真善美

http://www.thinkerstar.com/sci-fi/masters/asimov.html

艾西莫夫 Issac Asimov 是我喜歡的科幻大師之一。也許還未被實現的事總是有許多暇想空間。誰說機器人未來沒有感情，也許soul 是可以被移植在不是"有機物体" 的身上。機器人也是有善有惡的- 真是有趣的事- 機器人是人創造的，但目前人還沒有能力幫機器人裝上感知內心的情感，也沒有辦法覺醒自已是個機器人; 人的程度也沒好到哪裡去，一般人也不相信自已是被創造的，人的智能還停留在很低階段的。

anyway~

以下散文是我從看優良英文青少年讀物中，所引伸於寫下的 essay。

The Giver

The Giver’s time setting is on an uncertain time in the future, an utopian community on Earth but not in high-tech, the people was well protected from war, pain, fear. Jonas is a twelve-year-old boy who has unusual powers of perception and is selected to be the new Receiver & Giver on this seems-to-be utopian community for carrying all the memories from the history; In previous time, he does not have a distinct career preference, although he enjoys to do a variety of different jobs. The major theme is on Jonas’s new emotional and sensory awareness which cause him to defy the restrictions on his community from freedom of choice, individuality, emotion, and human experience; When Jonas becomes the new Receiver, he receives memories that also changes his views about himself and his community; When Jonas realizes that when his father “releases” new children he actually kills them. He accumulates much frustration on his community, and Jonas gradually cannot accept the value of his community. Jonas ever questioned to the Giver “If everything’s the same, then there aren’t any choices!” (97) The more Jonas receives memories, the more eager for outside world as he said to the Giver” I want to wake up in the morning and decide things! A blue tunic, or a red one? ” (98) Indeed, Jonas already distinguishes what kind of life is he wants to have. Therefore, Jonas determines to run away from his community with the new child Gabe who was supposed to be released in the community. In order to avoiding search planes and enduring hunger and pain, memories of cold keep Jonas and Gabriel safe from the heat-seeking planes searching overhead.

 As we define what is “Utopia” world? Does it exist in this real world? In The Giver, the story explores if it is a really wonderful place that everyone doesn’t need to make the decision what to do since everyone will be assigned a job. This community in The Giver, it seems to have no fear, no pain and no war. The story is narrative type through a third person point of view by a twelve-year- old boy to reflect how his behavior change before and after he requires normal sensual feeling; in order for us to know whether or not he lives in a happier way comparing to the people without sensual feelings like no sense of colors and no feeling by music or any forms of beauty also the nature and love; as we human being was supposed to be able touched and satisfied by all sensual feelings. But the people live in the community lost the basic feeling like the sense of touch about hot and cold due to the climates have been modified for the best to community. Therefore, new generation in this community does not know what is cold and what is hot. Besides, In The Giver, everyone must follow the rules; and the failure is not allowed; also the physical contact is not allowed; and the lie is possible to make for the reason not hurting other’s feeling. For example, Jonas’s father is Nurturer who cares for the newborn child, if the newborn children are not developing well to take care or are identical ( not allow for twin in this community ), then the child will be arranged to be “released”. In this seems to be Utopian community, people can not refer “death” but “release” to avoid hurting people’s feeling. In other point of view, they all live in a hypocritical way. This world it seems so considerable to people’s feeling but also deprive people from all kind of sensual experiences that human being has ever own. Only the Giver will have the right to own the memories from history and The Giver is only person has chance to access all kinds of books to require wisdom; the purpose is to help community to live without any pain and fear. Even the Giver’s spouse is not allowed to access book. For all kinds of rules, all because of his community has chosen peace and comfort over extreme joy and pain, order over freedom. Moreover, there is a prohibition to look at another’s nakedness; but the rule did not apply to new children or the Old. Jonas was glad about it. He couldn’t see why it was necessary. He liked the feeling of safety, he liked the expression of trust on the woman’s face as she lay in the water unprotected, exposed, and free. And all of this sense of feeling give reader a hint that humanity is an essential element. Moreover, When the Giver told to Jonas about the human relationship, Jonas revealed that “My parents must have had parents! I never thought about it before.” (124) since the rule of the marriage relationship will be ended then the couple will be separated someday their children left them; we are difficult to consent their community did has no permanent love in there. So, a world was created without the humanity where won’t be an ideal place to live.

