefore, as a modern human being, we should use our knowledge to prevent it happened.
In fact, I quite like the stories of 1984 and Brave New World. However, I cannot imagine how terrible if we live in these kind of worlds. After Stan’s interpretation, I find that where we live in now is similar to the two stories. Stan has mentioned that the world in 1984 is ruthless totalitarian regime based on humiliation, exploitation and terror. People are totally controlled by the government. They have no right to think but have to accept all the information from the government, even the information is fake or fabricates by someone. This makes me think of the society that we have now. When we watch news on television, have we ever thought what we believe now are whether true or not. Besides, there are lots of telescreens in the society of 1984. Big brother is watching you, big brother is everywhere. Also, in our society, actually, we can see surveillance cameras everywhere. It’s very easy to get the information; for example, google map, but are we still have privacy in our life. In Brave New World, the mortalities and concepts we have now are all overthrown. People are classified before they born and they have “soma” to forget everything. These let me wonder the advance of technology is really all do our good.
When Stan mentioned the roots of utopian thinking is a very human desire to live in a better world to create good society, North Korea and Hitler came up my mind immediately because they are all the examples of pursuing Utopia. North Korea is a country that people are totally controlled. One time, I watched a program which introduced North Korea. When the host of the program introduced one of the tourist spots, he found out that all the North Koreans around the tourists were all arranged purposely. Tourists in North Korea cannot take pictures freely. This makes me think that what the true meaning of Utopia is. Besides, the genocide of Jews which was made by Hitler also let me wonder the meaning of Utopia. In my point of view, I think the thinking of Utopia has great problem because human all have the dark sides in their minds.
After Stan’s course and reading Brave New World and 1984, I think that the lesson I have learned is redefining what a perfect world means. Generally speaking, a perfect world is similar to the wish of world peace which is always what people want to achieve. People always look forward to the wonderland, Utopia, a perfect world. The desire is never snuffed out. But how to create the perfect condition of the world is complicated.
Both the novels, Brave New World and 1984, depict two kinds of future world. The future world in the novels apparently has progress in technology and science. People who live the future world all are classified. They could not be discontented with their lives. They obey the rule and cannot resist the totalitarian system. However, the oppression in 1984 and the control on people in Brave New World both are the ways to keep harmony in the society because no one would react against the government. Almost people live in the future world are educated that would not suspect what their leader, the systems tell them.
After reading the two novels, I think that the future depicted in the novels is terrible and horror. The perfect world what the governments create is full of oppression and control. The idea makes me reconsider what the perfect world people wonder is. Perhaps the kind of world with rules, oppression, control, classes is the only way to achieve the ideal harmonious world because that there are no fights, no wars, and no racism. People would believe what they are told. Therefore I think that if the perfect and harmonious world were like this terrible totalitarian society I prefer to stay the situation in the present.
Utopia is a vision of a harmonious and peaceful society which every people want to live in, and early utopians believed that technology will lead people to live better lives. However, through these two books, we can see the reconsideration and introspection of this belief later in the 20th century.
Nowadays, we are used to the convenience in the modern society, but few of us are aware of the danger of highly advanced technology. 1984 and Brave New World are the early novels to warn and to make people reconsider where the technology may lead the society to. In Orwell’s novel, 1984, we can see many similarities in our lives, such as the “telescreens” that watching and instilling what is allowed by the “Party” to people. It is the same idea that we are watched by the CCTV or monitors around us, and somehow many of us are brainwashed by television everyday. Besides, the author described a society that is full of thrilling and nervous atmosphere. A society which people are controlled not only over the body but the mind is rarely anyone lives in a democracy country could imagine. Although we might think it is ridiculous now, the theory that government tried to manipulate people is truly practiced in our world. Today, people’s mind can be affected by the politicians easily.
On the other hand, Brave New World presents a highly industrial society. In this society, even human beings are made on the “Assembly lines”. People are classified before their birth, and they are quite innocent because they believe what they have been taught. They never have the chance to become what they want to be. Many people are just like Lenina who is following the society and satisfied with what she is given.
After reading these two books, I found that I seem to “wake up” with the protagonists and being shocked that this world is becoming the “Brave New World”.
