Let's change the definition of a “Utopia”

A utopia in today's society is viewed as a perfect world, where everyone is happy. But that is just the problem. This is the definition in the modern world we live in and it is an unachievable place. The definition that we should be using is the Greek meaning of the word which means “no-place”. This clearly states the world that can not exist and is only fictional to the human mind. Due to the fact that children and young adults are brainwashed into thinking a "Utopia" is an achievable thing. It is also not just the term utopia but the term perfect. This sets unreachable goals in a human's mind. I’m not saying that people should settle, what I’m saying is people should always try to achieve more and be the best can be within their life time and time given. Let’s make the word “utopia” and “perfect” only a fictional thing, and let’s make the words achievable and attainable part of the utopia terminology.

Let's be real, is a utopia even possible at this point in time. People these days will always be greedy and want what's best for themselves in their lives. People say they are not selfish but give them the opportunity to have everything they want and you will how much they ask for. Put this into perspective, no matter if a kid grows up poor or rich if you give them money (or the opportunity to buy something) they will go buy something that they want, even if they do not need it. We live in a society where we have the idea of "needs and wants" flip-flopped. Ever see a kid crying in a store because the parents will not buy something they want but you hear the kid say “I need it!”. Does the ignorant child need it, no they do not but at that point in their life they think they do. A world where everyone has everything eliminates two main things, greed and the desire to strive for something, greed should be eliminated but the desire to strive for something can lead a person to be dedicated and determined.

In the passage “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas”, the people live happy lives, almost perfect in a sense. This only achiever by the suffering of a young child. The child is suffering constantly only to give the people the satisfaction of their own lives. This instance reminds me of child labor around the world. Major brands such as Nike used children to produce their products. A child somewhere is making products for someone else in a first world country. The suffering of children, leads to the satisfaction and happiness of another human. This sound familiar. This quote from the passage of Omelas shows how sacred these children are, “It looks about six, but actually is nearly ten. It is feeble-minded. Perhaps it was born defective or perhaps it has become imbecile through fear, malnutrition, and neglect. It picks its nose and occasionally fumbles vaguely with its toes or genitals, as it sits hunched in the corner farthest from the bucket and the two mops. It is afraid of the mops. It finds them horrible. It shuts its eyes, but it knows the mops are still standing there; and the door is locked; and nobody will come.”. The child is terrified of an inanimate object but replace the object with something a little more terrifying such as a slave owner or a sweetshop owner. Each of these things caused pain and suffering to the child but in return produces something that causes joy and excitement to a wealthy person.

We see the word of Omelas as disgusting and inhuman but in reality, people have been doing it for decades. Every time that you buy a product from a store that has been imported from a foreign country, it shows that you are supporting the labor laws and allowing the suffering of children produce goods for others. In the passage of Omelas, it has people walk away from the world of good and happiness to stop the suffering of children. The way people walk away from child labor in our modern world is by buying clothes from companies that do not support those laws and also are domestically made by legal civilians that are able to work.

The world we live in today is not far from Omelas, yet our society is not a “utopia”, it still attains happiness. No “Utopia” is perfect but the idea of a happy and successful society is attainable. In our world today, not everyone will be happy, but have a majority of people happy is better than nothing.

-Peter (800)

Le Guin, Ursula. "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas." The Winds Twelve Quarters: Short Stories. 1999.

Your Own Utopia

A few days ago I reached an epiphany. I was staring at my phone as many hours passed by unnoticed. I began to feel something strange; As though something was happening and I was missing out. I looked up and away from my phone screen and began to realize what it was that I was missing out on. What I was missing out on was life itself.  

Speaking as a young adult living in the modern era of the 2000's, life seems to be going greater than expected. As a comparison to older generations, there are so many things that benefit us now than it did back in their time period. We have a whole lot more freedom, better education, less prejudice, more security, amazing reasons to live, and most importantly, our technology. Our technology has advanced so much to the point where it surrounds us everywhere we go. The biggest selling point of advanced technology is how we feel more connected. 

Feel is a very important word in my epiphany because as I was standing there looking at my phone for hours, I felt more connected with everyone and everything going on in the world. Once I looked up and realized how much I missed out on, I realized how lonely I  really was. 

In the novel The Feed by M.T Anderson, this technological advancement is multiplied one hundred times over. The Feed (aka the internet) is implanted in everyone's brain allowing everyone to view the internet everywhere they go 24/7. Similar to our current generation, the teenagers of The Feed are expected to be more connected with each other due to this implantation. However this is not the case. 

