Doesn’t it feel like we’re going through some kind of dystopian sci-fi novel the last few years? On that topic, let me talk about this book which I’ve just read, called Never Let Me Go. Imagine you’re eighty years old and you’re dying of organ failure. Imagine the doctors just pop in some new organs and you’re all set to live until you’re about a hundred and twenty years old. Sounds great, doesn’t it? What’s the catch?
We first meet our protagonist, Kathy, in what seems to be one of those posh British boarding schools you hear about. Everything seems fine at the start, but we soon find something’s wrong. Turns out, the whole school’s filled with clones. They only learn about their life purpose until they’re a bit older. Here’s what it comes down to: by the time they reach their late twenties, early thirties, they have to come in and have their organs removed, one by one. The author doesn’t spell it out, but I assume the clones have a limited life span, so there’s not much point in plotting an escape.
The creepy part of the book isn’t the organ harvesting, it’s the timeline moving slowly along, knowing an unevitable death is slowly creeping up on them. Near the end of the story, Kathy and a close companion meet up with one of their teachers, called Miss Emily. They ask her why they had to go through school and the various art projects they had to make, if this is how it ends anyway. Turns out, Miss Emily had a reason. She wanted for society to see the clones as full human beings, and for the clones to lead better lives than they otherwise would’ve had, and this was her way of doing so.
Miss Emily seems to feel like she’s doing the right thing, and she certainly makes a good case for it. If the alternative is for these kids to be brought up in institutions, without enjoying basic education, then you see where she’s coming from. On the other hand, she’s also participating in a system that’s fundamentally ethically wrong. We have no right to create a class of lesser human beings, never allowing them to live fully complete lives.
By the end, we’re left to wonder about the mistakes Kathy has made thoughout her life, the opportunities she’s missed, and how her time is nearly up. We feel compassion at the fact that she won’t make it to old age. I also wondered, what’s the point of going through all of that and dying in the end? Then I said to myself, “Hey, that applies to you too, numbnuts.” I might drop dead, right here, right now. And my life would be equally valuable or valueless, however you look at it. It’s an equally valid question both for myself and for yourself. We all die some day, so what’s the point of going through all that we go through, if we just die in the end anyway?
There’s no easy answer to, “What’s the point?” is there? The best I’ve been able to figure out, is that it’s about helping others and being the best you that you can be. I don’t buy the world view that life’s only about superficial enjoyment, and while it’s easy to fall into nihilism at points in your life, it doesn’t seem to be a helpful way of looking at things, in that it doesn’t serve you. Life’s certainly not a list of achievements waiting to be accomplished, like some seem to think it is. However, I do know that I wouldn’t be satisfied if my story ended here. There’s much more that I want to do, but I’ll admit, it’s sometimes scary how fast time goes by. There’s not much point in worrying when you’ll die, seeing as you only have so much control over it, but living a well-lived life certainly isn’t easy. Food for thought.
Kind regards
Vincent J. Dancet