A ?Brave? New World
I read some of A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley a while back. Sadly, I was unable to finish it, and for that, I blame my three jobs and full course load. Life got so busy that I never got back to it. I mean, hey, sometimes you need to stare blankly at the pages of nothingness and take in the peace that it writes you. Technology has made so much information accessible that I feel as though I’ve developed ADHD merely from the fact that so much is happening and I need to access it all. Information is at the tips of my fingers.
The world of digital performance has always been one that is fascinating to me. The problem is that with so much access there’s bound to be a tremor. From what I collected from A Brave New World was that societies were growing into drones who eat up and dispose of information like laxatives. People strayed away from literacy and consumed any information that they saw in front of them. There was no fact checking, little research, and a lack of messages behind the words that they read because, from birth, they were constructed to be conditioned. Huxley’s futuristic society asks an important question: “Are humans becoming accustomed to existing in a certain way because they are exposed to a certain kind of life?”
I ask myself,
“Will I have lived a life in a filter bubble catered to only my opinions or one that exposed me to all information — both in red and blue?”
This brings me to this week’s blog prompt. Naturally, I chose to answer question two what fictional dystopian vision is the internet accelerating us toward? And, from what you’ve already read, I think you can understand which dystopian vision I have chosen.
Why? I guess I really took notice to this a few years back when I was hanging out with people whose main concerns were very limiting compared to mine. My previous friend group sought interest in trending items, how they were perceived by social media, clubbing, drinking, boys, hair products, and god knows what else…I tuned out most of the time. For the longest time, I thought that there was something wrong with me and my interest in politics, media issues, conspiracy theories, travel, literature, God? I never really fit in with these kinds of groups. When we addressed the bombings in Paris, I asked them of those that happened simultaneously in Lebanon, and they questioned me. I even met a few people who honestly believed that anyone who was Muslim had a f**ed up childhood, composed of hate and beating women (*crazy*). The truth is, these people had grown in a filter bubble that limited their understandings of the external world. Why was I any different? For one, I was lucky enough to come from a very diverse family. Secondly, I lived in Europe for a while as a teenager, which, predisposed me to different types of culture and language. My linguistics exposed me to gender and gender norms. I guess I grew up outside of the cliché suburban filter bubble (Picture the Suburban moms from Edward Scissorhands for this one). I didn’t fit in because I was exposed to more. And, for that, I am eternally grateful.
I’m afraid that people will grow accustomed to a limited filter bubble. I mean let’s face it, we need for people to be informed now more than ever before. The world is under surveillance; people are segregating into groups based on race and religion, governments are educating our youth to think and feel a particular way the world is in danger. It may not seem like it here but, after the Quebec Mosque shooting, I felt fear overcome me. I couldn’t believe that a terrorist attack like such could happen but also, occur in a place of prayer and safety — a place that symbolizes protection. The worst part? I didn’t see it coming because the thought so consumed me that Canada can only exist as a progressive country. Sadly, there will always be people who live with a different perception of the world. Similarly, to my former friends, I could never translate my ideologies in the world to them. Physically, we were living in the same world. Digitally and mentally we were living in entirely different realms.
In summary, I’ve got to say; I believe that there are people in this world who are living in Huxley’s world — one that is controlled by a higher power. But, I think that we can change that fact by being aware of such things as filter bubbles. Open your mind to everything even if you don’t like everything that you hear. It’s important to stay conscious of even the bad things that are happening around us. The world is far from perfect but, it’s our world so we have to at least try to take care of it for the greater good.
CHEERS!
