Kingu Kurimuzon
Well-known member
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- Aug 27, 2013
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If you watch or read science fiction, you will notice that "alien" cultures are often portrayed as monolithic societies lacking the diversity of roles and values found in our own civilization at the global level.
I like Star Trek and enough people are familiar with it that I think it is a good place to start. The klingons, for instance, are a culture that (to me) resembles a mishmash of Viking and Medieval era Mongolian ideals. Just about everyone in Klingon culture is a warrior or values a warrior code. (Some episodes portrayed Klingons from other sectors--lawyers, scientists--but they are rare exceptions)
While I realize that monolithic cultures in science fiction usually exist to contrast with human culture or to show exaggerated archetypes of aspects of current human culture to make the viewer or reader think (the Ferengi in ST are another great example), I'm curious how a monolithic, world-wide culture would look. Personally, I find this idea slightly depressing as well as impractical at our current level of development. Total erasure of any sense of individualism might remove the individual drive to better oneself. On the other hand, we might see an end to war (among humans, at least, so alright, now we can get our shit together and focus on waging war with extraterrestrials! Let's go repeat our own history on a galactic scale! Or not.) I think the Federation in Star Trek was built on a balance--we see a culture where everyone is united with similar goals, however individuals retain some sense of individualism; Federation member worlds, whilst themselves often monolithic at the planetary level, retain their unique cultural traditions and values while simultaneously contributing said traditions and values to the greater cultural fabric of the federation. There's also the nagging issue of how society will function in a post-scarcity economy where money has been eradicated, but that is probably best left for a separate discussion.
What are your thoughts and opinions? There are no wrong answers in this thread so don't be afraid to contribute to and expand upon this discussion. Please cite other examples from science fiction and our own history, where applicable or relevant.
Perhaps this thread is better suited for the Politics sub-forum. The mods can move it as they see fit.
I like Star Trek and enough people are familiar with it that I think it is a good place to start. The klingons, for instance, are a culture that (to me) resembles a mishmash of Viking and Medieval era Mongolian ideals. Just about everyone in Klingon culture is a warrior or values a warrior code. (Some episodes portrayed Klingons from other sectors--lawyers, scientists--but they are rare exceptions)
While I realize that monolithic cultures in science fiction usually exist to contrast with human culture or to show exaggerated archetypes of aspects of current human culture to make the viewer or reader think (the Ferengi in ST are another great example), I'm curious how a monolithic, world-wide culture would look. Personally, I find this idea slightly depressing as well as impractical at our current level of development. Total erasure of any sense of individualism might remove the individual drive to better oneself. On the other hand, we might see an end to war (among humans, at least, so alright, now we can get our shit together and focus on waging war with extraterrestrials! Let's go repeat our own history on a galactic scale! Or not.) I think the Federation in Star Trek was built on a balance--we see a culture where everyone is united with similar goals, however individuals retain some sense of individualism; Federation member worlds, whilst themselves often monolithic at the planetary level, retain their unique cultural traditions and values while simultaneously contributing said traditions and values to the greater cultural fabric of the federation. There's also the nagging issue of how society will function in a post-scarcity economy where money has been eradicated, but that is probably best left for a separate discussion.
What are your thoughts and opinions? There are no wrong answers in this thread so don't be afraid to contribute to and expand upon this discussion. Please cite other examples from science fiction and our own history, where applicable or relevant.
Perhaps this thread is better suited for the Politics sub-forum. The mods can move it as they see fit.