People who praise technological advances with no sense of negativity behind it would say they live in a thriving time. A Utopian society even. However, the first line of the novel perfectly demonstrates technologies biggest flaw towards society.

“We went to the moon to have fun, but the moon turned out to completely suck” (Anderson 3)

(My two best friends enjoying life at the bridge even though we only live 15 min from it)

When I first read this line by the main character Titus, I called it a bunch of BS. I couldn't help but visualize my boys and I taking a spontaneous trip to anywhere but home, let alone the moon, and have an amazing time regardless of the situation (see image). I came up with the thought of "Maybe they are the stereotypical teenager who is always bored at everything cliche," but in all seriousness, the novel wouldn't give it to us that easily. So, I read more into it.

Titus and his friends proceeded to travel to the moon. What began to ruin it for them was not only the annoyance of each other but also the bombardment of notifications and interaction coming from The Feed. It suddenly became a distraction and also the ease of just going to the moon lowered their expectations tremendously to where something as spectacular as the moon became "eh" to them. In a way they were easily desensitized.

After reading this section of the novel and discussing it in my college literature class, I began to compare it to the times today. This is when I reached my epiphany and conclusion.

Although more extreme, Titus and his friends easily represent us and our own generation. The concept of feeling connected but missing out on so much of the world around you is exactly what Titus, as well as our generation, is facing today.

To understand this better, have you ever hung out with someone and eventually find yourself reaching into your phone to give it a look while your friend is talking? In many cases you find yourself looking at your phone longer than you should have. Within that time you looked at your phone and put it away, you could have easily engaged better in the conversation or build your relationship better. You easily miss out on what the person says or you take it with a grain of salt.

I can't say I'm not guilty here but we can all admit to being in this scenario multiple times.

(Again guilty but was this necessary?)

To future demonstrate, when was the last time you went somewhere exciting and didn't take your phone out to take a picture for Instagram or snapchat it? Again being guilty of this scenario, most of us do this and it easily draws away from experiencing whats right in front of you. We automatically associate it with showing other people rather than taking in the moment for yourself. Kinda like how Titus and his friends were desensitized to the moon. Something of great value suddenly becomes less important as an experience (of course to an extreme, but still the same concept)

On top of everything, this novel also represents the concept of distopia. By reading my blog, its safe to assume I, as well as many others, see The Feed and our own technological society as a distopia. This assumption is wrong

For years, it has been a peeve of mine when people misconstrue the concept of Utopia. The idea of a Utopia is an opinionated subject that is highly dependent on the individual rather than the whole population. In other words, you can not create a single utopia for a population, but you can make a utopia in your own world.

A religious friend once told me about his belief that when you die, you create your own heaven. Heaven to many people is seen as this singular Utopian space where everything is right and you can live in peace for all eternity. However, this is currently proven to be impossible by the many failed attempts of creating a perfect singular utopia for a whole population. What makes more sense is you creating your own Utopia (heaven) within your last seconds of your consciousness and staying in that utopia forever.

Religious talk aside, this same principal can be applied to yourself. You have the choice to create a Utopia or Distopia in your own world. You have the choice to live in the mindset similar to Titus and his friends where you're surrounded by technology, disconnected and desensitized from the real world around you. Or you can choose to see the greatness in everything around you. Surround yourself with technology and see/appreciate everything it does for you, and still view the world around as great as it can be.

Word Count: 1089

Works Cited:

The Feed by M.T. Anderson

Liam R.

A Look into the Future

Since I was in eighth grade, I was repeatedly taught that utopia was a perfect society and that this society could not exist. Recently I have learned that utopia is not a perfect society and there are communities in the United States that are considered to be utopian societies. Many believe to have a utopian society involves having technology at edge of your fingertips.

In the novel, The Feed by M.T. Anderson, the people in this world have “the feed” implanted in their brain. The feed is a brain implant that allows people to connect with others and is a futuristic version of the internet with instant messages and advertisements. The feed is very similar to our smart phones and computers in 2017, except the feed is inside the people's heads.

The question is, what will our futures look like?

I believe that The Feed is very similar to what our future will look like. Eventually our computers will no longer be outside of our bodies and will be inside of our minds. Technology is already easily accessible and we depend on it very heavily, but we will depend on it even more in the future. We use technology for almost everything in our lives nowadays, and just like in the novel we will use technology for even the simplest things. In the future, we might not even have conversations out loud to one another and just communicate with instant messaging.

