Paper 2 idea
In my second paper I want to discuss the topic of government control on its population. Each Feed and Uglies centered around ways in which its governments controlled the population. In Feed it was the planting of the "feednet" into people's brains that allowed so much control. In Uglies it was the legions on the citizens brains that they got during the "pretty" surgery that made the population docile and easy to keep in control. During our Feed discussion we did an activity where we came up with the many ways our government does and can keep control of us. Through this discussion it became abundantly clear that advances in technology made it easier and easier for governments to control its population. I think it is important to teach students about these things and these novels do a very good job of doing this. Students need to be introduced to the fact that these advances in technology do make it easier for the government to track and control individuals. Each of these novels make the government into a antagonist and show how government could get more and more power with advances of technology. With no signs of advances in technology end in sight, it may be a slippery slope to internet actually being implanted into humans brains. Not only are these novels entertaining, they show how freedom and privacy may not always be what they seem. These books should make the students think and question the way our society works today.
How can we pursue questions about privacy and security without being or at least appearing to be anti-government--or anti-capitalism? I accept most roles of government in my life but worry that it may have more and more such roles in the future? How can we get students to think about these issues without being too ideological?
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