Essay Prompt - Do changes that make our lives easier not necessarily make them better?
Essay-
Technology has grown in leaps and bounds in the last couple of decades and has made our lives infinitely easier. However, has it necessarily made our lives better? I disagree and instead, strongly believe that easier lives are not necessarily better lives. This can be seen in the pertinent examples of Brave New World and Frankenstein.
Brave New World is a classic, dystopian novel in which society is divided into different castes such as Alpha, Beta etc. People are not born but are merely manufactured and then conditioned to be the ‘perfect’ individual. One major theme of this novel is the popular addiction to the drug ‘soma’. This drug detaches people from reality and transports them to their own dream world where they can live out their fantasies. Due to this, people become highly deluded and do not realize their plights. Only the protagonist, Bernard Marx, and the ’ Savage’, both of whom are not addicts, are able to recognize and lament the loss of individuality and expression. As this example shows, changes that make our lives easier often make them more superficial and less grounded in reality.
Another example that comes to mind is that of the novel ’ Frankenstein’ by Mary Shelley. In this novel, Victor Frankenstein strives to create a living organism from dead body parts. This, he believes, would be his ultimate triumph and immortalize him in the eyes of posterity. However, he ends up creating a grotesque, inhuman monster. This monster, fueled by rage and fury due to his solitude and rejection by society, destroy’s Frankenstein’s life by murdering his family and driving him insane. As this example shows us, changes that may seem to be beneficial often turn out to be double-edged swords, capable of anything across the moral spectrum.
From the above, we can justifiably theorize that technological advances are not always beneficial. It is upto society to utilize this technology in the best possible way.
Any tips or specific advice would be highly appreciated. Thanks in advance!