Reflection On Technology

Oryx and Crake,the novel of the Canadian writer Margaret Atwood in 2003,tells the story of a scientist named Crake,who,out of disappointment with human society,firstly hides a lethal virus in medicine that ultimately leads to the near-extinction of humankind,and then creates the genetically modified new humankind for substitution as an effort to build a brand-new world.This thesis is intended to explore the use of technology in Oryx and Crake with the theoretic support of dystopia,for the purpose of demonstrating that the morbid obsession with and the excessive dependence upon technology can have devastating effects on humankind.This thesis comprises five chapters.Chapter One is the introduction part,which briefly reviews the relevant literature,expounds the related theories,and explains the significance and structure of the thesis.Chapter Two explores how the worship of the technology at both individual and collective levels culminates in the formation of the dystopia.Chapter Three focuses on the horrible aspects of the dystopia,namely the abnormal social systems and the declining humanistic practices,further demonstrating the peril of the improper use of technology.Chapter Four touches upon the limitation of technology: while it is used as an effective tool to purify the dystopia,the new world remains problematic.Finally,the conclusion is as follows: Technology is not more certainly good than bad,but the situation is different when it is in the hands of humans,as shown in Atwood's novel.By delineating the formation and the collapse of the nightmarish dystopia in her novel,Atwood warns that any pursuit of a perfect milieu to the detriment of a legitimate use of technology would take its toll on human beings.