Cat's Cradle

Cat's Cradle has no doubt very strong postmodernism philosophies embedded in it.  If one were to inspect the religion Bokononism closely, there are many connections with the religion and postmodernism.


Postmodernism deals with a movement founded in the 18th century that wanted to reject the ways of modernism.  Postmodernism has no distinct center on it and has no one controlling source which it originates from.  An easier way to differentiate postmodernism with modernism would be an example of a painting.  Consider postmodernism as an abstract painting with random, spontaneous lines and colors.  The Modernist painting however, would be the painting that would feature an actual drawing such as a portrait or landscape.  


The founder of Bokononism was Lionel Boyd Johnson, whose name was corrupted by the island dialect. Bokononism contains the postmodernist misreading, combination and anarchy at once. Even the first verse in the Book of Bokonons says: "All of the true things that I am to tell you are shameless lies."  Here, voneggut's opinion on religion actually comes out; that people always look for something to what they can believe. "Truth was the enemy of the people, because the truth was so terrible, so Bokonon made it his business to provide the people with better and better lies."  Here you can see how bokononism relates to a play of sorts.  All the so called "followers" are like actors that are fed with lies and like any other major religion, follow it blindly.  Thus, I think Vonnegut is trying to satire the concept of religion in the novel by exposing how fradulent the religion actually is.  This a postmodernist feature, which is typical for many postmodernist books. The main faith is not based in some religion, but in man himself. In Postmodernism, this is the exact idea they were getting at. By eliminating lies and the myths that society holds, they become all that more powerful. The people who came up with Postmodernism came to believe that science is the power of logic, which seems to tie in with the scientist's idea in Cat's Cradle as well.

BNW Essay

Brave New World shares a lot of the same themes as George Orwell’s 1984. Huxley warns that excess focus on technology and factory line production can lead to an unethical, immoral society. Similarly, George Orwell placing too much power in the hands of the government, along with advanced technology can also destroy civilization from within. Furthermore, the author Technopoly adds that technology is always next religion, and develops how this relationship further shapes these societies into what he calls “technocracies,” or places where technology rises above all other aspects of life. People no longer are singularly motivated by religion for salvation from poverty, as they can utilize technology to build themselves a better life, for example. Technology has replaced many of the central goals in life, and is instead viewed as a solution to the problems that plague society.  All three of these authors share the notion that while it may have the capacity for good, technology can be a double edged sword when it comes to harnessing it in government.

Brave New World has parallels in 1984, because of the system that is set up in the way they control the people. Although Brave New World, controls them through pleasure and 1984 uses pain and strict rules, they shame a same type of overall rule. The both societies 24/7 keep their citizens feeling those emotions. This keeps the citizens from causing rebellion or distress among the people. It keeps everything in order so to speak. Also in that from birth they teach the children that live in their societies to be robots. They follow the same routines because they are told to do so, in 1984 with the Junior spies and in Brave New World, with the children displaying sexual acts because they were taught to do so.

School sucks...YEAH!!

Aldous Huxley's novel Brave New World draws many parallels to the video posted on Mr. Dominguez' blog.  Actually, if one observes closely, they can note many similarities between the two.  After watching the video, I actually started to agree with some its ideas and thoughts.  The education system, has become a twisted version of what its principles stood for, and throughout the years, has evolved into a factory to process children's minds.

There are many similarities to Brave New World that the video points out.  Children today are separated by groups based on age and transported to school.  The school is operated in different class periods based on a bell schedule, and children are forced to labor through the same process every single day.  (Or in our case, we have a different bell schedule every day since Clovis High can't seem to make its mind on a consistent bell schedule).  Anyways, back to may point; school divides the groups of kids into those that succeed based on the school's curriculum and those who fail the school's curriculum.  We should not that these varying levels of success all depends on "grades" that the school gives out in order to classify the elite students from the struggling students.  Seeing a parallelism? In Brave New World, people are classifeid into different gruops based on their varying levels of success and intelligence.  Alphas dominate the intelligence factor in society and are thus able to receive high end jobs while at the bottom are Epsilons and Gammas whose dumbed down intelligence only serves to give them manual labor work.  This work includes a daily routine, that is both monotonous, and mindless.

In Brave New World, people are created in “racks upon racks of numbered test tubes”, very similar to our concept in school, where kids are sitting in rows and rows of desks, each performing the same routine endlessly like a mini-factory. What’s more each learning process in the novel is separate, just as subjects are in school.  There’s a room for birthing, a room for establishing a fear of books and flowers, and there’s a room for erotic play, and so forth and so on.  Furthermore, the people are split into groups during the “pregnancy” based on how dumb or successful they are supposed to be.  This can be compared to how we have different classes based on different subjects like Health, Psychology, and Physical Education.

Overall, the video gives the audience a very good comparison between the education system today with the society in Brave New World.

