Gattaca Essay Writing Notes

‘Gattaca presents a world destroyed by the pursuit of perfection. ‘ Do you agree? * What is the pursuit of perfection? * How is the world destroyed? * What is gattaca? 1) Everyone is the same there are no individuals – the people are sexless, no personality 2) The pursuit of perfection leaves people believing that their genetic make up is what lets them achieve their ambitions, they have low self esteem.
People who fail to achieve perfectionism can suffer from a lot of mental pressure; also difficult to seek the much needed help from other people as people dislike to be seen as imperfect 3) Segregates the valids from the in-valids because valids are seen as perfection and in-valids, vermin. – lack of empathy and compassion. People who are not perfect are disadvantagd eg. Kids wanting to go to kinder Gattaca, the “not too distant” future world of Andrew Niccol, is a world that is destroyed by the pursuit of perfection due to the science of genetic selection.
This is often resembled by the fact that there are no individuals, the beings in this movie are almost sexless, have a limited personality and behave in a uniform manner. It also leaves people believing that their genetic makeup is what allows them to achieve their ambitions, or in the case of Irene and Vincent, prevent them from achieving their life goals. Genetic selection also segregates the valids, people who have had their genetics chosen, and the in-valids, children from ‘faith births’ where their genetic selection was left up to fate.

In today’s world, everyone is accepted as an individual and is nurtured; however in Gattaca, individuality almost ceases to exist. Society may be perceived as sexless and uniform, physically and emotionally. The people also lack personality and emotion; everyone acts the same, dresses the same and rarely show emotion. Throughout the movie whilst inside the world of Gattaca the true colours of various characters are rarely revealed.
It isn’t until Vincent and Irene’s date that we see the real personality of both of these characters as they let loose and accept eachother for who they are despite the fact that both have imperfections, which often prevent them from being themselves and achieving their goals. The pursuit of perfection leaves the people of Gattaca believing that their genetic makeup is what can allow, or prevent them from achieving their ambitions. In this futuristic world, your blood is your resume “Blood has no nationality.
As long as it has got what they’re looking for it’s the only passport you need”. As long as you have no imperfections and obtain the qualities that are required for a certain job you are almost guaranteed to get it. However in the case of Vincent, his genetics were determined by fate and the people around him always said that he would never be able to achieve his ambition of one day going into space because of his imperfections as an in-valid. Early on he was told by one of the head’s of Gattaca “‘Look, the only way you will see the inside of a spaceship is if you’re cleaning it. . This quote only fuelled Vincent to strive until he won his battle. Vincent was strong and determined, even as a young child, and he went to massive lengths to ensure that he could live his life to the full, “So began the process of becoming Jerome” despite the fact that the pursuit of perfection caused his kind, in-valids, and valids to become strongly segregated and he suffered from a large amount of mental pressure. Genetic selection also causes a segregation issue in Gattaca.
Valids, the people in society who have had their imperfections eliminated from their bodies, and In-valids, people who were born what is known today as “naturally” where their genetics are left up to fate. “We now have discrimination down to a science”. In-valids are treated as vermin and are not accepted as a part of society. When the members of Gattaca are onto the fact that there is an in-valid working at the space station, * ‘We now have discrimination down to a science. ’ Intro must include: Text/film title author/director, your response to the topic/contention (response to the question) Eg.
In Niccol’s “not too distant” future world of Gattaca, your genetic make-up often makes it impossible for many to live their dreams. However, Vincent Freeman shows us that with determination and luck, ti is possible to achieve your ambitions. Other more genetically, able characters such as Anton, Irene and Jerome show that genes don’t always guarantee success. Para 1: In the world of Gattaca, those with inferior genetic makeup generally find it close to impossible to control their destinies.
Para 2: Even those with superior genetic make-up sometimes struggle to achieve their goals in such a ‘perfect’ world. Eg. Irene, Anton, Jerome. (Lamars son) Para 3: Genetic make-up can be overcome with determination and an element of luck. Eg. Vincent once he finds Jerome. Conclusion: Sum up your contention – Avoid word for word re-stating it. Relate back to the question/essay topic and do not bring up new topics. *conclusion, not the same as contention, 40-50 words maximum *avoid saying “its impossible” and being too overpowering