this is an essay i prepared for trials months back. i've said this in other threads, but i'm not great at english and would love any critical feedback if anyone has time! please feel free to rip this to shreds cause i know you will have to cause its not very good...
Blade Runner & Brave New World
Humanity’s relationship with the natural world and its rhythms has been a timeless concern. The quality and importance of this relationship has varied over different times and cultures, and continues to adapt to the changing contextual surrounding. According to their context, the values and concerns of the state of this relationship, author of Brave New World, Aldous Huxley and director of Blade Runner Ridley Scott have explored two very different mediums to portray this relationship and explore what it is to be human.
Huxley’s novel was written as a response to the society’s progress in the 1920’s-30’s. There was an increasing fear in the growth of Fascism, Communism, Totalitarianism, and particularly in the rise of Russian Dictator, Joseph Stalin. His construction of the World State, World Controllers and the hypnopaedic saying “Everyone belongs to everyone” represent his critical views towards these political uprisings. Huxley comments on his concern towards the rise in consumerism, the introduction of mass-production and the advancement of science in everyday life as he saw the potential for this growth to result in the alienation of the individual to nature.
Huxleys World State resounded the conflict between communism and capitalism, the masses versus the individual. He created a social order based on a caste system that labels the decanted humans as Alphas, Betas, Gammas, Deltas or Epsilons. Individual choice is removed in the scientific process of pre-decanting conditioning and predetermination, and the world is perfectly controlled as its’ motto suggests “Community, Identity, Stability.” Nature is sacrificed to create a stable society dependant on consumerism and science to control everything, even down to natural urges and emotions. The problem-relieving, happiness drug Soma, the Violent Passion Surrogate, and the Pregnancy Substitute, are all examples of the ‘stabilizing’ controls of the World State.
Brave New World shows a society in which alienation from the natural world is a source of stability and control. Nature is too giving and therefore doesn’t conform to the consumer driven community. It is a world controlled by scientific achievement and innovation, as their god has become science itself, reveling in their achievements as “mass production (is) at last applied to biology.” Natural birth is a time-consuming commodity that has become an amusing, even ridiculous idea. Man is instead decanted, treated with electric shock therapy, and trained with hypnopedia to fit perfectly into and enjoy their position in the caste system.
This sterilized society of “Standard men and women in uniform batches,” is juxtaposed with the ‘experiment’ Savage Reservation. It is here where nature runs wild and the inhabitants are removed from all civilized technology, and do not enjoy any of the benefits of the experiment they are under. BNW shows the extreme ends of the scale with its comparison of these two worlds- The World State and the Savage Reservation. The disgust we form of both allows us to identify with John the Savage whose morality; his views offer a balance between the extremities of both worlds. He questions the composition of the World State and struggles to fight against their system. Unfortunately he too has been subject to ‘conditioning’ and is tainted by the bias of both worlds. He cannot resist the overpowering temptation of consumerism and is driven to conform. The Brave New World’s initial façade of a utopian society is exposed as a dystopia, and the individual is lost in consumption.
Scott takes an interestingly different approach in presenting his views. Straightaway the dystopia is evident as we are presented with the dark, dismal world of Los Angeles 2019. The opening sequence shows fireballs of petrol waste exploding into the dark sky, the looming Tyrell building that dominates the city in its pyramid form (representative of hierarchical order). We are immediately faced with the corporate drive- commerce is the centre and the head of their society.
The culture of Scott’s time had adopted a “greed is good” attitude, as profit and capitalism had become the objective of the individual. Japan’s economy had strengthened and was considered a powerhouse (economically) and environmental concerns were becoming a prominent issue. Scott uses his film to warn against the degradation of the environment and the rise of multi-national corporations.
