Quote 1: "At the moment [...] of Men's victory over Nature, we find the whole human race subjected to some individual men, and those individuals subjected to that in themselves which is purely 'natural' -to their irrational impulses" (67).
Quote 2: "Once our souls [...] have been given up, the power thus conferred will not belong to us. We shall in fact be the slaves and the puppets of which we have given our souls" (72).
Lewis begins talking about how each generation is handed down what the last generation has left behind. It is then, that generation's choice to follow, change, or resist the power of its predecessor. The age that attains maximum power is the age that emancipates the most from tradition. The master generation, which is still very small in the species of man, will have power excessed by a small minority. For example, the president and his government, which is minute compared to the entire population of the United States, run an entire country of people. Lewis mentions when the power of Man convinces another to do something they feel is acceptable, the person being convinced is giving up their Human Nature; thus, we face the issue of the abolition of man. Lewis also states: "We reduce things to mere Nature in order that we may 'conquer' them" (71). In conclusion, after stripping an object of what makes it appealing, and reducing it to mere quantity, it can be adjusted to what we want it to be. Like trees, after cutting them down for firewood, we are satisfied.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment