“I wanted to explore what happens when reality becomes its own conspiracy theory,” Ben Okri said, about his short story in this week’s issue. “I am fascinated by the perceptual structures of a generation’s belief system.”
” envisions a country that has somehow doctored its water supply to make its citizens docile and agreeable to whatever the government proposes. How did this idea come to you?
Britain, where you live, is suffering from a real drought at the moment. Did that provide a kind of dystopian setting in which to write this story?,” a storypublished last year. Back then, it had to do with masks. Now it has to do with droughts. In both cases, the stories were written before the events. I’m not sure what to make of this. The current drought will now play into the story, becoming part of it.
They are affected by the water, which is why they’re able to be aware that they are. Perhaps because of their youth, they are more aware of the dimming of their minds. Also, they are inclined to the periphery of things, which perhaps gives them an unconsciously questioning attitude. Besides, once they realize what’s happening to them, they break the first seal of the spell that has been cast on them through the everyday ordinariness of water.
The ambiguity had to be there because reality itself is ambiguous. How can we ever know it? Do we know for sure that the air we breathe is killing us, with all its pathogens and pollutions? And, even if we are right, is it not also possible that our rightness is tragic? The deeper you look into the big questions of life, the murkier things get. Certainties are complicated by the unintended meaning of events. And those meanings go on changing.
Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Ricky Martin faces more ‘wildly offensive’ sex assault claims after $20M lawsuit“These claims are wildly offensive and completely untethered from reality,” Martin’s attorney José Andréu-Fuentes said.
Read more »
'Bachelorette's James McCoy Taylor Arrested For DWI, Carrying a WeaponJames McCoy Taylor competed on JoJo Fletcher's season 12 of 'The Bachelorette.'
Read more »
Ben Kingsley Breaks Silence on Returning to the MCU in Wonder Man Disney+ SeriesBen Kingsley makes his first comments about returning to the MCU in the upcoming WonderMan series on DisneyPlus.
Read more »
Loon Star State: The Rights ExterminatorIn his latest political cartoon for the Observer, Ben Sargent considers the Supreme Court. SupremeCourt RoeVWade
Read more »