The “Rap-Back” Of Tech In the two stories, “Harrison Bergeron”, and “By The Waters Of Babylon”, the world is “destroyed”, or “remade”, after a technological “break-down”. Tech can very easily lead us to our own imminent demise, none the less it’s own, but usually, it may only do so with our allowing it.
Harrison Bergeron and By the Waters of the Babylon Do you ever imagine the future? If so what does it look like bright, and shiny? Unfortunately the way the world is headed it will probably look the opposite of what you imagined, gloomy, and desolate. The stories of “Harrison Bergeron” by, Kurt Vonnegut and “By the waters of Babylon” by, Stephen Vincent Benet are two short stories that represent dark versions of the near future. Will our world ever end up like this, hurt by inequalities or destroyed by technology?
“Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is a progress; working together is success,” by Henry Ford. The book Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, and the short story By the Waters of Babylon, by Stephen Vincent Benét, show how humankind isn’t always successful throughout their journey. Some stories, people, and objects could seem like they have nothing in common, completely different, but hidden underneath the surface are similarities and connections. People will make their own choices and carry through with them if they believe they are right. As things carry on throughout both stories we see they are connected more commonly through being compared to a phoenix, finding the truth and the travel.
Throughout the existence of literature, there have been numerous pieces that portrays life in a dystopian American. In the narrative, "By the Water of Babylon", Stephen Vincent Benet tells the story of a young priest 's journey to gather metal in a post-apocalyptic New York City. In contrast, the Pulizter Prize winning novel, The Road, Cormac McCarthy displays the hardships faced by a middle-aged man and his adolescent son as they travel south through an ash covered wasteland that were once the Appalachian Mountains. Even though these pieces of fiction are seperated by decades of various turmoil, the authors accomplish numerous comparisons and contrasts that exemplify a post-apocalyptic America.
Similarly in Millers context, he was able challenge 1950’s American humanity, by revealing the corruptness of HUAC members like Senator Joseph McCarthy. Adding on to this, Shelly composes a sense of historical irony as during his lifetime, Ozymandias was a feared and respected leader, showcased through the religious allusion, “My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings”. However he has become nothing more than a faint memory, a broken statue in the desert “Nothing beside remains. Round the Decay”. As a Romantic poet, Shelley emphasized the incredible
How closely related can two stories written decades apart really be? “Fahrenheit 451” written by Ray Bradbury in 1951 and “By the Waters of Babylon” by Stephan Benet written in 1937 both have heaps of information on the topic of nuclear annihilation. “Fahrenheit 451” and “By the Waters of Babylon” correlate but still deviate with remarkable characters, brilliant themes, and detailed literary elements. The characters in “Fahrenheit 451” relate to those in “By the Water of Babylon”
“Harrison Bergeron” vs. “By The Waters Of Babylon” Will the future of Earth be bright or could it turn dark? In “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut and “By The Waters of Babylon” by Stephen Vincent Benét, two ominous futures are portrayed along with their dangers. In “Harrison Bergeron” everyone is equal and has to wear handicaps to ensure equality. In “By The Waters of Babylon”, future New York is in ruins after a bombing based off man’s technology. The stories “Harrison Bergeron” and “By the Waters of Babylon” compare and contrast based on the future and the warnings of the future based off the technology used.
The “Waters Of Babylon” is an optimistic story. The story revolves around the protagonist John as he makes his way to the forbidden “Place of the Gods”. Once in the Place of the Gods he realizes that this place was not inhabited by Gods but instead by humans (page 8). After this epiphany, John understands that his people could accomplish the achievements from past. On page 8 he says, “Nevertheless we make a beginning . . .
“By the Waters of Babylon” Paper In the short story, “By the Waters of Babylon” by Stephen Vincent Benet, the setting is post-apocalyptic and is about what Benet thought the world would be after the events of WWII. In this story, the world was destroyed and people forgot the important knowledge that was known during that time period. The simple knowledge they know now is how to hunt, and that there is a place where the gods live. When the main character, John, went to the Place of the Gods, which was forbidden, he discovered the truth of what happened during the Great Burning.
In the story of “By the Waters of Babylon” and “A Raisin in the Sun” the characters have an American Dream. By the Waters of Babylon, John is soon to be a priest and goes on a journey to the east. While on the trip, John begins to realize the knowledge that he gained over the years were lies. John notices the truths and facts about “the place of the gods” and “the great burning”. In the A Raisin in the Sun multiple characters have big dreams, and goals they want to achieve.
The interpretation of the theme – truth in “By the Waters of Babylon” In the short story “By the Waters of Babylon” the author Stephen Vincent Benét conveys the theme, “truth is a hard deer to hunt, if you eat too much of it at once, you may die of the truth” (Benét, 255). Which is a hyperbolic metaphor that means truth is like knowledge, hard to find. So, if too much of it is eaten at once, death is likely; as in truth is dangerous and hard to regulate among people if it is boundless. When the protagonist John was tired after travelling to the forbidden Place of Gods seeking knowledge, he fell asleep in one of the big dead-houses.
Sapp John Sapp Hensley English 11/ Fourth Period 05 February 2018 Part 12: Rough Draft “Babylon Revisited” is a very detailed and well written story that has many ups and downs bound to leave the reader on the edge of their seat. F. Scott Fitzgerald uses many different types of writing techniques in “Babylon Revisited” to make this story grab the reader’s attention even more so than some of his previous works. Fitzgerald’s style portrays one of the most important aspects of this book by far, setting the tone for this story giving you more details throughout.
The Parallel Stories Whether God is real or not, there’ve been many stories in ancient times concerning god. Especially stories about floods. For example “The Epic of Gilgamesh”, and “Noah and the Flood”. The Epic of Gilgamesh, is one of the oldest epics ever to be created. The sumerian story was composed before 2000 B.C.
During the plot of the poem, mythological gods and goddesses are present in people’s lives to aid them when problems arise. In the text, the gods play a prominent role in helping Odysseus travel safely home, blessing men and women, and aiding during a war between two powerful leaders. Even though these stories were written thousands of years ago, they are still applicable to many societies
By The Waters of Babylon The definition of the word apocalypse by the Greek is applicable in the book ‘By The Waters of Babylon’ in the sense that once the narrator John, the to be priest, discovers that the ‘gods’ that he and his tribe’s men have been looking up to is a man like them, he in turn derives that longing to acquire that knowledge that their ‘gods’ had in their life as he looks to make his people understand them and the knowledge they had to use it to better their lives as compared to the lives that their ‘gods’ had that led to their destruction. The reason that drives me to this answer is built from the understanding established from the book and the example that is evident from the book is the journey that the narrator undertakes
