Robb
Robb Hall
Mr. Dickau
English 11A, Period B
15 March 2013
Gattaca and the Illusion of Limitation A dystopia is a society in which an illusion of perfection is maintained through oppressive control. Mediums of said control include corporate empire, bureaucracy, technology, and morality. In the film Gattaca (directed by Andrew Niccol), an imaginary dystopian world shows the potential of genetics and technology to control and forever change society. Eugenics is the primary means of discrimination in Gattaca – thus a fundamental device of controlling the citizens. This continuous eugenics zeitgeist is reinforced by powerful DNA technology throughout the society. People are divided into classes in Gattaca depending on how ‘favorable’ their genetics are. Everyone in this society is held to and divided by a standard of perfection. The first thing to make note of in Gattaca is how genetics determine one’s place in life. Small lines of dialogue in the movie suggest that the government prohibits discrimination by genetics; however it still goes on, completely with their knowledge. It’s as if the ambitions and dedication of an individual have no influence on their future. Parents are able to design their children before they are conceived. Prior to birth, undesirable characteristics such as alcoholism, premature baldness, and bad eyesight can be taken out of the question. The parents are also able to select physical traits like height, physique, and eye color. This unruly obsession with perfection in Gattaca is destructive to the human psyche. When this pursuit of unnaturally achieved perfection becomes the ‘norm’, citizens are manipulated and controlled with ease. Those who are born without genetic manipulation are given the foreign title “God-born”, furthering social classification by genetics. The whole idea of ‘divide and conquer’ is in full swing in Gattaca. Those who have ‘inferior’ genes will go on to work low-class jobs, and not earn much money throughout
Mr. Dickau
English 11A, Period B
15 March 2013
Gattaca and the Illusion of Limitation A dystopia is a society in which an illusion of perfection is maintained through oppressive control. Mediums of said control include corporate empire, bureaucracy, technology, and morality. In the film Gattaca (directed by Andrew Niccol), an imaginary dystopian world shows the potential of genetics and technology to control and forever change society. Eugenics is the primary means of discrimination in Gattaca – thus a fundamental device of controlling the citizens. This continuous eugenics zeitgeist is reinforced by powerful DNA technology throughout the society. People are divided into classes in Gattaca depending on how ‘favorable’ their genetics are. Everyone in this society is held to and divided by a standard of perfection. The first thing to make note of in Gattaca is how genetics determine one’s place in life. Small lines of dialogue in the movie suggest that the government prohibits discrimination by genetics; however it still goes on, completely with their knowledge. It’s as if the ambitions and dedication of an individual have no influence on their future. Parents are able to design their children before they are conceived. Prior to birth, undesirable characteristics such as alcoholism, premature baldness, and bad eyesight can be taken out of the question. The parents are also able to select physical traits like height, physique, and eye color. This unruly obsession with perfection in Gattaca is destructive to the human psyche. When this pursuit of unnaturally achieved perfection becomes the ‘norm’, citizens are manipulated and controlled with ease. Those who are born without genetic manipulation are given the foreign title “God-born”, furthering social classification by genetics. The whole idea of ‘divide and conquer’ is in full swing in Gattaca. Those who have ‘inferior’ genes will go on to work low-class jobs, and not earn much money throughout