The city of LA, in fact the entire planet, has been destroyed beyond repair by man’s neglect of the natural world. Acid rain, smog, pollution, extinction of species and overpopulation of the world by misfits are some of the consequences of man’s greed, the only hope is to “begin again” in the off world colonies. All that are left to inhabit the earth are misfits-diseased, deformed or underclass, unable to meet the stringent health criteria to inhabit the off-world colonies. Separating themselves further from the natural world, humanity began to create replicants. The replicants began to pose a threat to mankind, as their perfection dominated man’s imperfections. However, they were created with a time-span, the nexus-6 models were given 4 years to live. Scott’s protagonist, the film noir style detective Deckard, is employed to ‘retire’ the replicants that attempt to return to earth.
Scott’s film shows how humans are suffering from interfering with the natural processes and the environment, whereas Huxley’s novel shows how humans can be hypnotized into believing the world they live in is utopian, as they believe they have controlled the natural world. This is challenged by his focus on John, Lenina, Helmhotz and Bernard who suffer the lack of creativity, love and passion. In this way each composer has illustrated the consequences of disregarding, and manipulating nature resulting in removing the natural from humanity.
Deckard continues to rely on technology, as humans believe they are in control of the technology they create, using the Voigt-Kampf test to identify the replicants. But the nexus-6 group prove a challenge for Deckard. The apparently emotionless “skin job(s)” prove to be “more human than human.” The final scenes of nexus-6 warrior Roy Batty’s life show the depths of his humanity. The close-ups revealing his despair at the retirement of Pris, the compassion he shows Deckard as he reaches out his hand and saves him. His spirituality is implied as he stands in the rain, his white hair glowing as he sadly says “All those moments will be lost in time like tears in the rain. Time to die.” He releases a dove, a symbol of hope and rebirth for Deckard. Human’s greed and dependance on technology had deteriorated their spirit.
In London A.F. 632 John the Savage brings hope to Helmholtz, to Bernard and to Lenina. Each had felt distant from the community as their desire for nature began to develop. Their conditioning has been effective though, as they begin to doubt and fear, they fall back on their hypnopaedic sayings. For according to the Director of the D.H.C, “What man has joined, nature is powerless to put asunder.” The only freedom permitted from the confines of the World State are when select few are permitted to see the Savage Reservation, or when the ‘individual thinkers’ are shipped to Falkland Islands.
Another significant difference is the value placed on human worth. Blade Runner displays a world where the replicants are almost indistinguishable from humans, as their emotions have developed to a state more realistic than that of Deckard’s, yet they are ‘retired’ and given a life span of 4 years. As Rachael falls in love with Deckard, her bold femme fatale appearance transforms into the soft, feminine piano player. Deckard’s rough nature counteracts her shyness and she becomes a human to the audience. The question of Deckard’s humanity remains ambiguous, with the reoccurring symbol of the unicorn, but it no longer matters as we respect both protagonists and know they deserve to be treated as humans. There is hope for the future, yet the consequences of their alienation from the natural world are revisited as Gaff yells “Too bad she won’t live, then again, who does!”
Yet in Huxley’s BNW, humans are bred to fulfill a social need. “Ninety-six identical twins working ninety-six identical machines.” They are indoctrinated to bear the “suggestions from the state”, that “everybody’s happy nowadays.” “People are happy; they get what they want and they never want what they can’t get.” Yet science cannot completely suppress nature. Lenina’s love for John and Helmhotz’s creative desire for something more than consumerism represent what has been lost. Yet the World State continues as before, despite John’s cry for freedom. Bernard and Helmholtz are to be sent to the island, but John is not allowed to join them. Not being able to bear to remain an experiment, John kills himself, disgusted at the world. “Did you eat something that didn’t agree with you?” Asked Bernard. The Savage nodded. “I ate civilization.”
Each text conveys the danger of interfering with the natural world and the relationship between nature and humanity. They represent the issues of their context and forewarn society against the implications of a future devoid of or having deteriorated nature. In Brave New World, science is “carefully chained and muzzled” to produce stability, but in doing so have removed natural freedom of choice and emotion from humans. In Blade Runner, humans have thoughtlessly destroyed the natural world, and in doing so have lost their spirit and emotion. It is through their inability to control the replicants who show them more mercy than they deserve, that they (in particular Deckard) redefine what it is to be human.
