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          ARRoGANT                CoURiERS      WiTH     ESSaYS

Grade Level:       Type of Work           Subject/Topic is on:
 [ ]6-8                 [ ]Class Notes    [Essay on Holocaust.     ]
 [x]9-10                [ ]Cliff Notes    [                        ]
 [x]11-12               [x]Essay/Report   [                        ]
 [ ]College             [ ]Misc           [                        ]

 Date: 06/94  # of Words:536   School:Public - COED   State:NY
>>>Chop Here>>>>
     As with the first reaction paper, the first grouping of
readings did not surprise me, as I have had experience dealing
with things such as those displayed.  The first two excerpts from
Brave New World and 1984 were recognizable to me as I am familiar
with both works.  Orwell's book, the one with which I have had
the most experience with, had the scene which I had always deemed
the most frightening excerpted from it.  O'Brian's prophetic view
of the totalitarian state is shocking and appalling. 
Unfortunately the reason for the terror felt when the description
is given is because it is shockingly real.  Orwell based his
description of Oceania under the rule of the Party was actually
based on the regimes of Stalin and Hitler, and thus it is
perfectly possible that it could happen in our world, not only a
dystopian science fiction novel.  Huxley shows how appealing to a
people's sense of a stable situation even if they must surrender
all that is individual about them to the state.  The Controller
attempts to relate that there are truly different ranks of
people, some meant to lead and some to serve in sub-human
condition.  Both of these ideas were prevalent in Hitler's
Germany, and both are reprehensible by any who value their sense
of individuality.
     The readings from number 76 to 79 are even more examples
that demonstrate how not only that things comparable to the
Holocaust could happen again, but how they are a constant in
history.  Is it part of human nature to look for a scapegoat? 
Repeated examples show that some people are simply blind to the
evil inherent in activities as vile as the enslavement and mass
killing of someone simply because of their ethnic grouping. 
People think that Hitler was evil and destructive, well thy are
right, but so too were those Americans who advocated the concepts
of slavery, and the denial of rights to those of Japanese descent
during World War II.  Clearly there must be some dark aspect in
human nature that causes us to behave so hatefully towards
others.  If this is true how can humans hope to continue to exist
as a successful species?
     By far the reading that held my attention the most, even
more than the ones about death, destruction, and slavery, was the
one called Obedience to Authority.  It seemed to answer many of
my questions concerning the servile nature of people expressed in
the previous reaction paper.  It does however raise even more
questions as it provides answers.  What is going through a
person's mind as he knowingly inflicts unbearable pain on someone
who has done him no harm at all?  How is the power of authority
enough to override the human conscience?  The sociologist makes
an excellent point when he states ,"what is the correct balance
between individual initiative and authority?"  Indeed this is a
question that we must ask if we are to proceed in a workable
society.  We cannot have a world without leadership, but
similarly we should not surrender our individuality to the state
or we come closer to the negative utopias described in 1984 and
Brave New World.