Brave New World Ch.3

  In the novel, Brave New World, a futuristic Utopian society is depicted with questionable values of ethics and morality. "Wheels must turn steadily, but can not turn untended. There must be men to tend them, men as sturdy as the wheels upon their axles, sane men, obedient men, stable in contentment."  The quote above refers to the power of the government to act as a moving force upon society to keep it under control.  According to the Controller, "stability. No civilization without social stability" (Huxley 32).  The government controls aspects of the citizens life from birth, by determining what social caste they shall fall under and even utilize differing amounts of alcohol and oxygen to reduce brain potential as an infant.  Likewise, the government also operantly conditions the lower caste infants to associate flowers and books with feelings of pain and fear by electrocuting them and making them listen to wailing sirens.  ”We always throw away old clothes. Ending is better than mending…” describes the philosophy of hypnopaedia, or the process of brain washing while asleep.  Likewise, the people in the novel have no self esteem nor sense of individuality because of their mass production type births.  The men view Lenina as a piece of meat and even Lenina seems to share this notion also.  Family itself is considered to be a derogatory concept as it requires the use of love and relationships to describe. Having a relationship with someone for too long, is considered unorthodox by society's standards and instead should switch from partner to partner.  People are encouraged to act on sexual desire in order to release out their bottled up emotions.  Mond compares this concept metaphorically like a pipe with increasing pressure inside. Additionally, drugs, “soma,” are utilized to create false sense of happiness. These drugs create a false illusion of happiness that lets the citizens escape the bleak and insipid taste of their own world.

Writing About The Tempest

In discussions of The Tempest one controversial issue has been the topic of colonialism.  On the one hand, Aime Cesare argues that the text is hidden with messages of postcolonialism and abuse towards teh native people of the island.  On the other hand, critics such as George Will contends that analyzing The Tempest for colonialism themes strips the text away from its intended purpose.  He believes that the argument of postocolonialism is produced due to political agenda of literary critics. However, I feel that I agree with George Will.  Aime Cesare's work A Tempest, is totally re written i order to showcase the dominance of Prospero with Ariel and Caliban.  He likens Caliban to Malcolm X, a civil rights activist, who changed his name to X in order to reject the name that the white man gave him.  In the text Caliban also changes his name to X with a similar purpose.  Cesare's story also portrays more dialogue between Caliban and Ariel, and how Ariel relates to Caliban's subservience.  However, I think that The Tempest has nothing to do with postcolonialism.  For one thing, The Tempest was written as a comedy, a type of play that is generally light hearted.  Had Shakespeare written a play about a serious theme such as colonialism, he would have most likely changed the whole plot of the story.  In my opinon, Shakespeare intended the story to be seen as how Prospero ultimately forgives his enemies and how he receives paradise in the end, by not succumbing to revenge and anger.  Thus, I think that Shakespeare's intended meaning was to not go down a road full of revenge and hate, but rather one with a more generous outlook.  If traversed correctly, one will eventually find paradise in the end.  Like George Will, I believe that postcolonialism is just a by-product of overanalyzing through literary theorists.

Literary Debate

Literature has always been an abstract subject, with no definitive right or wrong answer.  As a result, opposing views shall always be formed.  Our job for this assignment was to read the two articles: George Will's Literary Politics and Stephen Greenblatt's The Best Way to Kill our Literature is to Turn it into a Decorous Celebration of the New World Order. Both authors had differing ideas on the content of literature.  George Will argues that authors already have a predetermined motive in their writings, and that critics over analyze the writings, thereby incorporating some of their own political bias in their analysis. 

As Will describes it, "The supplanting of esthetic by political responses to literature makes literature primarily interesting as a mere index of who had power and whom the powerful victimized."  He states that political analysis only serves to devalue the author while giving the critics the title of decoders of literature. He criticizes "the eruption of group politics in literature". Will believes that if critics keep analyzing the text with political bias it will only take away the intended meaning of the author.  Will's alternative solution is to just let the original meaning of the text take its way.

In contrast, Greenblatt has an opposing view.  He believes that texts should be read and analyzed in search for possible interpretations.  In terms of The Tempest, he encourages students to ask questions about colonialism and sovereignty.  Greenblatt states, "These are among the issues that literary scholars investigate and encourage their students to consider, and I would think that the columnists who currently profess an ardent interest in our cultural heritage would approve".  He believes that connecting the text to outside themes allows the student to fully understand the writing better.  Greenblatt believes that if students relate colonialism to The Tempest than it can serve to teach us about "forgiveness, wisdom, and social atonement".

In my opinion I think both articles have a right answer to them.  If you analyze something you might inherently form some political bias.  Then there is also the potential to over analyze something.  For example, I could over analyze Dr. Seuss' Green Eggs and Ham and twist it to say that it is a critic of modern society.  Obviously, it wouldn't reflect the author's original meaning.  However, I agree with Greenblatt in that, I think to fully understand some novels, you must take into account the time frame when it was written and also try to relate it to other events.  Overall, I guess I agree with both articles.

The Tempest: Caliban

After reading Act II and III in the Tempest I believe that Caliban is indeed supposed to parallel the natives to our world today.  Caliban is the original being who was born on the island, but his seemingly "primitive" nature makes him submerse to the authority of others, namely Prospero.  Caliban teaches Prospero and his daughter everything they needed to know about the island.  In exchange, Prospero and his daughter "civilize" Caliban by teaching him language and teaching him about the stars and the moon.   Caliban represents the native Americans because when the Europeans first came to the New World it was the Native Americans who taught them where to find food and got them acquainted in the mainland.  After the Europeans became settled, they eventually fought against the Native Americans for dominance.   

