i wanted to throw this out there since it relates to the 2 books i have just finished and the other book i just am about to start...a brave new world, 1984 and amused to death. i am going to write an entry soon regarding these two negative utopias...and contrast them from some great neg- utopian movies...but that is soon...first a real writer.
from Stuart McAllister
"Amusing Ourselves to Death"
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When the apostle John cautioned us about loving the world and the things in it—"the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does"—I'm sure he could not have imagined a context such as ours, where images, ideas, and pleasures dominate our horizons 24 hours a day, and where the availability and accessibility of any kind of fantasy is ubiquitous.
Entertainment and all that it implies and conveys is not simply an option that we have the privilege to explore occasionally; it has become for many a way of living. For many others, it has become simply an ailment undiagnosed. The problem with living in a culture is that we are blinded to its nature, narratives, and influence on our lives.
Thankfully, there are voices of caution from higher education, such as Neil Postman’s. In his book Amusing Ourselves To Death, he contrasts the futuristic visions of George Orwell’s 1984 and Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World:
What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who would want to read one…. Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance. Orwell feared we would become a captive culture. Huxley feared that we would become a trivial culture…. As Huxley remarked: the civil libertarians and rationalists who are ever on the alert to oppose tyranny “failed to take into account man’s almost infinite appetite for distractions.” In 1984, Huxley added, people are controlled by inflicting pain. In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure. In short, Orwell feared that what we hate will ruin us. Huxley feared that what we love will ruin us.
His book examines the possibility that Huxley, not Orwell, was right, and his point is well taken.
Our cultural mantra invites us to easy, laidback living, to life as it essentially pleases, entertains, or comforts you. And by subtle and not-so-subtle means, it undermines and erodes the core commitments and essential virtues necessary to live a life of freedom, reality, and truth. Living only for the sake of pleasure can only in the end make us slaves. The unrestrained appeasement of desire only expands our hunger for it. Popular culture fosters alternative views of ultimacy; it invites us to escape from reality, to submerge ourselves in a world of fantasy, make-believe, and imagination. By brilliant technical skill and powerful use of image and sound, our emotions are stimulated, our senses enlivened, and our dreams (and nightmares) envisioned.
Entertainment may have a place in our life, but it becomes a serious issue when it is the supreme focus of our life. The God revealed to us in Creation, in Scripture, in the story of Israel, and ultimately in Jesus, calls us to a singular focus, a serious commitment and a life of obedience, worship, and discipline. His call for our lives is to set our focus, our attention and our commitment upon Him, his will, and his way. We are invited to enter life as God intends, to enjoy the works of creation, and to explore the cultural mandate to express our creativity under God.
The apostle John may not have envisioned a world such as ours when he cautioned against being blinded by love for the world, but God's Word is exceptionally relevant: "The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever" (1 John 2:17). He invites us to consider whether we are pursuing that which is true life, or whether we are more accurately "amusing ourselves to death."
from Stuart McAllister
"Amusing Ourselves to Death"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When the apostle John cautioned us about loving the world and the things in it—"the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does"—I'm sure he could not have imagined a context such as ours, where images, ideas, and pleasures dominate our horizons 24 hours a day, and where the availability and accessibility of any kind of fantasy is ubiquitous.
Entertainment and all that it implies and conveys is not simply an option that we have the privilege to explore occasionally; it has become for many a way of living. For many others, it has become simply an ailment undiagnosed. The problem with living in a culture is that we are blinded to its nature, narratives, and influence on our lives.
Thankfully, there are voices of caution from higher education, such as Neil Postman’s. In his book Amusing Ourselves To Death, he contrasts the futuristic visions of George Orwell’s 1984 and Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World:
What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who would want to read one…. Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance. Orwell feared we would become a captive culture. Huxley feared that we would become a trivial culture…. As Huxley remarked: the civil libertarians and rationalists who are ever on the alert to oppose tyranny “failed to take into account man’s almost infinite appetite for distractions.” In 1984, Huxley added, people are controlled by inflicting pain. In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure. In short, Orwell feared that what we hate will ruin us. Huxley feared that what we love will ruin us.
His book examines the possibility that Huxley, not Orwell, was right, and his point is well taken.
Our cultural mantra invites us to easy, laidback living, to life as it essentially pleases, entertains, or comforts you. And by subtle and not-so-subtle means, it undermines and erodes the core commitments and essential virtues necessary to live a life of freedom, reality, and truth. Living only for the sake of pleasure can only in the end make us slaves. The unrestrained appeasement of desire only expands our hunger for it. Popular culture fosters alternative views of ultimacy; it invites us to escape from reality, to submerge ourselves in a world of fantasy, make-believe, and imagination. By brilliant technical skill and powerful use of image and sound, our emotions are stimulated, our senses enlivened, and our dreams (and nightmares) envisioned.
Entertainment may have a place in our life, but it becomes a serious issue when it is the supreme focus of our life. The God revealed to us in Creation, in Scripture, in the story of Israel, and ultimately in Jesus, calls us to a singular focus, a serious commitment and a life of obedience, worship, and discipline. His call for our lives is to set our focus, our attention and our commitment upon Him, his will, and his way. We are invited to enter life as God intends, to enjoy the works of creation, and to explore the cultural mandate to express our creativity under God.
The apostle John may not have envisioned a world such as ours when he cautioned against being blinded by love for the world, but God's Word is exceptionally relevant: "The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever" (1 John 2:17). He invites us to consider whether we are pursuing that which is true life, or whether we are more accurately "amusing ourselves to death."
posted by raj at 8:39 AM
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