LITR 4632: Literature of the Future

Student Future-Visions Presentation 2009

Georgina Reed

15 June 2009

Cat’s Cradle: Knowledge vs. Humanity

                                                       Vonnegut, Kurt. Random House, New York 1963

Objective 1: To identify, describe, and criticize three standard narratives    humans tell about the future: Apocalyptic

Objective 2:To identify, describe, and criticize typical visions or scenarios of the future:

          High tech: atom bomb, ice nine

          Low tech: San Lorenzo citizen’s desire of simple life

          Dystopia: Political and belief system based on lies

Quote: “After the thing went off, after it was a sure thing that America could wipe out a city with just one bomb, a scientist turned to Father and said, ‘Science has now known sin.’ And do you know what Father said? He said, ‘What is sin’?” 

                   From Newton Hoenikker’s letter to John, Chapter 6, pg. 17

Fifty-third Calypso

Oh, a sleeping drunkard

Up in Central Park,

And a lion-hunter

In the jungle dark,

And a Chinese dentist,

And a British queen-

All fit together

In the same machine

Nice, nice, very nice;

Nice, nice, very nice;

Nice, nice, very nice-

So many different people

In the same device.    

                             Bokonon (3

Summary:

          John, an author, decides to write a novel about what the “father” of the atom bomb was doing on the day Hiroshima was bombed.  John contacts and becomes involved with, the creator of the bomb, Felix Hoenikker’s three children.  He soon discovers that Hoenikker, given a challenge by a military general, created another invention: ice nine (a crystal substance, that when brought into contact with water freezes the water instantly and has a melting point of 114 degree F).  John’s search brings him to the small Caribbean Island of San Lorenzo and the introduction of the Bokonon religion and the Book of Bokonon, which begins with the statement,  “All of the true things I am about to tell you are shameless lies.” (5)  John discovers that Hoenikker’s three children are in possession of ice-nine and have used it to their own personal benefit, as with Frank Hoenikker, the eldest, who exchanged a piece of ice-nine for a government position in San Lorenzo. Disaster strikes when the ailing dictator of San Lorenzo swallows the ice-nine and it freezes him solid. Subsequently, a plane hits the island and the frozen dictator shatters and bits of ice-nine fall into the water, rapidly freezes the world and all, but a few of its inhabitants.  John, one of the few survivors, finally meets the dying Bokonon, who suggests to him to go to the mountain summit with a book about the “history of human stupidity”.

Questions:

1.     Knowing that all actions have consequences, good or bad, should man’s quest for knowledge outweigh the possible consequences? Are scientists responsible for the outcome of an invention, even when the original intent was justifiable? Where do you draw the line?

2.     Do you see any positive applications of ice-nine?

3.     What do you think The Book of Bokonon’s first statement means? How does it relate to our current religious environment?