Friday, February 1, 2008

Don't Worry, Be Happy

The more and more I think about We, the more I seem to think about something that I've yet to talk about in class. Happiness is portrayed as the ultimate goal of the One State's quest throughout the novel. However, whenever I think about the way the inhabitants are treated I can't help but believe that there are ulterior motives that underly the entire operation. It is known that the Integral is being built so that the One State can venture into the unknown depths of space in hopes of spreading their ideals to others but I think that a sense of megalomania might exist within the Benefactor.

The fact that the Benefactor has controlled a 'utopia' with such great precision might have caused him to lose sight of the original goal of the One State. Also, the uncertainty of who the Great Operation was performed on really makes me ponder this theory. Why did we never know if the Guardians had the procedure performed on them? What about the Benefactor? It really seems like the citizens in the One State are merely pawns in a much larger scale operation than they are aware of.

Does power equate to happiness for the Benefactor? Is there some greater cause that the One State is trying to achieve? You decide!

3 comments:

Crista Beck - Dating Coach and Matchmaker said...

Maybe the Benefactor is so bored and unstimulated by all the people inhabiting the One State that he is building the Integral with hopes to get the heck out of there.

Crista Beck - Dating Coach and Matchmaker said...

You know how sometimes people refer to the President of the United States as a puppet? Maybe that is what Benefactor is. Maybe the One State is an oligarchy ruled by the Guardians.

Chris K. said...

I think that from the glimpse of the Benefactor we were given in his conversation with D-503, he comes off as truly believing that what he is doing is best for everyone. To tie in with what Crista said, it seems sort of the same as the way Bush thinks God talks to him and tells him that everything he is doing is for the good of America.