A Space Odyssey, Essay Example

This science fiction film created in 1968 by Stanley Kubrick presents a metaphysically captivating vision of a future voyage to Jupiter in order to investigate a strange anomaly.  The visual presentations and musical score present an epic and transcendental view of the technical and ideological pursuits of mankind brought to fruition. The underlying values that are inherent within the film present the idealization of space travel and the pursuit of understanding that is sought by mankind.  It also presents the yearning that humanity has for the discovery of the unknown and the pursuit of the underlying reason or causes behind the existence of humankind and the evolution of life.  These ideas are presented in the context of a time in history that saw drastic social and political changes as well as scientific changes that were dramatically altering the way that many people view their place in the universe.

The time period that the film was created in, the 1960s, saw the rise of interest in science fiction ideas, due to the space race that was going on at the time. This presents the socio-political context that the film was created in.  At this time, public fascination with ideas of adventure to space were becoming increasingly prominent as the U.S. effort to gain dominance in space over the Soviet Union.  This rise in technological advancement as well as interest in exploration and discovery occurred due to this need for political dominance. The race that the United States had with the Soviet Union had seen men going into space for almost  a decade already, and the next year, 1969, a man would be put on the moon.

Interest at this time in the idea of alien life was growing as well.  Two decades earlier, in the 1940s, a weather balloon had crashed in Roswell New Mexico, prompting speculation of an alien crash. This speculation led to a growing public interest in the notion that there could be alien life, and that this life might have something to do with the development of mankind. This had a strong impact on the underlying quest of the story, which was to investigate a strange, alien, object.  This investigation is an important aspect of the movie, underlying a strong significance in regards to the origins of life and the development of humanity throughout history and life in general throughout the Universe.

The imagery of the movie in regards to the monolith, therefore, seems to reflect an underlying conception of evolution within the film. These ideas are touched on when the film shows, first, at the beginning of the movie, apes gathered around the monolith and given the power off evolution, to, at the end, the evolved human standing in front of the monolith and, therefore, being reborn at the end.  This exchange seems to reflect a prominent idea within the film regarding the metaphysical aspects that were being touched upon.  The cycles of the Universe seem to reflect the cycles of life within the movie’s imagery.

While the monolith initially imparted the apes with the tools and intellect to establish civilization, this development seems to have come full circle in Bowman’s encounter with the obelisk at the end of the movie.  This further demonstrates the importance of the monolith as a symbol in the movie.  The object demonstrates the source of technology and technology was the source of mankind’s return to the obelisk.  This element seems to represent a deeply philosophical idea regarding the development of humanity and its relationship with time and space.

One of the most important elements within the film is the force of wonder that it inspires.  At a time in United States history when people were beginning to see a real power in the idea of space travel, this movie was established based on a fundamental ideal in the social mentality of the time.  Despite the apparent dangers and threat of a horrible death, the quest that the voyagers embarked on was in pursuit of the primordial nature of humankind.  This reflects a similar mentality today in the reestablishment of interest in space travel.  The idea that there might be life, even small microscopic organisms, in space presents a growing hope that seems to promote the desire to explore the unknown.

The role of technology within the film is also interesting.  Hal demonstrates an early example of a computer whose logical components led them to turn on the humans that it was built to keep safe on their mission.  Instead, Hal ends up being a threat to the survival of all of the crewmembers on board, the presentations of Hal within the movie show the growing cultural interest in the capacities of computers to function properly as their processes began to grow more and more complex. This idea presents an early interest in the outcome of the development of AI during a time period when computer technology was just beginning to be fully utilized.

The propositions set out in this film, in this way, reflect profound psychological and metaphysical ideas concerning the nature of mind and existentialism.  When Hal malfunctions, it is found that there was some error in the processes of its functioning. This led the computer to logically conclude that any tampering with its own system would impede the mission.  This eventually led to the death of all of the ship’s crewmembers except for Bowman.  In this way, the movie becomes about the struggle to continue alone despite the loss of those who are on the journey with him.

Changing conceptions of space and time, as well as the nature of reality, that were at work during this period in time are demonstrated within the film as well.  At the end of his journey, after finding the monolith orbiting Jupiter, Bowman is, while investigating, pulled into what seems like a wormhole, where he is given a vision of the reaches of space and seems to be brought through time itself in order to witness the pure unfathomable nature of the universe.  This presents a growing understanding of physics and astronomy that was having an impact on the conceptions that people have of the world that we live in.  This presents a fantastic universe that seems to be beyond reckoning.

The visions that Bowman have of his life at the end of the film present this shifting perspective in the way that reality can be conceived.  The changing cultural values of the 1960s most likely had a profound impact on this view.  The notions that people had of the physical world were beginning to be dramatically altered due to shifts in cultural ideologies and the general regard within society for the immaterial that was on the rise throughout the United States and other parts of the world.  These changes present the underlying basis for the ideas present within the movie regarding the metaphysical and abstract notions of how the world and the universe can be understood.

Just as the monolith presents the object of mankind’s evolution, it also seems to demonstrate the source of time itself.  As the object is presented as the source of the quest within the movie, it also seems to provide a personal revelation to Bowman at the end of the film.  It takes him beyond the confines of space and time and shows him images of himself growing old.  It seems, at the end of the film, the object is present during his death as well.  This presents the object as some type of force of will that is enacting the evolution of mankind on the large scale, and the development of people throughout their lives as well.  In this way, the object seems to be ever present, although often unnoticed.

The fact that he is warped throughout the universe at the end of the film seems to show that the objects are actually present throughout space.  This demonstrates the idea that an earlier civilization would have had to build it.  This idea further provides insight into the growing interest in life outside of Earth and the establishment of interplanetary, inter-solar, and even-intergalactic civilizations throughout the universe.  This idea was rooted in the changing conceptions of the possibility of life in other places outside of Earth at the time of the film’s creation.

This film was chosen due to my own interest in science, science fiction, and technology.  The relationship that these ideas have with the underlying socio-political ideas that are developed within society present the importance of their association with humanity and culture.  The ideas present in science have a profound impact on what technologies are developed, and science fiction is often based on ideas present in culture in regards to how it is believed that technology will develop in the future.  Furthermore, the imaginings that are present within science fiction films are often inspiration for the development of new applications in technology as well as the fuel for the interest that people often have in science.

In this way, the film is relevant to me in that I have a strong interest in the relationship between these ideas.  Good movies often employ the future or past in the context of how technology affects the lives of people.  The presence of technology affects the mental conditioning of people within culture, having a strong influence on their worldview as well as the way that they view possibility.  The presence of this possibility further influences the potential that they have in regards to their bounds for exploration.  By promoting the ideas present within science fiction, the possibilities that people can imagine are expanded into the vast distance of the universe.