Winnie 49602033
From Stan’s courses, “Brave New World” and “1984” made a great influence to the Western countries. Stan also taught a lot about the two opposite genre, Utopia and Dystopia. Although the two novels are dystopian writings, it is irony that the two novels described that human beings wanted to create an ideal world. In “Brave New world,” there are several contexts really made me feel horror. Human was born to be classified. According to different levels, people did different work. After work, people had a lot of entertainment to kill time. It is not meaningful that people live in the world without feeling sad, pain… etc. Experiencing suffering, people could realize to cherish the fair of happiness.
“1984” showed that ruthless totalitarian regime oppressed people. Poor people had to work constantly, but they didn’t have any recreation after working. Through “hate session”, people releasing their energy and hatred to an enemy who never seen. With technology developing, our society seems to be like to the world in “Brave New world” and “1984.” When we are happy to welcome more and more convenient society, we have to think about the balance between modernization and humanity.
Everyone desires to live in a place where is peaceful like Utopia, Neverland, or Shangri-la. However, Stan's course and two novels he introduces, “Brave New World” and “1984,” breaks the dream. People work day and night, and develop science and technology, and protest for the minority because they think the society in the future will be fine. In fact, utopianism brings about the tragic history of the twentieth century, especially the two World Wars. “Brave New World” and “1984” are dystopian writing. The two works reveal that it is impossible for everyone to live in a healthy, smart, rich, and peaceful condition because it is hard to control these people who have independent thinking.
People who live in “Brave New World” and “1984” not only are classified clearly but also are brain-washed to believe the rules which they do not know why. Like nowadays, people who think they are in a higher class always look upon people who are in a lower class. Take foreign labors in Taiwan for example. Taiwanese employers always shout and offend foreign labors because they think foreign labors are stupid. To my surprised, people who are classified in a lower class in “Brave New World” do not know they are exploited and are belittled because they take these things for granted. If we have no uncomfortable feeling, do we live in peace and happiness? Besides, people in “Brave New World” and “1984” have no love or humanity. People are born in a condition without love and they do not know how to love. Although they have many team activities, they are still lonely. I think if people have no love, their lives will have no passion and aim like the dead. Moreover, people in “Brave New World” and “1984” have no privacy. I think if people have no privacy, they have no freedom. The world in “Brave New World” and “1984” still have the problem of discrimination. The writers of modernism have suspected how the world we really pursue will be. I wonder whether a proper government will use a proper way to make our life better in the world that we don’t know who can be trusted.
During Stan's 3-week course on modernist utopia, we read "Brave New World" and “1984”, and both of these two novels are prophetic nowadays world. Although both of them have prediction, I prefer “1984” after reading both of them. It seems to show up what kind the world we live now. As the development of technology, through the detector, there is no distance between countries. However, it also means that the privacy is not private anymore and the militarism has more chances to develop. To look back of the late of 20 century, Soviet Union was in power until 1990. This is the history of the world and I thought that there was a similar world in “1984”. However, the world in “1984” was imagined in 1948, I have a question in my mind: does the road that the world must go through?
Through “1984”, we can realize that to pursue a so-called brave new world seems only a dream and maybe one day “Brave New World” will be presented in this world.
When reading “Brave New World,” although the benevolent dictatorship is terrible, sometimes I feel funny and ridiculous about the ways the characters act, think and live (i.g.the attitude toward love, the slogans learned from Hypnopaedia) and don’t feel so creepy in the reading. I think maybe it’s because of the satirical tone Huxley uses to shape “utopia.”(Even though the ending reveals a strong sadness and helplessness). However, the more I read into the book and the deeper-going I consider about it, the more confusing I am. I start to wonder whether the moral education in our society, the principles of life and being which we believe and follow are also one kind of “conditioning” and “control of think.” What we are taught since we were born affect our behavior and life unconsciously just as what those people in Brave New World learn from the hypnopaedia have implanted in them. If so, then it seems we don’t have the reasonable and adequate perspective to criticize or deny the “conditioning” of Brave New World. Comparing with the content of “Brave New World,” such a doubt in my mind makes me more uneasy.
Unlike the benevolent dictatorship in “Brave New World,” “1984” gave me a totally different feeling: creepy. The Party and the Big Brother Orwell describes in the book really make me uncomfortable. In the process of reading “1984,” I can’t help but think of The Communist Party of China and always relate the two. I feel as if were reading a realistic novel, which reminds me to be aware of the world we live in. And when reading the part that “people will be vaporized” and the horrible Room 101, I think of the White Terror of Taiwan’s martial law era. Besides, once when I talked about “1984” with Nina, she told me that Google Map is really just like the monitors in the book. She said she had tried Google Map, and although it’s really convenient and useful, it also makes her feel uneasy and horrible. “What if the monitor were set in front of my house and I happened not to close my curtain of the window?” “All people in the world would see my privacy on the Internet!” Such a horrible imagination comes into our mind. All these things are actually existed and are just so close to us. What Orwell writes are not nonsense or fabrication. (I remember one of Orwell’s short stories “Shooting an Elephant” we have read before is based on his real experience of imperialism and colonialism.) I can’t help but fear that the worlds in their stories are no longer a prediction or fable but a real portrait of the situations which we are already in.
Before taking Prof. Stan’s classes, I used to think “Utopia” as a beautiful word, which means a wonderful place full of peace, comforts, happiness, freedom and equality and without war, killing or cheating. However, after reading “1984” and “Brave New World,” I totally reverse my conception of utopia. Everything might go to extremes when we blindly pursue something, even though it is to pursue “perfection.” That’s because things always have two sides, and when we choose to “completely” achieve one goal, we would become blind to sacrifice the other side (i.g. sacrificing people’s freedom of thinking to completely make them in control and “behave well”)
Huxley and George Orwell write the two masterpieces to inform and to let us experience the world which we think we don’t have chance to realize. No matter whether they are just a prediction or a real portrait, we all have to face squarely and really consider about the problems. Everything in the world shouldn’t be taken for granted or regarded as absoluteness. That’s because once we take one thing for granted or as absoluteness, we are easy to ignore or deny other possibilities and to fall into the logic of the totalitarianism or the benevolent dictatorship. To doubt and to dismantle things that we used to believe and only believe, I think this is also what modernism appeals to. Only in this way, we can prevent to create such horrible worlds if we haven’t done that, or we can step the breaks and improve if we were already in such kind of “hell.”
Teachers make summary that Brave New World warns of the dangers of giving the government control over new and powerful technologies. For example, Soma is an example of the kind of medical, biological, and psychological technologies that Brave New World criticizes most sharply.
Huxley says that increasing populations and technological advances have lead to centralization of power. It is an irony of life that human beings have first evolved the state for their own good, and now, human beings are dehumanized, a reversal of nature’s evolutionary processes. As for me, true happiness consists in becoming fully human and finding the meaning. Moreover, Huxley explains that decentralization of power and finance may lead to genuine democratization. Maybe a new set of values deserves our attention. The book teaches me should think more about liberty and personal relationships instead of becoming machines. What is the truth in life can be found due to my experience and living.
I love the two books so much because they are very reality. The things that happened in the novels might happen on ours lives in another way. For example, we have more and more monitors around us, for government says that it is for security. However, it also means that we are overseen all the time. Beside, in “the brave new world”, it seemed it’s good that every one enjoy in their job since they are trained that they “should” love their job. It’s true that it can help keeping a society’s advance and steadily. Nevertheless, it ignores the “free will” of human beings. The government thought they are gods; they control the most people’s lives and thoughts. People have no choice but “have” to like what they “should” like.
The most impressed me from Stan's courses was the part he talked about the linking between 1984 and Bush (the former President of USA). There were some slogans in 1984 such as “war is peace”, "He who controls the past, controls the future" are just like what Bush’s decision on Iraq war. He told people that they fight Iraq for the better lives. It’s really horrible because when I read “1984” I thought the slogan is ridiculous, but when I found out that it did happen around us, it really astonished me.
While reading「1984」, I didn’t believe that the world would become like this. Human can not be dominated by this kind of society, because everyone has individual thought and personality. How the world could be divided into three autocratic societies and what is the best form of government? However, there is something changed through the course; the stories are not as simple as the questions.
During the war time, for seeking peaceful life people would follow the leader who can bring peace to them. Although the governments deprive of their individual thoughts, they have stable lives. As time goes by, under the government brainwash they probably believe this is the ideal world, so they don’t question about it. After Stan’s courses I think the story could become real someday, because North Korea is a communistic country which exists in nowadays. For the reason that humans do not need to think and fight, they just follow the government. Perhaps in the future this would become the model of Utopia.
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