Brainstorming Future Worlds

People

Valids/ Invalids Replicants/ Androids Mutations/ 12 fingers

Linking themes

Perfection – Minority/ Gattaca Individuality – Pedestrian/ Gattaca/ V Conformity – V/ Pedestrian Technology – helps humanity but also has a negative effect

Expository how to start and end

Introduction

Technology has the potential to change the world. It seems that there is no limit to what humans can achieve. Science-fiction texts are a fantastical window into possible futures that astound audiences with technologies beyond our wildest dreams. Yet the technology on show is often inherently flawed and ultimately has a negative effect on humanity. Andrew Niccol’s Gattaca presents us with a “not too distant future” whereby science has discovered how to create a new master race known as Valids or made-men. Steven Spielberg envisions a future world without crime in Minority Report through the use of three enslaved pre-cogs who can see into the future and prevent a murder before it occurs. In Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner set in 2019 Tyrell Corporation has “advanced Robot evolution into the NEXUS phase – a being virtually identical to a human – known as a Replicant.” With these incredible leaps in technology the human race seems destined to succeed, but what if our determination to create a perfect civilization should fail?

Conclusion

Despite technology claiming to provide us with a utopic future, those in power often abuse it to the detriment of people who should be benefiting from a more hopeful future rather than having their individualism robbed by technology. The texts demonstrate that technology no matter how sophisticated is no match for the intelligence of humans who have the capacity to question, defy and defeat technological advancements.