broader perspectives 2013 07 compre answers

8/11/2019 Broader Perspectives 2013 07 Compre Answers

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COMPREHENSION2013 BROADER PERSPECTIVES The Identity Issue

COMPREHENSION

CONTENT

NAME CLASS

/35M /15M /50M

LANGUAGE TOTAL

The Great Escape

Comprehension Answers available at www.broaderperspectives.com.sg & www.twitter.com/ThinkTankSG

QUESTIONS ATTACHED

FANTASY,

THE DIET OFMAINSTREAMCULTURE

Adapted from On Art, Childhood and Creativity


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The only people who hate escapism are jailers, said the essayist and Narnia author C S Lewis. A generation later, the fantasy writer Michael Moorcock revised the quip: jailers love escapism its escape they cant stand. Today, in the early years of the 21st century, escapism the actof withdrawing from the pressures of the real world into fantasy worlds has taken on a scale

and scope quite beyond anything Lewis might have envisioned. I am a writer and critic of fantasy,and for most of my life I have been an escapist. I played my rst video game on a rubber-keyedSinclair ZX Spectrum and have followed the upgrade path through Mega Drive, PlayStation,Xbox and high-powered gaming PCs that lodged supercomputers inside households across thedeveloped world. I have watched the symbolic language of fantasy shift from the guilty pleasure ofgeeks and outcasts to become the diet of mainstream culture. And I am not alone. Im emblematicof an entire generation who might, when our history is written, be remembered rst and foremostfor our exodus into digital fantasy. Is this great escape anything more than idle entertainment designed to keep us happy in Moorcocks jail? Or is there, as Lewis believed, a higher purpose toour fantastical ights?

Fans of J R R Tolkien line up squarely behind Lewis. Tolkiens Lord of the Rings (1954) took thefantasy novel previously occupied with moralising childrens stories and created an entireworld in its place. Middle Earth was no metaphor or allegory: it was its own reality, complete withmaps, languages, history and politics a secondary world of fantasy in which readers becamefully immersed, escaping primary reality for as long as they continued reading. Immersion hassince become the mantra of modern escapist fantasy, and the creation of seamless secondaryworlds its mission. We hunger for an escape so complete it borders on oblivion: the totaleradication of self and reality beneath a superimposed fantasy.

Language is a powerful technology for escape, but it is only as powerful as the literacy of thereader. Not so with cinema. Star Wars marked the arrival of a new kind of blockbuster lm, one

that leveraged the cutting edge of computer technology to make on-screen fantasy ever moreimmersive. Then, in 1991, with James Camerons Terminator 2: Judgment Day, computer-generated imagery (CGI) came into its own, and morphing established a new standard in fantasyon screen. CGI allowed lmmakers to create fantasy worlds limited only by their imaginations. Theseamless melding of reality and fantasy that CGI delivers has transformed our expectations ofcinema, and fuelled a ravenous appetite for escape. And just when we thought that this appetitehas reached its apex, we witnessed how video games managed to break new ground andrede ne the boundaries of escapism.

The Great EscapeDigital technology allows us to lose ourselves in ever more immersive fantasy

worlds. But what are we eeing from?

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Adapted from On Art, Childhood and Creativity by Damien Walter, for the purposes of the A level General Paper


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Video games might have seemed an unlikely escapist technology in the early days of Pong andPac-Man. It takes a mighty effort of will to see the collection of pixels hovering at the bottom ofthe screen in Space Invaders as the last star- ghter of mankind. But the working of Moores Law which holds that computing power doubles every two years meant that, by the early 1990s,

video games were jockeying with lm to lead the escapism industry. That decade also saw therst waves of cyber-utopianism, although the early promise of virtual reality headsets and internetmulti-user domains failed to materialise. Instead, it was our thumbs that did the talking throughthe control pads of home games consoles with high-de nition screens. Super Mario Bros, Sonicthe Hedgehog and Lara Croft as Tomb Raider helped to transform video games from childishobsession to mainstream cultural phenomenon. The truth is, if most people around you live andbreathe escapism, it is hard to have a proper bearing on how far you are veering away from realitywith each passing day.

Today, video-game franchises such as Halo, Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty power an industryworth an estimated $65 billion globally in 2011. But money is only the tip of the iceberg when it

comes to measuring the impact of gaming on contemporary culture and society at large. The American video-game designer and researcher Jane McGonigal estimates that there are 500million virtuoso gamers (people who have spent more than 10,000 hours in game worlds) activetoday. She argues that this number will increase threefold over the next decade: around a fth ofthe worlds population will spend as much time in digitally generated worlds as they do in full-timeeducation. Were embarking on a daring social experiment: the immersion of an entire generationinto digitally generated escapist fantasies of unprecedented depth and complexity. And the mostremarkable aspect of this potential revolution is how little consideration we are giving it.