In The Feed, Titus is a teenager who has lived with the feed for his entire life. Titus and his friends have easy access to advanced technology. They can even travel into space whenever their hearts desire. “We went to the moon to have fun, but the moon turned out to completely suck” (Anderson 3). This demonstrates that even going to the moon to them is an adventure that is taken for granted. Personally, I think if my friends and I were to go to the moon to hangout we would have so much fun. For us, the moon would be a new adventure since we have never been there before and there is zero gravity.

For Titus, Link and Marty going to the moon is taken for granted and is no longer entertaining for them. In today’s world, people having smartphones and access to information wherever they go is taken for granted. At the moment, computers are still outside of our body, but I predict that in the future our computers will be inside the body. “That’s one of the great things about the feed- that you can be supersmart without ever working” (Anderson 47). With easy access in The Feed and today, we can obtain unknown information easily without having to work for it.

In today’s society, people of all ages do a lot less thinking than we did compared to a hundred years ago. At a young age we are taught to just regurgitate information and to have no creativity. Our school systems make us take numerous standardized tests that include no creativity. As technology has grown, our creativity has declined. Having access to countless information is awesome, but at the same time we do not obtain any knowledge since we have easy access to it. Thanks to technology, we no longer have that creative side since we are constantly being distracted with technology. People can sound super smart since they have access to find out information without ever thinking. If you want an answer to a question, all you have to do is pull out your smartphone and google your question. In the future, we probably will not have to take out smartphones and can just have the computer inside of our brains the question.

There is not a place that you go nowadays where you do not see people on their smart phones. It is sometimes hard to think that there was a time before computers and smartphones. One day when Titus and his group of friends went to the moon their feed got hacked and they had to live without the feed for a few days. Titus explains how bored he was and the only thing he did was stare at the blank hospital walls. When his father went to visit him the hospital that he was staying in, his father was trying to communicate with him through instant messages. Titus’s father totally forgot that he actually had to communicate to his son by speaking and not by using a computer chip. Titus was first confused why his father was staring at him before his father realized that they could not talk through the feed. If Titus’s feed did work, the two of them could just be standing there, but would actually be having a full conversation.

This happens to people today. For example, when you go out to eat at a restaurant you see people on their phones texting the person right across from them. Thanks to technology, we really do not have to speak to one another out loud. Some people barely speak words anymore since they are constantly messaging or on social media and communicate to others that way. When I was in high school, every time my friends and I would go out to eat we would put our phones in the middle of the table. We would be able to talk to one another and take a break from the rest of the world, In The Feed, those individuals may not have that option since advertisements are always popping up in their brain.

After many years of being told that utopias cannot exist I am starting to believe that they might be able to exist. At this point in the novel, I might consider this world to be a utopian society. The people in The Feed have access to technology inside of their bodies and can travel to other planets in the solar system. They might not be able to take a break from technology, but they have been able to use technology since they were born. Maybe to have a utopia we need to have access to endless information and technology. I believe that technology will help people build a utopia in the future since they will have endless knowledge in the palm of their hands.

Works Cited:

The Feed by M.T. Anderson

Briana L. 1057 words

Is your perfect my perfect?

There are approximately seven billion people in the world right now based on the last census, with that being said I believe there are close to seven billion different ideas of a utopia. Can they all be the same? Impossible.

Everyone has different mindsets and beliefs which would cause people to disagree with at least one thing in a perfect society; whether it's our taste in music, what we wear, who we associate ourselves with, no matter what it is someone will have something to say. We were made to be critical beings. We were made to speak when we felt the need to and to stand up for what we believe in. It takes time, work and patience to get the "perfect" society we all want but we also need to work together to do so.

So the main question is, is it possible?

Just take a moment and think about all the stupid things we argue about. Do you honestly believe a group of people can come to terms on a matter of this size? If so, please tell me why we haven't then. The only way I can picture something of this matter being discussed is only if someone is holding everyone at gunpoint and we all know the probability of that happening is most defiantly no.

That's why I believe that everything should not have to be perfect there should be general terms that everyone can somewhat agree to which would help our society become somewhat "perfect". For instance, housing and finical stability would play a major part in everything. If we could all be finically stable and make the same amount without feeling like we are competing with one another, we would eliminate all the classes (lower, middle and higher). With that being said I think this is something that everyone can agree on rather than most of the sensitive topics that cause a stir in our society. This would make things very simple which I find key to a utopia.

