(no subject)
"In the desert there is no sign that says, Thou shalt not eat stones."
-Sufi proverb
That quote was in the beginning in one of the summer reading books we have to read for this year. The Handmaid's Tale by Margret Atwood.
At first, I didn't now how to respond to a quote like that.
And then after a while, it made me realize how truly terrifying that proverb is. To be in such a situation or an enviroment where you're subjected to survive on the burliest and most inhumane behaviors, it's almost surreal.
This book bothers me, and I don't mean that it was horrible. It's amazing literature but I hated it. It disturbed me because it mirrors a culture I'm all too familiar with. It mirrors a culture that I think takes away too many freedoms from too many people.
This book was about totalitarianism, oppressing women into taking away jobs, their money, and all power is given to the male population. The Constitution is taken away and society turns into this Nazi Regime. Scientists, doctors, opposing political figures, people of different religious denominations, gender traitors (gays), refugees, and mainly women are all turned into scapegoats. Women that become handmaids are used as a means of reproducing. Many are assigned to families that couldn't have children. Basically the husband would fuck the handmaid until she was pregnant and when the baby was born, she'd be reassigned to another family.
I have no idea what I would do. I know I'd be a rebel, which means I would get killed off right on the spot.
I hate that every year we're assigned such depressing books. I feel like we're hit with 20 million messages everyday that say doomsday is upon us and that the sky is falling. It makes the world seem so bleak. What kid will want to expand their horizons when they're told that everyday? All that it will accomplish is getting a kid too scared of going out into the world.
It's the same way when you're in a bad mood, or you're upset over something like not having the food you wanted. I hate when people say "Oh don't complain, there are people starving out there and would love to have what you have." Responding with that doesn't make anyone feel better. I'd rather something positive like "Well hey, maybe tomorrow or next week." or "Hey if you're sad, look outside, it's beautiful out there."
And when you think about it, there shouldn't be anyone starving in another part of the world. We should be helping each other out. Sadly, fear makes it so hard to do that.
I think what scares me the most is that barely anyone our age pays attention.
The school could assign 50 books on dying societies and totalitarianism, and students will still stay confided in their own bubbles. They won't pay attention to a single thing that affects them indirectly.
And when it does start to affect them directly, it's already too late.
-Sufi proverb
That quote was in the beginning in one of the summer reading books we have to read for this year. The Handmaid's Tale by Margret Atwood.
At first, I didn't now how to respond to a quote like that.
And then after a while, it made me realize how truly terrifying that proverb is. To be in such a situation or an enviroment where you're subjected to survive on the burliest and most inhumane behaviors, it's almost surreal.
This book bothers me, and I don't mean that it was horrible. It's amazing literature but I hated it. It disturbed me because it mirrors a culture I'm all too familiar with. It mirrors a culture that I think takes away too many freedoms from too many people.
This book was about totalitarianism, oppressing women into taking away jobs, their money, and all power is given to the male population. The Constitution is taken away and society turns into this Nazi Regime. Scientists, doctors, opposing political figures, people of different religious denominations, gender traitors (gays), refugees, and mainly women are all turned into scapegoats. Women that become handmaids are used as a means of reproducing. Many are assigned to families that couldn't have children. Basically the husband would fuck the handmaid until she was pregnant and when the baby was born, she'd be reassigned to another family.
I have no idea what I would do. I know I'd be a rebel, which means I would get killed off right on the spot.
I hate that every year we're assigned such depressing books. I feel like we're hit with 20 million messages everyday that say doomsday is upon us and that the sky is falling. It makes the world seem so bleak. What kid will want to expand their horizons when they're told that everyday? All that it will accomplish is getting a kid too scared of going out into the world.
It's the same way when you're in a bad mood, or you're upset over something like not having the food you wanted. I hate when people say "Oh don't complain, there are people starving out there and would love to have what you have." Responding with that doesn't make anyone feel better. I'd rather something positive like "Well hey, maybe tomorrow or next week." or "Hey if you're sad, look outside, it's beautiful out there."
And when you think about it, there shouldn't be anyone starving in another part of the world. We should be helping each other out. Sadly, fear makes it so hard to do that.
I think what scares me the most is that barely anyone our age pays attention.
The school could assign 50 books on dying societies and totalitarianism, and students will still stay confided in their own bubbles. They won't pay attention to a single thing that affects them indirectly.
And when it does start to affect them directly, it's already too late.