Scientific Progress and its Costs
Scientific progress is undoubtedly positive, it is the driving force behind human kinds expansion. It created many of the things that have allowed humans to become the most powerful animal on earth. However as scientific progress, eventually other things need to be eased back to allow for progression to continue. In the novel Oryx and Crake By Margaret Atwood, a society is depicted where scientific progress has almost taken over every other aspect of society. The main character Jimmy is born and raised in the luxurious compounds. Where corporations create the most advanced products for consumers in the compounds and the pleeblands. Jimmy grows up seeing the complications scientific progress can create. From his poor relationship with his family to the virus he helps his childhood friend spread, it is clear that Jimmy has seen the best and worst that scientific progress has to offer. Ultimately, When scientific progress is given reign over all other aspects of society, the impact on human culture, relationships, life, and even the earth itself are tremendous.
In a society where science shrouds society’s focus, humanities lose its importance. In Oryx and Crake, the corporations consistently push for progression of science and discourage people to pursue other fields of work. This can be seen from how Jimmy has to be tutored by crake so he can get passable grades. Crake shows Jimmy shows how to solve math and science problems, “but Jimmy [does] not see, and it did not all come clear.” (Atwood 174) To Crake math and science problems are easy to understand, but Jimmy struggles with them and is not able to see what Crake sees. Instead of the school system allowing Jimmy to take humanities courses, where he excels, he has to take science subjects, and search for alternative methods to learn subjects. This is reflective of the society that he lives in, the corporations don’t want people practicing humanities, and instead want them to focus on science, causing humanities to fade away from society. Furthermore, Jimmy and Crake grew up playing games like Blood and Roses, “a trading game […] the blood side [plays] with human atrocities for the counters […] massacres, genocides […] the roses side [plays] with human achievements, artworks, scientific breakthroughs.” (78) This game reflects the society’s lack of care for human history, positive and negative. The focus is purely put towards progression, and humanities, specifical history, are forgotten and only relevant in computer games. This causes people to not learn from humanity’s past mistakes, and try to not repeat these mistakes. Lastly, when Jimmy graduates, he goes to Martha-Graham, a school that was, “falling apart […] surrounded […] by the tackiest kind of pleeblands.” (185) meanwhile Crakes school Watson-Crick, “was a palace, at the entrance way was a bronzed statue of the institution's mascot […] the extensive grounds inside the security walls [was] beautifu...