In my eyes, a perfect society is a place where everyone has a clear understanding and purpose for their lives. The main struggle we have as a society today is not knowing what we truly want out of life. Not knowing what we want to become of ourselves and why. All our lives are too fixated on the notion that getting an education is the only way to attain a job and a successful life. Since we struggle so much now, I believe that having the doubt and struggle portion of our lives figured out for us would help us in the long run. In the poem where she says “If any doubts arise, the wind dispels them instantly.” This would prevent them from having to be removed if it's already figured out.

The communication between higher-ups and everyone else would be constant and all decisions would benefit everyone. For instance, mainly all resources would be easy to access for everyone. Everyone having access to resources would bring equality amongst all people. We will all have the same amount of supplies, food.etc.

In Szymbroska's poem, there's multiple things that I can agree on, in the first line where she states "Island where all becomes clear". I believe there should be an overall clear understanding of how life goes daily. There's no confusion as to what goes on. We should be able to wake up one morning and ask ourselves " what am I doing today?" And then the answer is right there for us. We should not have to live our lives in question or doubt. Having agreed with Szymborska's point, opened my ears to realize how much of a struggle everyone goes through from time to time.

To be completely honest my perfect society would consist of equality amongst everyone. Everyone within the society would have a clear mindset and know what they want in their life and have the power to achieve it. I would want struggle and poverty not to exist. I would want something better than what we are settling for now.

-Wislawa Szymborska, Map: Collected and Last Poems, Mariner Books, 2015

Malachi A.

Word Count:696

Tell Me The Life You're Living is Good...

Utopia - Poem by Wislawa Szymborska started with ...

" Island where all becomes clear..."

I know that line caught your attention and pulled you in to read more. I know you're wondering what that life may be like and Szymborska makes it seem just right. She makes this world feel undeniable and has you wanting to exchange your current life for this immoral one 

Especially when she states:

" if any doubt arise, the wind dispels then instantly. " 

Doesn't that sound inviting and intriguing? Our lives are filled with doubts which makes us vulnerable and scared to do the things we want or know we should do, do. Our doubts constantly run through our minds and it is a top master in helping us determine what we should do and shouldn't do. In any given situation you ask yourself 

" if I do this, what will happen? "

" if I don't do this, will I regret it?" 

"What if I..."

"I shouldn't , right?"

It's a constant battle that we all face. So why not go to a place where all our doubts are dispelled. Why not enter a world where everything is clear? Why not, for once in our lives feel free? 

When you see the world around you, is it what you imagined? Is this the life you had planned, and if it wasn't then what would the life you want to live consist of? 

Everyday we complain about something...We complain about our days not going the way it should, the amount of work load we get, the stress of keeping up with tasks, dealing with relationships and friendships; and at the end of everyday it's just complete bullshit, don't you think? Now tell me this, is having the perfect world/life a possibility? Are you capable of handling something so superlative because if you are then why haven't you done something to make this world a better place?

Why haven't you pushed to make this society a utopia? A place where no one stresses, has worries or is questioning everything that comes its way.

Easy because YOU and I both know it's not humanly possible. We as humans are TOO flawed, we are distinguished through our ability to question and reason. We are distinguished by our beliefs and religion. We are distinguished by our personality/mannerisms. We are distinguished by our source of income and the amount of income we receive. We are distinguished by the color of our hair, skin, eye color, smile...etc. 

We are distinguished by our individuality and our upbringing. 

Now take all that and make it the same. Make every individual the same shape, color, size. 

Make every individual laugh the same, smile the same, walk the same. 

Make every individual identical. 

Make their source of income the same. 

Make their desires the same. 

Make them all have the "American Dream"

Make them all have the white picket fence family and not struggle. 

Make them all alike so that no conflict rises. 

Can you define communism for me? Can you put it in a sentence without the thought of the following men appear in your head: 

Fidel Castro

                                                         

Vladimir Lenin

                                               

                                                      

           

Joseph Stalin

                                                          











Don't get me wrong it's not bad to try and create a utopia, but we are too independent. We are too exposed to what society has already given us that conforming to something else, would only have to take a higher power to do so and even then we will rebel. A Utopian society is unachievable because at the end of the day it will be shaped within someone's opinion and if that's the case, if that's truly what we desire then we would all be living in our own utopian bubble. It would be formed to the way we like it and the downside to it all would be that we would be antisocial human beings because we all would not share the same views and same utopian society. Personally, the only way utopia can be possible is to eliminate all freedom and individuality and bring in a system. We would have to demolish all the hard work our ancestors did, all the rights we fought for and act as if it ever happened. The perfect utopia has to start from the ground up. It would have to be it's own "new beginning". 

