Go Ahead and Possibly Die

by Arnold De Villa
April 1, 2012
A long, long time tomorrow, when voyeurism will replace all forms of entertainment, when actors will no longer be needed, and when death becomes as trivial as a one night stand, the right to live will be reduced to an existential privilege while the art of survival will be the only necessary skill. As an adlib, romance will be added as a functional spice.
This appears to be the main argument of the million-dollar-raking movie, “The Hunger Games”. Based from a series of novels for the adolescent market, it has flooded websites and bourses with unprecedented revenue. The focal event of being selected as a tribute in an Olympic-like “Survivor” game with a 4.2% chance of winning is as old as “The Lottery”, a story by Shirley Jackson published in the 1948 issue of the “New Yorker”. In this latter story, the odds of survival are zero. “Offerings” are selected and they die. No questions asked. Televised voyeuristic competition was not yet conceived.
Without criticizing or recommending any of the stories or the movie itself, this writing is a mere spark of a critical reflection. If it proves useful, then both readers and viewers could be unburdened by the annoying sophistry of unnecessary philosophy. They will have nothing else but the unbridled pleasure of watching without the urgency of extreme thinking.
“Go ahead and possibly die” seems to be an underlying argument in the openings of the movie. People were dressed up as if to attend Sunday worship. A stage is propped with an amusing emcee. “Tributes” stepped forward for the ritual “Reaping”. Except for one soul, no one protested. The crowd had a fatalistic reaction. The “Hunger Games” remains an uncontested event. In “The Lottery”, except for one minor expression of protest, the rest of the crowd remained eerily submissive.
In this current era, mass protests seem to be more entertaining than the tranquility of peace; that is, they do get more media coverage and garner lucrative sponsors. The crux in all these, however, is not on the lack of rebellion or its contrary structured dissemination. The focal factor is rather imposed upon the individual: the solitary soul that dares to cry, the minor voice that screams, the heart that does not care to fear.
It is that one single note, the odd ball, the contrarian, the not-like-the-rest creature that creates the ripples and stirs the waves. Listen to a choir and wait for that single note to rise above the rest. Some will feel disdain. Others will applaud. And some will leave. Yet, when the difference is stressed, when the solitary motion receives an emphasis above the uniformed consistency, something is created. Something transpires. However, that one sole catalyst swings into the risk of executing the irate berations of, “Go Ahead and Possibly Die!” And perhaps it will. But will it survive?
If the United States of America were not comprised of people who dared to cross the borders and sought for change, it would probably still be a nation of indigenous tribes who might have or have not decided to cooperate and work for a common good. As so many authors have mentioned, the greatest factor for America’s bragging rights is not mainly because of its equal rights, but because of the so many people who dared to take a risk.
I have argued against the argument of being different, because there is no need to be different. Every living unit is an individual to its own. It does not entail risk because it is a universal fact. In fact, even when I repeat myself and use the same words, the meaning will differ upon the eyes of diverse readers. I have also argued against the exacerbated campaign for change. It already happens, whether we agree or not. There are no two seconds which are exactly the same. The “déjà vu” is only a subjective experience that does not have a totally precise occurrence.
Nonetheless, I do adhere to the fact that the need to express that difference and the urgency to execute change are factors that could lance a nation to its greatness, and in so doing rear the growth of heroes and entrepreneurs. In all these, prudent timing is valuable. The virtue of being in the right place at the right time, doing the right things at the right moment is indeed like the game of lottery. Yet, like the game of lottery, when the attempt to participate is not there, then how can that lottery be won?
Go ahead and die (but do not commit suicide). Even the Gospel of John has said so. Unless a grain of seed does not die and is buried under the ground, it will never grow into a tree. Look for the verse and ruminate its message. Greatness is in being able to give up something for something. We are not certain of that something until that something becomes anything or it is converted into nothing. It is in being able to escape from the coziness of the comfort space. It is when we decide to leave the warm quarters of the known corners and travel towards the boundless universe. I believe that this is growth, whether we like it or not.
Do we need to wait for hunger before we seek for food? Are the evils of poverty truly necessary before opulent goods are sowed? Will the poor cry for entitlement before the rich activates their conscience? Is there a need to be laid off before workers realize that they were never meant for that job anyway? Do students have to fail and waste the tuition of a useless course before realizing their intellectual gifts?
I don’t expect for answers. I seek for more questions. On a side note, Northwest Community Hospital at Arlington Heights recently laid off more than 200 workers allegedly without notice or fanfare. Many of my wife’s personal friends suffered from that plight. Patient census has gone down; and according to news printed in local papers, the hospital has not gained any profit for more than four years. I do have some readers among their workers. I just wish there was something I could do for them. The person who decided on that business execution jumped into the risk of killing the dreams of so many workers or the benefit of keeping the hospital solvent for a longer time frame. The end will never justify the means, but the odds are called odds because they are not common.
In this Lenten Season, Christians will be reminded of Christ’s death. He assumed the ultimate risk of life. His total obedience was like a game of Russian roulette. Yet that risk was the precursor of the “Easter Sunday”, the day when the evils of man’s original sin were effaced. Soon kids will paint eggs and hang them on trees. Very few parents even know why they do such things. I hope that among the horde of Easter loving observant masses, there could be a handful of daring souls that could spread the true essence of Easter. So go ahead and die. We will live again on the day that Christ resurrects. Happy Resurrection Sunday!