Monae's Metropolis Saga

In The Venus Hip Hop and the Pink Ghetto, Imani Perry argues that the over-sexualized, unattainable bodies of black women in popular culture will lead to the breakdown of feminism and the positive body image of the everyday black

“I am a black feminist… I recognize that my power as well as my primary obsessions come as a result of my blackness as well as my womaness, and therefore my struggles on both of these fronts are inseparable” … As a woman of color, I find that some feminists don’t seem terribly concerned with the issues unique to women of color—the ongoing effects of racism and post-colonialism, the status of women in the Third World, working against the trenchant archetypes black women are forced into (angry black woman, mammy, hottentot, and the like). (Gay 173).

These are just a few examples of how the population is dehumanized and dominated by the World State through the use of technology. Huxley seems to have passed over the ideas of automation so that even the lowest in the caste system have a purpose, including toiling away in factories or working in elevators.

This theme pertains to the possibility that the world may fall into the hands of the government in the name of a “utopian” society, resulting in a robot-like world without any feelings or imaginative thought if the world becomes too technologically dependent. Huxley portrays this theme through many occurrences, such as when the main character, John the Savage, is arguing with the head of the society, Mustapha Mond. John, in response to Mustapha saying that society should be based on efficiency and comfort, states “But I don't want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin” (Huxley 240). The theme of oppression and restraint of emotion is characterized by Huxley’s decision to give the characters of the novel insight as to what is actually going with this “utopian” society. The absence of diversity among people and the social barriers caused by technology asserts Huxley’s overall theme of the falling of society due to technological advancements. In the society that the characters of the novel are living in, technology has made it so that people are designed to work to create more people, all in a thoughtless, monotonous manner. All in all, Huxley is able to convey a theme of Brave New World which portrays a new world run by technology in which all that

In “Hip Hop’s Betrayal of Black Women”, McLune addresses the influence of hip hop’s choice of words towards African American women and females. McLune’s article is written in response to Powell’s opinions in “Notes of a Hip Hop Head”, along with various other hip hop artists, that black females are the leading cause of poverty and racism why black men undertake racism and poverty, as if women do not face these struggles from day to day. McLune disagrees with this remark and states that this is just one of many excuses that men use. McLune addresses an audience that is well educated along with informed with the

In The essay “How It Feels to Be Colored Me” is a descriptive essay in which Zora Neale Hurston discovers her real identity. At the beginning of the essay, the setting takes place in Eatonville, Florida describing moments when Zora greets her neighbors by singing and dancing without anybody judging her. Back then, she was free from feeling different among other races. However, a tragedy happened when she was thirteen, her mom passed away and she left home to attend school in Jacksonville where she experiences discrimination due to her color of skin. She was introduced to a different lifestyle where the color of her skin was an unfortunate thing. However, she felt this change effected the way she viewed her appearance, as well as inside her. Here she also experienced isolation that comes from being different compared to other races. Hurst realizes that it’s more than just being “colored”, but how race can separate people. Back in history, Jacksonville’s habitants were a mixture of blacks and whites. In Jacksonville, Hurst was just another “colored girl.” However, this essay motivated me to analyze, evaluate and synthesize these works and explore the concepts and themes that run through each of the readings. Most importantly, find out what made this essay so important in American literature. According to the description in the essay, I have notice that the author Hurston uses literary devices like metaphor and tone that I found interesting and deserving for the reader to enjoy this journey.

In E.M. Forster’s short story “The Machine Stops”, he portrays a dark dystopian society that is encapsulated by the Machine in which they all worship; this is analogous to society today being so attracted to technology. The story takes on a very dark and dull tone to help convey his purpose of pointing out that society is too dependant on technology. Forster develops his dystopian society by showing their social norms and what happens when the said technology fails them. He connects dystopian factors in the story to common day things. For example, he alludes to God, satirizes society’s dependence on technology, and shows the effects technology has had on humanity to help emphasize society’s reliance on technology.

“If any efforts are to be made to free Black people of the constraints and conditions that characterize racial subordination, then theories and strategies purporting to reflect the Black community’s needs must include an analysis of sexism and patriarchy. Similarly, feminism must include an analysis of race if it hopes to express the aspirations of non-white women. Neither Black liberationist politics nor feminist theory can ignore the intersectional experiences of those whom the movements claim as their respective constituents” (Crenshaw, 1989, p.

French Nobel Prize winner, author Albert Camus once said, “The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.” The main idea of the quotation is what Robot Dreams and Harrison Bergeron were about. In Robot Dreams by Isaac Asimov, robopsychologist Linda Rash was with Dr. Susan Calvin, discussing the potential threat of LVX-1’s dream. On the other hand, Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut talked about the world where all people have been made 'equal' through the use of physical and mental handicaps. In both stories, the main characters were showing rebellious act towards the antagonists. Too much control of individuals leads to insurgency because it interferes ones liberty

No matter your social status or how powerful you feel you are, we are all equal. We came here by birth and leave by death”. The stories “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr and Anthem by Ayn Rand are both dystopian-esque works that are about two characters living in a world of equality but struggle due to them seeing the world in their own image. The true reason the story is made is to prove a point that being too equal can be dreadful. Although “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. and Anthem by Ayn Rand are both examples of dystopian literature, their portrayal of (technology) differs greatly from the protagonists which have severely similar traits.

When humans created artificial intelligence, the machines believed they were superior than humans and rebelled. They survived by imprisoning the humans, thus believing that their lifestyle and culture was superior to the humans. This “slavery” of the humans is similar to the slavery that happened in the nineteenth century, where some people believed they were superior to others. Once the machines in the movie believed they did not need to labor to the humans.

During the 1960’s black women were beginning to challenge the stereo-types that defined them, these types were hold over classifications from slavery.

However, feeling threatened is impossible for a society that is founded on the principals of apathy. The people are carefree, which is encouraged by the government. How can a society with no worries rise up and rebel? The government obviously has the advantage of manipulation, which is carried out by their technology. Clarisse has an appropriate way of describing the bleakness of a society that doesn 't care, '"I sometimes think drivers don 't know what grass is, or flowers, because they never see them slowly," she said. "If you showed a driver a green blur, Oh yes! He 'd say, that 's grass! A pink blur! That 's a rose garden!" '(9). The uneasiness Clarisse feels for the way people behave in her time depicts how people do not take the time to enjoy the smaller parts of life because nobody in this society cares. Another machine that proves

Set around the year 2000, Metropolis is a depiction of the future, yet it is viewed more intensely in the twenties style. In this view we can truly appreciate the work, without the cynicism of todays standards, for the marvel that it is.