“They’re not like us, and for that reason deserve to be ruled.”  The article on post colonialism describes the justification of colonizing others.  In the same way I think Shakespeare justifies colonization because he portrays Caliban in such a malevolent manner, with his desire for Miranda and his switching loyalties from Prospero to Stephano.  "I'll show thee every fertile inch o' th' island. And I will kiss thy foot. I prithee, be my god." Caliban's manner parallels the early Aztecs who, upon first seeing Cortez and his army of Spaniards, believed him to be the prophesied god Quetzalcoatl.  They then started treating the foreigners like gods, until they were betrayed and annihilated.  

The video on Native Americans was pretty accurate.  Over the last decades, Native Americans have been portrayed in a negative manner in the media.  In the long run, this inaccurate portrayal could have dangerous consequences.  The later generations will have a preconceived notion towards Native Americans and other ethnic groups and will be exposed to the danger of a single story.  This in turn can fuel racism and hatred towards other cultures and beliefs.

The Tempest-Act I

In the play, The Tempest,  the main character, Prospero believes himself to be a banished king that does not have control over his subjects anymore.  However, upon closer observation of the text, one can see that this statement is not entirely true.

Though it is true that Prospero is isolated on an island,  the statement that he is without subjects is a false matter.  Prospero has control of Miranda, Caliban, and Ariel by manipulating history.  This manipulation is parallel to 1984 when the Party manipulates reality by presenting a false view on history.  Prospero manipulates his world through not only magic, which he uses to conjure up a storm, but also through the use of rhetoric, the art of using language effectively.  His historical narration to his daughter, Miranda is one example of this.  Prospero recites history by saying that he and his daughter were cast out of Milan through foul play, "By foul play, as thou sayst, were we heaved thence, But blessedly holp hither."  Through the use of careful wording, he makes it appear that he and his daughter were wrongfully banished from his kingdom, thus swaying the opinion of his naive daughter.  Thus he succeeds in making his daughter pity his status, and wins her loyalty.  Also, Prospero also describes himself rather pridefully, "And Prospero the prime duke, being so reputed In dignity, and for the liberal arts Without a parallel." so that he appears as an almost godlike entity, just like how Big Brother is portrayed as an omnipotent being. 

Prospero also displays control over the island by using his rhetoric to his servant Ariel.  "It was mine art, When I arrived and heard thee, that made gape The pine and let thee out." The previous quote describes how  Prospero seems that he was  a savior to Ariel by releasing him out of his torment.  Prospero purposefully tries to bring guilt out of Ariel, and uses Ariel's emotional disarray to his advantage.  This can also compare to 1984, how the Party proclaimed that it released all the citizens from the torturous restraints of capitalism, and transforms the citizens moment of emotional weakness into unwavering loyalty.  Prospero's success in bringing guilt to Ariel helps him control the island because he now has the service of an all powerful spirit to carry out his plans.

Prospero's greatest asset is his skillful use of narratives and rhetoric to bring other beings under his control.  This, along with his endless supply of magic, allows him to constantly alter and manipulate the world around him so that he can carry out his plans of revenge.

The Danger of a Single Story

I chose to write about this option because I think is an interesting topic that we should be aware of, because of what’s happening in the world today.  If we just base our opinions just from one side of the story, our opinions will always be flawed and inaccurate. Around school and the community I always hear about people talking about events in the Middle East and how all the people from that country are radical terrorists. But the reality is, it’s not true. Just because we hear about car bombings and religious wars in the Middle East doesn't mean that everyone from that region is a explosion-seeking maniac. I also observed  how some people always try to assert their opinion about others, when it is obvious that all they are doing is just reciting racial stereotypes.  If we continue to form single stories about other ethnicities,  the future generations will have an altered view of other cultures and the world around them.

The problem of single story is that it just excludes facts from us that are necessary for us to better understand others. This compares to the topic that we discussed in our Socratic Circle in class. I personally think that textbooks should have the voice of minorities in it because like Adiche mentioned, if we just read about accomplishments that were done by white men, eventually we'll come to associate that only white men can have the power to triumph and succeed and that minorities can never stand up to themselves.  For example if the textbooks chose to omit the accomplishments of African-Americans in civil rights, then in later generations African-Americans won't have the courage to stand up for their rights because they never learned what their ancestors did, so in their mind they will always think they are inferior to the white man.  Likewise when news stations become politically biased like Fox News or msnbc  people only tend to hear one side of the story which can radically alter the views towards the government, and possibly reality.

In regards to history,I believe that if we just present the history in a single-story format, a lot of history will be altered and forgotten. If the history presents a single-story on the cruel nature of early Native Americans, students like myself will come to associate that ALL Native Americans had cruel and unusual rituals early in the day, rather than focusing on the beneficial rituals they accomplished, like medicine and science.

Not the gumdrop BUTTON!!!