Blade Runner & Brave New World
Humanity’s relationship with the natural world and its rhythms has been a timeless concern. The quality and importance of this relationship has varied over different times and cultures, and continues to adapt to the changing contextual surrounding. According to their context, the values and concerns of the state of this relationship, author of Brave New World, Aldous Huxley and director of Blade Runner Ridley Scott have explored two very different mediums to portray this relationship and explore what it is to be human.
Huxley’s novel was written as a response to the society’s progress in the 1920’s-30’s. There was an increasing fear in the growth of Fascism, Communism, Totalitarianism, and particularly in the rise of Russian Dictator, Joseph Stalin. His construction of the World State, World Controllers and the hypnopaedic saying “Everyone belongs to everyone” represent his critical views towards these political uprisings. Huxley comments on his concern towards the rise in consumerism, the introduction of mass-production and the advancement of science in everyday life as he saw the potential for this growth to result in the alienation of the individual to nature.
Huxleys World State resounded the conflict between communism and capitalism, the masses versus the individual. He created a social order based on a caste system that labels the decanted humans as Alphas, Betas, Gammas, Deltas or Epsilons. Individual choice is removed in the scientific process of pre-decanting conditioning and predetermination, and the world is perfectly controlled as its’ motto suggests “Community, Identity, Stability.” Nature is sacrificed to create a stable society dependant on consumerism and science to control everything, even down to natural urges and emotions. The problem-relieving, happiness drug Soma, the Violent Passion Surrogate, and the Pregnancy Substitute, are all examples of the ‘stabilizing’ controls of the World State.
Brave New World shows a society in which alienation from the natural world is a source of stability and control. Nature is too giving and therefore doesn’t conform to the consumer driven community. It is a world controlled by scientific achievement and innovation, as their god has become science itself, reveling in their achievements as “mass production (is) at last applied to biology.” Natural birth is a time-consuming commodity that has become an amusing, even ridiculous idea. Man is instead decanted, treated with electric shock therapy, and trained with hypnopedia to fit perfectly into and enjoy their position in the caste system.
This sterilized society of “Standard men and women in uniform batches,” is juxtaposed with the ‘experiment’ Savage Reservation. It is here where nature runs wild and the inhabitants are removed from all civilized technology, and do not enjoy any of the benefits of the experiment they are under. BNW shows the extreme ends of the scale with its comparison of these two worlds- The World State and the Savage Reservation. The disgust we form of both allows us to identify with John the Savage whose morality; his views offer a balance between the extremities of both worlds. He questions the composition of the World State and struggles to fight against their system. Unfortunately he too has been subject to ‘conditioning’ and is tainted by the bias of both worlds. He cannot resist the overpowering temptation of consumerism and is driven to conform. The Brave New World’s initial façade of a utopian society is exposed as a dystopia, and the individual is lost in consumption.
Scott takes an interestingly different approach in presenting his views. Straightaway the dystopia is evident as we are presented with the dark, dismal world of Los Angeles 2019. The opening sequence shows fireballs of petrol waste exploding into the dark sky, the looming Tyrell building that dominates the city in its pyramid form (representative of hierarchical order). We are immediately faced with the corporate drive- commerce is the centre and the head of their society.
The culture of Scott’s time had adopted a “greed is good” attitude, as profit and capitalism had become the objective of the individual. Japan’s economy had strengthened and was considered a powerhouse (economically) and environmental concerns were becoming a prominent issue. Scott uses his film to warn against the degradation of the environment and the rise of multi-national corporations.
The city of LA, in fact the entire planet, has been destroyed beyond repair by man’s neglect of the natural world. Acid rain, smog, pollution, extinction of species and overpopulation of the world by misfits are some of the consequences of man’s greed, the only hope is to “begin again” in the off world colonies. All that are left to inhabit the earth are misfits-diseased, deformed or underclass, unable to meet the stringent health criteria to inhabit the off-world colonies. Separating themselves further from the natural world, humanity began to create replicants. The replicants began to pose a threat to mankind, as their perfection dominated man’s imperfections. However, they were created with a time-span, the nexus-6 models were given 4 years to live. Scott’s protagonist, the film noir style detective Deckard, is employed to ‘retire’ the replicants that attempt to return to earth.
