Children of Men
Apr. 6th, 2011 07:23 pmChildren of Men was intense. It definitely raised some thought provoking questions...
First, what do babies and reproduction mean for society? Besides the biological need for them to ensure the survival of our species, babies mean a lot to our society. The young represent hope and change for the better of our future, they represent the future itself. Time and the future is something that all humans hold on to when times get tough; things will change for the better, just give them time. Even if all hope is lost in one own's life, parents often sacrifice everything they have so that their children will be able to live a better life, they have hope, in the form of the happiness of their children. In the world of Children of Men, where everyone is infertile, it is as if hope has been lost, for society as a whole. The film represents that quite well... the setting of London in 2027 is bleak and depressing. From the muted colors of the entire movie, to the existence of assisted suicide medication, Quietus, the viewer can tell that 2027 London is supposed to be a dystopia. However, with the presence of a baby, everything is changed. A baby brings hope to the world, for a better future. In the scene where Kee brings the baby out into the streets from the apartment building, everyone stops to stare. Hope has been brought into the world again!
Second, How do people respond to events such as infertility? In the movie, some people try to account for the infertility by providing all sorts of explanations. A protest group in yellow in the movie is an example of one such group that is doing this. Often times, people seem to attribute higher death rates, natural catastrophes, or trends such as infertility to God and God's wrath. For example, in today's world, the Westboro Baptist Church is a christian organization notorious for protesting and picketing the funerals of veterans and americans that are lost in war. Their rationale behind their actions is their belief that America is losing so many of its soldiers because we accept homosexuality, which is incurring God's wrath.
First, what do babies and reproduction mean for society? Besides the biological need for them to ensure the survival of our species, babies mean a lot to our society. The young represent hope and change for the better of our future, they represent the future itself. Time and the future is something that all humans hold on to when times get tough; things will change for the better, just give them time. Even if all hope is lost in one own's life, parents often sacrifice everything they have so that their children will be able to live a better life, they have hope, in the form of the happiness of their children. In the world of Children of Men, where everyone is infertile, it is as if hope has been lost, for society as a whole. The film represents that quite well... the setting of London in 2027 is bleak and depressing. From the muted colors of the entire movie, to the existence of assisted suicide medication, Quietus, the viewer can tell that 2027 London is supposed to be a dystopia. However, with the presence of a baby, everything is changed. A baby brings hope to the world, for a better future. In the scene where Kee brings the baby out into the streets from the apartment building, everyone stops to stare. Hope has been brought into the world again!
Second, How do people respond to events such as infertility? In the movie, some people try to account for the infertility by providing all sorts of explanations. A protest group in yellow in the movie is an example of one such group that is doing this. Often times, people seem to attribute higher death rates, natural catastrophes, or trends such as infertility to God and God's wrath. For example, in today's world, the Westboro Baptist Church is a christian organization notorious for protesting and picketing the funerals of veterans and americans that are lost in war. Their rationale behind their actions is their belief that America is losing so many of its soldiers because we accept homosexuality, which is incurring God's wrath.