As the technology of escape continues to accelerate, weve begun to see an eruption of fantasyinto reality. The augmented reality of Google Glass, and the virtual reality of the games headset

Oculus Rift (resurrected by the power of crowd-funding) present the very real possibility thatour digital fantasy worlds might soon be blended with our physical world, enhancing but alsodistorting our sense of reality. When we can replace our own re ection in the mirror with an imageof digitally perfected beauty, how will we tolerate any return to the real? Perhaps, in the end, wewill nd ourselves, not desperate to escape into fantasy, but desperate to escape from fantasy. Orsimply unable to tell which is which.

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Some might argue we are already there. In the sci- visions of the American futurist Ray Kurzweiland other prophets of post-humanism, we will upload our minds to silicon substrates, there tobe accelerated into super-intelligence and the looming technological singularity. Its a vision ofreligious communion now widely parodied as The Rapture of the Nerds. And yet the digitaltechnologies of today are just the latest in a long progression of tools for the expression of theimagination. We are escaping, not into other worlds, but into imagination. The question is, whatare we escaping from? Is it reality? (Whatever that is.)

From the perspective of the underclass, material reality is bleak. Youre a survivor of blindevolution, stranded on a muddy rock under the harsh glare of a nuclear sun. Beyond that is anin nite universe of inert matter, dust and devastating radiation that is neither for nor against you,but simply unaware of your existence. There is no God. There is no heaven, or eternal reward.There is only another shift in the factory, or the call centre, or McDonalds if youre lucky. Atits determinist extreme, materialist philosophy enforces a strikingly rigid and oppressive socialhierarchy.

Faced with your own inferiority in this hierarchy, why wouldnt you plunge into fantasy? Invest yourhopes in the teleporter caprices of reality TV, where faux victory in The X Factor or The Apprenticecan raise you to the neon-lit stratosphere of celebrity. Light up a spliff and switch on your Xbox.Lose yourself in the colourful pages of comic books. Ful l your dreams of being beautiful, wealthy,heroic the centre of a universe built just for you! and ignore the world beyond your bedsit,in which you are underpaid, unloved and anonymous. But all the while these escapist fantasiesare fed by an industry that seeks merely to commodify our dreams and then sell them back tous, stripped of meaning, emptied of the true potential of human imagination. We remain in jail,only dreaming of freedom. The real lesson that poverty teaches is that our society is shaped forthose with power. Yet in this, paradoxically, there might still be some hope for our great escape,because all escapism takes us to worlds created through an act of imagination. Hour after hour,we practise what it means to be creators of our own worlds: through the empowered actions of aheroes such as Luke Skywalker, or The Terminators Sarah Connor; through the creation of ourown heroes in games such as World of Warcraft; or even by exploring our own God-like creativityin SimCity or Minecraft.

Do our fantasy worlds, then, help us to escape, not from reality, but from our own limitations? Isit possible that we might bring back from our escapist adventures a renewed sense of our ownpower and creative potential as human beings? It is doubtful, because ultimately, there is onlya limit to how long we can escape. Even our vocabularyescapesuggests that we are onlyretreating into a realm that we cannot stay inde nitely. We must come to terms in the end with thefact that when we hit the power off button we have only wasted more time in a virtual world thatcould have been better used to help us cope with the real world. Reality will have the nal verdict,and all those miserable and powerless people will remain incarcerated in their false hopes of anunreachable state. Maybe its high time we nd the courage to wake up from our delusions, breakfree from the jails of fantasies, and improve our own reality, whatever that might actually be.

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THE GREAT ESCAPE2013 BROADER PERSPECTIVES The Identity Issue

Comprehension Questions

1 Why might the jailers hate escapism (line 1)? [1]

2 How is the author emblematic of an entire generation (line10-11)? Use your own words asfar as possible. [2]

3 What does the author mean by the line Fans of J R R Tolkien line up squarely behind Lewis(line 15)? [1]

4 According to the author, what kind of escape do people hunger for (line 21)? Use your ownwords as far as possible. [2]

5 Why is language as a technology for escape only as powerful as the literacy of the reader(lines 23-24)? [1]


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6 Why did video games seem[ed] an unlikely escapist technology (line 33)? Use your own

words as far as possible. [2]

7 Explain what the author means by most remarkable aspect (line 53-54). [2]

8 How does augmented reality enhance[ing] but also distort[ing] our sense of reality (lines 58-59)? [2]

9 What is the signi cance of the authors comment in parenthesis at the end of the paragraph(line 69)? [2]

10 Why does the author claim that we remain in jail (line 84)? [1]


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Comprehension Answers

1 Why might the jailers hate escapism (line 1)? [1]

Because what jailers do is to keep people in jail, and so they would abhor their prisoners daydreamingor being mentally free from prison as it would mean that the latter are free/not actually imprisoned.

