I figured somebody here might find it interesting so here it is:
Oh and if you have any criticism or know of something I could add please don't hesitate.
WRT 102.76
March 2009
Pop Culture Dictates: When the World Falls Apart
When the apocalypse arrives, film enthusiasts and video game geeks around the globe will rejoice, having experienced it through their televisions and computer monitors previously.
Two popular works: a film, Children of Men, directed by Alfonso Cuaron, and a video game, Half Life 2, by Valve Software, foreshadow the reason for the human races’ extinction, and explain what would be to happen if devastation hit the human race on Earth. Although the film and video game have very different plots, the back-story of both portrays how politics and society would react in the face of a global crisis, when the human race seems all but doomed. It is believed that science fiction pop culture is a precursor to the future of technology. Spaceships and robots were popular science fiction before they actually appeared feasible as practical technologies. If this trend is true, then the similarities between Children of Men and Half Life 2 really may hold the answer to humankind’s eventual extinction.
One parallel between both Children of Men and Half Life 2 that is immediately evident is the loss of what drives the human race, reproduction. Children of Men takes place in the year 2027, 18 years after the last human was born. Nobody knows why woman cannot bear children anymore, but they react by turning on each other. Whereas in Half Life 2, the world has been besieged by extra terrestrials and Western Europe is the safe haven to which all human life flocks. The government is run by a Dr. Breen, who has made a deal with the alien leader to save himself, at the cost of enslaving all of mankind. He controls every aspect of the citizens’ lives and uses a device to prevent them from procreating. If science fiction popular culture truly dictates the future like many say it has in the past, these stories suggest that one of the dooms beset on man will be the inability to reproduce. In both cases, the absence of this ability is a way, by nature or man, to control the human race for protection. Perhaps nature is protecting itself from the pollution spreading humans in Children of Men, while Dr. Breen of Half Life 2 is protecting himself from any possible rebel uprising. No matter the cause, the biggest effect of the absence of children is the depressing emotions it evokes in humanity, who can no longer experience the joy and laughter of children. As Miriam, a supporting character in Children of Men says, “As the sound of the playgrounds faded, the despair set in. Very odd, what happens in a world without children’s voices.” Within Half Life 2, the player walks through an abandoned and rundown playground, a striking and depressing scene very similar to the one in Children of Men. By these standards, the answer to humankinds’ demise is not a meteor or nuclear fallout, but the loss of one of our most precious gifts.
Another striking similarity is the role the government plays in both of these works. All of the worlds governing powers having been destroyed; only one remains. In Children of Men, it is the British government. While in Half Life 2 it is a scientist-dictator, Dr. Breen. Both forms of government react to the situation similarly, by taking complete and utter control over everything and limiting the population of citizens to a finite number. While Dr. Breen accomplishes this by preventing citizens from procreating with his “suppression field,” the British government in Children of Men prevents ‘fugees, short for refugees, from entering into its ruling zone. In both cases, the governments rule is complete and their enforcement is harsh.
Both Dr. Breen of Half Life 2 and the British government of Children of Men do not hesitate to harm or even kill its citizens for the eradication of rebellious peoples and the overall “greater good.” The opening scene to Children of Men is of an apparent terrorist bombing of a city café. Which we later find out is one of the many covert terror operations the British government carries out to create fear and pit its citizens against the rebels. Throughout Half Life 2, Dr. Breen drops mortar shells carrying zombie life forms into unruly towns to silence rebellious civilians. Following this idea, on the eve of extinction, humankind will eventually adopt a totalitarian government capable of anything imaginable.
This totalitarian government will need a force to carry out its dirty work and enforce its rules. In Children of Men, the police are used to counter rebels and arrest illegal immigrants. While in Half Life 2, “metrocops,” as they are called, are used to arrest and detain defiant citizens and any suspicious characters. In both of these works, the military only gets involved during organized rebellions or large operations. In the real world past, governments such as the Soviets and the Nazis have used similar forces, the Gestapo and SS, respectively. Seeing how this secret police force has existed before, it is not farfetched to imagine it existing again when the world is ruled by a single totalitarian government.
The harsh treatment and apparent disregard for human life shown by both Half Life 2 and Children of Men’s governments is cause for a rebel movement. The main story behind Half Life 2 is the rebellion of a single man alongside many other civilians to overthrow the government that seems to be oppressing them. The British government of Children of Men experiences a rebel uprising as well, which is a major part of the plot. The rebel group called “Fishes” seeks to attain equal rights for immigrants by overthrowing the government. The major question in both of these works that is a very questionable dilemma is whether the rebellion is overall good or bad for human-kinds survival. Perhaps the harsh control by the government is necessary or even calculated collateral for ensuring the continuation of humanity.
The last striking similarity between Half Life 2 and Children of Men is the idea that only a single place will be left to survive. This stronghold for humanity exists in both works. Half Life 2 sees a large city in Eastern Europe, titled “City 17,” as its last land. Children of Men displays the island of the United Kingdom as the last remaining residence of humanity. This parallel suggests that either humankind must band together as a single mass to survive the end of the world, or human nature is to group up to establish a feeling of safety during troubled times.
The similarities between the movie Children of Men and the video game Half Life 2 are eerily plausible. Both Children of Men and Half Life 2 foreshadow what the world will be like when the end arrives. Perhaps the creators of these works share a universal prediction of what would most likely occur during such a horrid period. But based on history and human nature, the similarities seen between these two works seem very plausible. Only time will tell. But for all of our sake, hopefully it won’t.
