Distopia
While thinking about the idea of possible parallel universes, I came to the thought that the future is, in a way, a parallel universe. It is impossible to know how or what the future will become. Just imagine being a poor peasant back in the Middle Ages and being told that in the future men will walk on the moon, or that a person in China will be able to speak to a person in Europe as if they were standing in front of them. They would most likely assume the person saying this is mad. The future is always in question so I decided to examine the idea of a distopia future as a parallel universe. A distopia is basically a utopia (perfect world) that has absolutely no individualism. All privacy is eliminated for the sake of peace and security. Although we fiercely defend our privacy today, futurists have predicted worlds that enter into this realm of distopia. By examining their societies and the trends in cultural change during their times, these futurists present definite possibilities of a world without individual freedom. Although I have yet to have read it, George Orwell's 1984 is a novel that is often spoken of when examining the paths our culture is taking. In the novel, an individual is monitored at all times by "big
brother", a computer that searches for any evidence of social unrest. Irrational fears are stemming from everywhere and leading people to abandon individual privacy for security and stability. There are many instances where material is kept from public view today. Because the human psyche is not changing as quickly as technology, problems will steadily increase until either human society will crumble, as in The Time Machine, or become an extreme case of distopia, as in 1984 and Fahrenheit 451. The use of censorship on media such as TV and radio is on the increase. Parental control devices on the internet and TV are being purchased and used by the millions in order to protect their children from what their parents see as being harmful. When first entering this world, he finds a perfect world. Wells, The Time Machine, seems at first a paradise. Otherwise, our future may end up a parallel universe where humans don't have any control over themselves. Wells wrote his book many decades prior to the invention of mass destruction devices such as the A-bomb, he still had the foresight to envision that man's drive for power would eventually lead to his downfall. Many countries around the world still deny their citizens the freedoms of free speech and press to suppress any opposition to their rule. In Fahrenheit 451, books are destroyed in order to control the spreading of knowledge and to keep the populace ignorant and therefore complacent. Perhaps this is because there are not many positive views of the present or the past.
Common topics in this essay:
George Orwell's,
Soviet Union,
Middle Ages,
HG Machine,
,
future parallel universe,
future parallel,
parallel universe,
fahrenheit 451,
perfect world,
security stability,
human society,
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Acceptance Essays
