What are values? (1 Viewer)

[d00d]

in module b u gotta talk about values and i've got no idea what it means.

can someone help me out, especially for bnw/br...

 

[aspagarus]

Ummm...

Ok.. well, it has been a while since I did the HSC.. Like 8 months or whatever.. so I am a bit rusty on the Brave New World and Bladerunner stuff. Now, values.. Values are basically what society considers drug-dealers, bag-snatchers, granny-bashers (and the like) DON'T have. Basically, a value system is the internal system which dictates what is right or wrong. It varies from person to person, depending on their culture, up-bringing, religion etc.. So I guess the question you are kinda looking at for BNW is about what has happened to their values? Like, from memory, pre-mariatal sex is encouraged, considered unusual if one is with one partner rather than many, there is little emphasis on individuality, individual thought is not heard of, people are conditioned against their will, babies are decanted instead of being born - as in cloning. It seems that the whole value system of the society is completely reversed to our own. It seems that what we consider to be important - like love, monogamy, individuality, marriage, childbirth, things which are NATURAL, free-will etc..- they are not important in BNW society and are even discouraged. It kinda emphasises the idea of dystopia verses utopia. It can be thought that the people in it view it as a utopian society - they are happy with their life and wouldn't see it any other way. And by some outside the society - society in tune with environment, everyone is happy. However, when one views the situation from a 'values' point of view, this is where the idea of 'dystopia' emerges. The system is upside-down, and it doesn't line up with out way of thinking.

There is similar stuff in Bladerunner.. but it perhaps has more to do with the envrionment - both physical and political. The skies are scorched, the cities are polluted, they are obviously not looked after. This shows an example of where the world is headed if people maintain their current lack of morals or values towards the environment..

Hope it helps.. Good luck..

 

[Huy]

to summarise the above,

"something we hold in high esteem", be it:
opposition vs tension
natural vs artificial
freedom vs control
history/past vs present
dystopia vs utopia
chaos vs order
weak vs controllers/creators
instinct vs purpose/predestination
truth vs lies
knowledge vs ignorance
individual rights vs societal rights
progress vs stagnation/regression
utopic aspiration vs dystopic reality
morals/values vs social consumption/economics

B/R values
-economic progress/consumerism
-control (from above)
-destination, replicants, society
-opportuinity and new experiences
-power (on earth and off-world)
-scientific development
-perfection

BNW
-cloning
-the environment
-equal rights
-depletion of resources
-genetic modification

hope that helps you

 

[braindrainedAsh]

Themes in texts perscribe the values. For example, the theme of consumerism could convey the value that consumerism is bad..... that's how I see it.

 

[Toodulu]

i guess values are what society deems to be important. so you need to look at the context of the work.

 

[mei_ling03]

Originally posted by braindrainedAsh
Themes in texts perscribe the values. For example, the theme of consumerism could convey the value that consumerism is bad..... that's how I see it.

ehh? how does a theme convey something is bad? do you mean through our contextual understanding?

 

[TastesGoodBut]

as far as im concerned you dont need to know...

if you know the attitudes ur teacher rattles off you can just write "the values and attitudes expressed in ______..." and be fine with it - the reason is they are the exact same thing...

 

[braindrainedAsh]

Well... if you were talking about the values of King Lear for example, you could say that a theme is betrayal, and the value Shakespeare projects about that theme is that betrayal is wrong and will ultimately be punished through the means of divine justice....

Something like that, I'm making this up off my head. I know what I mean, I just hope it makes sense for someone else....

Like, if you were to say "Ashlee, what are your personal values on the theme of shoplifting" my response would be "I think that shoplifting is morally wrong and you should not do it"... that's my value on that theme... composers project a set of values through their works... everyone has values.

 

[iambored]

i havent done those texts but values are things that society thinks r important. u need 2 talk about wat society values and doesn't value. both in the world of today, and the world of whenever your texts were written.

 

[s2ophie]

to sum up:

themes inform values

 

[braindrainedAsh]

hehe wonder who that one came from Soph!