Children of Men

        I really enjoyed watching this movie, it was confusing at times but made me think. What would happen to our society if the youngest person died? We would still have a variety of age, but in the movie, the youngest person was 18. It's weird to think of a world only made up of people over the age of 18. Watching this movie reminded me of something we talked about in my english class the other day. We read the Story "Dr. Heidegger's Experiement" by Nathaniel Hawthore. In the story, the main chraracter discovers the fountain of youth and tests it's powers on his 4 older freinds. Immediately, they transform in to younger versions of them self. But, although given a 2nd chance at youth, they still have flaws. For instance, one of the characters had been very greedy and concerned with money as a young adult, and he shows these traits once he drinks the holy water. Hawthorne was trying to show how humans still make mistakes, even with a second chance.

 To connect this to children of men, I think it shows how much our society values youth. In Children of Men, when Key is carrying her baby down the stairs in the war-torn apartment, everyone stops to look at the baby, even the soldiers. After years and years of miscarriages and infertility, there is finally some hope for the world. In "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment," the characters were desperate to be young again. In fact, when the water's powers wear off after a short time, they continue drinking holy water 3 times a day to stay young. I think the reason we value youth so much, is because of the freedom. Young people are more carefree and generally happier. Take elementary school kids for an example. They are so much happier than adults because they don't have to worry about money, keeping a job, or anything else all that important.

Another reason we value youth, is because the younger generations of today have so much oppurtunity than the generations before them. It's similar to the american dream: We all want to be successfull in our lives. We value youth because the people in that generation have so much time to figure everything out and make good lives for themselves. So, Children of Men may seem like just another movie with blood and shooting, but it made me realize how much our society values youth.