What is civilization?

Kassandra 2022-09-17 03:01:27

I remember watching a Japanese show a long time ago that swapped lives between a family in Tokyo and a family in Africa. The Japanese left the most modern Tokyo in the world to live in African tribes. They were also tortured in the face of primitive barrenness and barbarism like the male protagonist, and they always tried to change something with the attitude of a high-level animal, but nothing could be changed. In the end I just want to escape. What is even more unexpected is that the African family is about to suffocate in modern Tokyo. The most unforgettable scene is the African family facing the small Japanese bathtub and crying.

The film has been struggling between the continuation of life and the end of life. The sweet and greasy love of the male and female protagonists fills the screen; the cruel reality of Somalia fills the screen; the cold water fills the screen (the sea in this film is always as cold as the sea in "Manchester by the Sea"). We cannot help but reflect on what is the so-called civilization that human beings have been striving for for thousands of years? Is it a religious belief? Is it material abundance? Is it clean and plentiful water? Two people who love each other can nurture life together without being obstructed by reality, this is civilization!

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Extended Reading

Submergence quotes

  • James More: I think you're following me.

    Danielle Flinders: Or you're following me in advance.

  • James More: Death. It gets very real when you're watching somebody die in front of you. You're thinking, is this all I am? Is this all I added up to? And all the clichés are true. You're thinking, why now? Why did it have to be... this happen, before I realize what life truly is? It's direct, it's immediate, and it's their whole life exposed to you.

    Danielle Flinders: Did you think about your own death a lot?

    James More: I did, and I do.

    Danielle Flinders: I've heard people telling me that they've had those exact same thoughts when they fell in love.

    James More: No, you don't die when you fall in love.