In The Caves of Steel, Asimov is writing in the early’50s, and yet, some of his discussion mirrors closely the ideas we see in the media and news today: conservation, “green living”, etc. The relationship of the people to Nature in the book is somewhat alarming at first, especially when we learn that Elijah Baley has only rarely seen rain, for example. The Commissioner clearly spells out that “the troubles from modern life come from being divorced from Nature” as compared to earlier times in Earth’s history when “people lived in the open…when it rained…they gloried in it. They lived close to nature.” What earlier time in history is he referring to? Is he commenting on his society in the post WWII America? Does this still speak to us somehow today?
Considering that this story has been set way into the future, I believe the Commissioner is talking about a time even before now. Today we are already leaning more towards our technological advancements instead of what nature that is put in front of us. In my opinion, I think he is more referring to the early 1900's, when everything was a great deal more simple, and technological advancements weren't as popular.
ReplyDeleteI suppose that Asimov is trying to discretely tell us that we need to put aside our daily schedules and bask in the true beauty around us. God had created an abundance of astonishing wonders around us, but we don't do anything about it anymore. We take it for granted.
The description of the Spacers seem to enjoy a more organic lifestyle compared to the imitations the humans live with in the book. Man has created a barrier for themselves from getting the fresh breath of air in the morning. Things have definitely changed in this world.
I can see this slowly but steadily happening to our generation today. Everyone relies on cellphones and cars and apps to do everything for them. We are all pulling away from what God had given us. people are becoming more antisocial with the power of texting and emails. If you really think about it, teenagers are actually talking with their phone, not their friends. We could essentially live without having to go and physically see others. Times have changed into a complete different era of technology, and it would be hard to turn it around.