Or Any other sensible answer.

2 How is the author emblematic of an entire generation (line10-11)? Use your own words asfar as possible. [2]

Line Lifted Paraphrased6-9 I played my rst video game on a rubber-

keyed Sinclair ZX Spectrum and havefollowed the upgrade path throughMega Drive, PlayStation, Xbox and high-powered gaming PCs that lodgedsupercomputers inside householdsacross the developed world.

He is emblematic in that like others in thistime/period, he has spent so much time(1/2) (inferred) in the virtual world (1/2)(inferred) through playing video gamessince their early beginnings (1/2), all theway until they became available on highperforming complex machines (1/2).

3 What does the author mean by the line Fans of J R R Tolkien line up squarely behind Lewis(line 15)? [1]

He means that the fans of J RR Tolkien are of the view that fantasy stories go beyond mere

entertainment and moralising, and are capable of creating entirely different realities that allowed forthe exploration of new meaning and possibility that was entirely engul ng.

4 According to the author, what kind of escape do people hunger for (line 21)? Use your ownwords as far as possible. [2]

Line Lifted Paraphrased21-22 We hunger for an escape so complete

it borders on oblivion : the totaleradication of self and reality beneath asuperimposed fantasy.

People crave / yearn for an escape that isso total / comprehensive (1/2) that it bringsthem to self-forgetfulness (1/2) : the wholeannihilation (1/2) of the ego and what isreal / of everything we are and know (1/2) so that it is replaced by imagination.

5 Why is language as a technology for escape only as powerful as the literacy of the reader(lines 23-24)? [1]

Because the reader is only able to access and imagine the possibilities of escape conjured up bywords in his or her mind insofar as his or her language pro ciency allows.

Or

Because if the readers command of language is poor, he or she will not be able to access the escapistexperience as intensely or profoundly as a more pro cient reader.


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6 Why did video games seem[ed] an unlikely escapist technology (line 33)? Use your own

words as far as possible. [2]

Line Lifted Paraphrased33-35 Video games might have seemed an

unlikely escapist technology in the earlydays of Pong and Pac-Man. It takes amighty effort of will to see the collectionof pixels hovering at the bottom of thescreen in Space Invaders as the last star-

ghter of mankind.

They seemed to have a low possibility ofbeing a means to help people evade realitybecause in its inception (1/2) , the graphicsof games such as Pong and Pac-Man wereso unsophisticated and simplistic inrepresentation (1/2) that it would requirea lot of concentration and determination(1/2) on the part of the player to imagine

and be completely immersed (1/2) in thevirtual world (inferred).

7 Explain what the author means by most remarkable aspect (line 53-54). [2] The author means to say that the foremost unbelievable (1/2) part (1/2) is the fact that we are not even

giving much thought to this profound change of a whole generation of people being immersed in virtualreality (1).

8 How does augmented reality enhance[ing] but also distort[ing] our sense of reality (lines 58-59)? [2]

It enhances our sense of reality by altering images (1/2) such that they look better than reality (1/2) butit distorts reality by causing us to lose a sense of what is real (1/2) and thus become unable to tolerateor accept (1/2) what is real as it pales in comparison to the enhanced reality.

9 What is the signi cance of the authors comment in parenthesis at the end of the paragraph(line 69)? [2]

The comment is to reveal the authors uncertainty (1/2) as to what exactly constitutes reality (1/2)given the fact that our digital technologies today are so advanced (1/2) that we are able to createreality based on our imagination (1/2).

Or The phrase in parenthesis is an interjection (1/2) by the author which reveals his own awareness

of the increased ambiguity (1/2) of what reality means now because of how we are integrating ourexperiences with technology / mechanical interfaces (1/2) to make what we imagine as our newrealities (1/2).

10 Why does the author claim that we remain in jail (line 84)? [1] He claims that we remain trapped / imprisoned (1/2) because instead of being able to experience

freedom through our imagination, the marketplace has taken that out of our hands and turned it into a

product for us to consume that separates us from our own imaginative potential (1/2).


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11 What does the phrase nal verdict refer to in line 98? [1]

It refers to the fact that reality has the ultimate say in our lives / will determine if our lives have beenworthwhile and if we have truly accomplished anything (1/2), and that there is only so long that wecan remain in our fantasies / our fantasies ultimately cannot truly help us break free of our challenges/struggles/pains/suffering (1/2).