Scott’s film shows how humans are suffering from interfering with the natural processes and the environment, whereas Huxley’s novel shows how humans can be hypnotized into believing the world they live in is utopian, as they believe they have controlled the natural world. This is challenged by his focus on John, Lenina, Helmhotz and Bernard who suffer the lack of creativity, love and passion. In this way each composer has illustrated the consequences of disregarding, and manipulating nature resulting in removing the natural from humanity.
Deckard continues to rely on technology, as humans believe they are in control of the technology they create, using the Voigt-Kampf test to identify the replicants. But the nexus-6 group prove a challenge for Deckard. The apparently emotionless “skin job(s)” prove to be “more human than human.” The final scenes of nexus-6 warrior Roy Batty’s life show the depths of his humanity. The close-ups revealing his despair at the retirement of Pris, the compassion he shows Deckard as he reaches out his hand and saves him. His spirituality is implied as he stands in the rain, his white hair glowing as he sadly says “All those moments will be lost in time like tears in the rain. Time to die.” He releases a dove, a symbol of hope and rebirth for Deckard. Human’s greed and dependance on technology had deteriorated their spirit.
In London A.F. 632 John the Savage brings hope to Helmholtz, to Bernard and to Lenina. Each had felt distant from the community as their desire for nature began to develop. Their conditioning has been effective though, as they begin to doubt and fear, they fall back on their hypnopaedic sayings. For according to the Director of the D.H.C, “What man has joined, nature is powerless to put asunder.” The only freedom permitted from the confines of the World State are when select few are permitted to see the Savage Reservation, or when the ‘individual thinkers’ are shipped to Falkland Islands.
Another significant difference is the value placed on human worth. Blade Runner displays a world where the replicants are almost indistinguishable from humans, as their emotions have developed to a state more realistic than that of Deckard’s, yet they are ‘retired’ and given a life span of 4 years. As Rachael falls in love with Deckard, her bold femme fatale appearance transforms into the soft, feminine piano player. Deckard’s rough nature counteracts her shyness and she becomes a human to the audience. The question of Deckard’s humanity remains ambiguous, with the reoccurring symbol of the unicorn, but it no longer matters as we respect both protagonists and know they deserve to be treated as humans. There is hope for the future, yet the consequences of their alienation from the natural world are revisited as Gaff yells “Too bad she won’t live, then again, who does!”
Yet in Huxley’s BNW, humans are bred to fulfill a social need. “Ninety-six identical twins working ninety-six identical machines.” They are indoctrinated to bear the “suggestions from the state”, that “everybody’s happy nowadays.” “People are happy; they get what they want and they never want what they can’t get.” Yet science cannot completely suppress nature. Lenina’s love for John and Helmhotz’s creative desire for something more than consumerism represent what has been lost. Yet the World State continues as before, despite John’s cry for freedom. Bernard and Helmholtz are to be sent to the island, but John is not allowed to join them. Not being able to bear to remain an experiment, John kills himself, disgusted at the world. “Did you eat something that didn’t agree with you?” Asked Bernard. The Savage nodded. “I ate civilization.”
Each text conveys the danger of interfering with the natural world and the relationship between nature and humanity. They represent the issues of their context and forewarn society against the implications of a future devoid of or having deteriorated nature. In Brave New World, science is “carefully chained and muzzled” to produce stability, but in doing so have removed natural freedom of choice and emotion from humans. In Blade Runner, humans have thoughtlessly destroyed the natural world, and in doing so have lost their spirit and emotion. It is through their inability to control the replicants who show them more mercy than they deserve, that they (in particular Deckard) redefine what it is to be human.