As I look back on a biblical passage called " Noah's Ark " I can not help but think that maybe that's what it would take to build this perfect utopia. I am also conflicted because I know that we are all created different on purpose. If we were meant to have a perfect society, we would be living in it already. So why is this a thought now? Why is someone willing to bring up this idea, when in reality this is what was meant for us. Our struggle, our heartbreaks, our failures, achievements. We were meant to feel every emotion known to man kind. We were meant to go through all these trials and tribulations because we were meant to be human. We were meant to live in a life that will push us to our breaking points because these things makes memories for us. Memories that we will cherish, build upon and push us to keep going in life. 

Let me make myself clear, if a utopia is what you want to strive for in life, if getting the "perfect" society is what you crave then go for it. Do not let the people around you discourage you and belittle your idea. Only you know what you're capable and incapable of doing. Creating this society takes years, voices, and so much work but only do so if you have thick skin to handle the feedback you will  receive. I just truly believe that the society I am in has work to be done but the unjust, imperfect, judgmental, questionable and doubtful life I live seems like the perfect utopia for me. 

Alyssa S. 

Work Cited: Utopia" by Wislawa Szyborska

Word Count : 996

Utopia: Food, Music and Good Vibes… For The Most Part

Utopia to most people is a perfect world. In my eyes, utopia shouldn’t be a place that is perfect but more of a place where one can live in peace, balance and serendipity.

I don’t know about you but my version of “utopia” would include dancing to good music, dream job, happiness and to eat all the food I want without gaining weight…. That’s just me though, not everyone sees life the same and that’s cool…

See everyone’s complex in their own way, they experience a day differently than you would and I think that is essential. It’s important to have diversity in people not just with gender, race or class but in personality and characteristics. If people acted the same, all had the same interests, life would be pretty boring.

To have acceptance or at least respect for one’s differences would give people a “ tree of understanding, dazzlingly straight and simple” (Szymborska) life. For instance, I have my taste in music and you have yours.I can switch from Ed Sheeran to Kanye to Adele to Beyonce real quick but if you wanted to introduce me to new music I’d give it a try and maybe I’ll end up liking it.

But just imagine living in a world where everything and everyone is the same to the point that it’s like being able to listen to only one song for the rest of your life, you’d go crazy wouldn’t you?

Someone’s best day could be another’s most tragic, boring or regular day. Everyone has different life experiences, different ways of dealing with their problems but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t go for it and try and make an effort for a utopia.

I guess what I’m trying to say is I would like to have a utopia but to a certain extent. I wouldn’t want things to be perfect, easy breezy or constant. We need change, diversity, expressive art and a bit of struggle and tragedy.Without all that there’d be no drive, no appreciation or effort to try and  understand  life. You’re supposed go through a little struggle in some sort of shape or form whether it may be financially, socially, physically or emotionally.

It’s sorta like when they say it’s a rite of passage to experience your first love and heartbreak or death. It’s kind of inevitable to experience since it’s one thing that can’t be really described or controlled...

In the satire version of Noah and the Ark, Noah was kinda the “bad guy” in the world by choosing what people would live or die. He thought he was the hero that saves the day but depending on your opinion, Noah was the bad guy and just left all the unique people to drown to death.

It was what God instructed him to do he felt like there was no other option. He followed God’s orders and with that in his mind he seized to consider other’s wants and needs and views of happiness and peace.

Han was all for art and also having his faith. There can be people who like A or B or be like Han who wanted both. Balance of the extraordinary and customary…. Art and religion in this case..

It’s the idea of feeling safe and being reassured that everything is okay that Noah felt he had the power to give people… well selected people.. Most times we just want to feel protected and sometimes that leads to isolation; staying away from a risk of danger as a whole.

The arc was that safe haven for the people and animals Noah chose… He mixed the idea of safety and isolation because that was all that he knew. Following one specific way of life instead of trying to see through the eyes of other lives.  This satire made me think of today’s world and how people with power try to take charge in sculpting the fate of others without even knowing them…

Deciding who’s strong. Who’s smart. Who’s better. Who’s worth it.

No one should have that say in dictating not just one but several people’s fates through their own blurred mindset. If a utopia were to exist, my idea is just somewhere i can be content with what I like and gives me meaning and not having that affect someone else’s version of a  “...cave where Meaning lies” (Szymbroska) because everyone has different desires, fears, wants and needs…  it’s not uniform or perfect and to me that’s a utopia…

Works Cited:

-Wislawa Szymborska, Map: Collected and Last Poems, Mariner Books, 2015

- Noah and the Arc-Jonathan Goldstein

Word  Count” 749

Leslie C.