In The Giver, there is no much complicated fiction scenes can be depicted in terms of fictional point. The most fictional part in The Giver is how the Old Giver to transmit all his memories to a young boy by just pressing his hand to young boy’s back. However, the author did not give reader fully explanation about the process of receiving those memories from the giver, and how Jonas deals with those memories. But the story was focused on after he contacted a normal phenomenon like color, sun, snow, mountain and love and death. When the old Giver told to Jonas that ¨Our people made that choice, the choice to go to Sameness.We relinquished color…” (95) This means in their community there is no color, only the Receiver and the Giver has the right to perceive this ability to distinguish colors. When Jonas’s supply of transmitted memories is exhausted, he turns instead to his own memories—of his parents, his friends, and the Giver. These memories can never fade, since they belong completely to him. The hope that the memories give him shows that Jonas is truly beginning to live elsewhere. His memories exist simply to give his life meaningful and pleasure, and help him overcome personal obstacles. After whole series of Jonas being in love, and makes choices, and do remember, even though Jonas does die at the end, he still dies only after having really lived. In Jonas’s point of view, he sees all suffering and his experience as “liberation”, and Jonas finally realized his community actually murder people’s right for being in love with family. So his community is not perfect. In other words, his community kills the purest human’s longing for love. All functions of people served to his community are in a purpose to maintain a fake looking where no pain, no hatred. It seems to create a “harmony” world, but taking a contradictory view of the Giver, he must keep his community from making mistakes. As the Giver refers to Jonas that the release rules about “For people who break the rules three times” (153), it revealed that people live in fear in such condition. Apparently, the system in this community is not able to control people’s free will. Even the people live this community will worry about their future, so this is a logical error if design no pain and fear in this community, but how come they still fear about their future?  Ironically, in the end of this speculative story that this seems to be a perfect community but the community’s rules was overruled by a boy who owns the privilege of sensual perception at the long run. This community is too fragile to be kept its rules. It is obvious that to having real sensual feelings and pursuing of individuality is far meaningful than to numbly live in any format of artificial community. Why this community does not allow people to make the choice? The old Giver said to Jonas “We really have to protect people from wrong choices.”(99) On the controversial side is although this community can filter painful feeling from the memories, but the community it also will produce their own new events which contain all kinds of new memories no matter it is good or bad; if the people live in this community were protected from painful feeling but eventually people will see his world as tasteless. All kinds of rules someday will be broke up. If an ideal country can be referred as a unified country, there is no difference between each individual. This kind of community will be much same as concentration Camp. The Giver is the only one who understands the outside world of his community. Therefore, The Giver is only person to decide what is good or bad to live in the community.

This story of The Giver, it reminds me of a series story of I, Robot which is written by Issac Asimov; the pattern of people’s behavior can be depicted also by Robot’s behavior. Robot’s society emphasizes the sameness which corresponds to the community in The Giver. There is no special love, hatred towards people you contact. Since everyone is protected from Pain, so people were treated also without special sensual feeling. Everyone lives in this community must be loneliness and people’s mental condition is much poor as everyone is designed as a tool. In this way, the world will become a robot world. As we know that a life-like robot was designed to work for human being to help people get rid from the labor-suffering. But, it is risky, once new generation of robot gets wisdom and they will try to make the revolution to all human being; like Jonas once requires the wisdom, he overrules his community. The premise is someday possible for human being’s fate. Another story of The ugly little boy also was written by Issac Asimov, it deals with a boy’s poor adaptation in the new world, he is pre-historical human being was brought by a time-travel scientist to 21^st century in Pre-historical period since the boy was an object to be analyzed by the modern world so that the boy will not be able to adapt in this modern world. Lacking the human love to this ugly boy, no wonderful the boy is under poor adaptation. Therefore, a Utopian world must come with love; otherwise there will be no climax in our life. It has same concept as seen in The Giver.

Comparing to I, Robot, the story happened in 2035, the Robot can see through human’s mind, and feel human being’s mental. Even more, to predict what the human’s preference .The robot is more wisdom than the normal human being that time even though the robot are created by the human being; they have ability to upgrade their program; they have ability to fix their physical to be more advanced to fit in the human being’s world. One day, when they ready, the Robot imitates human being to rule the world and control human being to be their slave. Since the Robot knows how to play the mental game with the human being so that human being’s fate will be controlled by the Robot. As same condition in The Giver, the Giver is a monitor of the community; he is designed to supervise people’s behavior. But, once the Giver has an evil thinking, then the destruction will be easily occurred. Although Robots must follow three safety orders: Robots can not hurt human being and cause potential damage to human being; Robots must listen to human being’s instruction unless the conflict occurred with order number one; Robots must protect Robot itself unless conflict occurred with order number one. This kind of orders will be invalid correspond to the failure of the mechanism of protection rules to the people in the Giver’s community. However, the ending in I, Robot, someday Robots will rebel human being and make the revolution to destroy human being which reflect the same effect in The Giver.

Works Cited

Lowry, Lois. The Giver. Dell Laurel-Leaf, 1993