12 Summarise the advantages and disadvantages of the technology of escape (line 55). [8]

Using material from paragraphs 6-7 and 9-10, write your summary in no more than 120 words, notcounting the opening words which are given below. Use your own words as far as possible.

The technology of escape can possibly enhance our sense of reality

Line Lifted Paraphrased56-59 From para 6:

The augmented reality of Google Glass,and the virtual reality of the gamesheadset Oculus Rift (resurrected by thepower of crowd-funding) present the veryreal possibility that our digital fantasyworlds might soon be blended withour physical world, enhancing but also distorting our sense of reality.

From para 6:

through melding virtual universes withour real one,

but it can also warp it.

63-65 From para 7:In the sci- visions of the American futuristRay Kurzweil and other prophets of post-humanism, we will upload our minds tosilicon substrates,

there to be accelerated into super-

intelligence and the loomingtechnological singularity.

From para 7:

It might also let us combine ourintelligence

into an omnipotent intelligence of thefuture.


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77-88 From para 9:

Invest your hopes in the teleportercaprices of reality TV, where faux victoryin The X Factor or The Apprentice canraise you to the neon-lit stratosphere ofcelebrity. Light up a spliff and switch onyour Xbox. Lose yourself in the colourfulpages of comic books. Ful l your dreamsof being beautiful, wealthy, heroic the centre of a universe built just foryou!

and ignore the world beyond yourbedsit,in which you are underpaid, unloved andanonymous.

But all the while these escapist fantasiesare fed by an industry that seeks merely tocommodify our dreamsand then sell them back to us,stripped of meaning,

emptied of the true potential of humanimagination.

Yet in this, paradoxically, there might stillbe some hope for our great escape

, because all escapism takes us toworlds created through

an act of imagination.

Hour after hour, we practise

what it means to be creators of our ownworlds:

From para 9:

It enables us to build a self-centredworld,

where we enjoy being gorgeous, rich,and victorious,

while forgetting our miserable state ofbeing forgotten/insigni cant.

However, this escapism is touting ourfantasies

to us in material formdevoid of

the real capabilities of our creativity

Nevertheless, escapism offersredemption as

it brings us to universes

wrought by our fantasies,

as we continually rehearse

being gods of our universes.


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94-100 From para 10:

doubtful, because ultimately, there isonly a limit to how long we can escape.Even our vocabularyescapesuggeststhat we are only retreating into a realm thatwe cannot stay inde nitely. We must cometo terms in the end with the fact that whenwe hit the power off button we have onlywasted more time in a virtual world

that could have been better used tohelp us cope with the real world.

Reality will have the nal verdict, and allthose miserable and powerless people willremain incarcerated in their false hopesof an unreachable state.

From para 10:

But nally, when escapism ends,

we realise we have squandered time infantasies

that could be bene cial in the real one,

by staying in our delusions.

Award full marks for 15-17 key phrases.

13. In the nal paragraph, Walter writes that when we hit the power off button we have onlywasted more time in a virtual world that could have been better used to help us cope with the

real world. (lines 97-98) How far do you agree with his claim? Is it fair to say that all time spentin the virtual world is wasted time? In giving your views, explain where and why you agree ordisagree with the author. [10]

This passage is about the authors views on how our advanced technologies in the modern worldhave facilitated greater levels of escapism than ever before, and how we need to literally andmetaphorically wake up from our slumber in the virtual world before it is too late. He takes us throughthe development of technology and shows us what indulgences in fantasy and imaginations peoplepartake in, and the various reasons for them. In exploring escapisms possibilities, he questions also

the nature of reality. He recognises how technology has served to enhance it as well as distort it. Heconcludes by judging that time spent in the real world is superior to time that is wasted in the virtualone.


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Key arguments/threads of thoughts that students can consider are: Is time spent in the virtual world really mutually exclusive from time spent in the real world, given that

the virtual world resides in our mind and occupies our mind as well, in the very same way that the realworld does?

Are there skills or lessons to be learnt in the virtual world that can be imported or transferred into thereal one?

Are we not able then to also level similar allegations against people who spend time reading books orwatching movies of ctitious nature, given that they also conjure up in our minds a virtual reality. Arenot most forms of media virtual reality in that sense?

To what extent has virtual reality become part of the life of Singaporeans? How acceptable are we ofthis change? Does our fascination with technology and computer tablets from a young age constituteas escapism into virtual reality?

It might be possible to also posit the realities we are trying to run away (as a nation or even as humanbeings existing in a globalised context) from, and how having a technologically advanced societyfacilitates escapism but also means that we risk social and political stability in the process when theneeds of the disadvantaged start to become chronic and pronounced problems.

broader perspectives 2013 07 compre answers

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