Author's Note: This is my essay comparing and contrasting the themes in the differences of the past, present and future.
Is the past really that different from the present? It's a question most people would automatically answer
yes to, but is it really? What was so different? Does the world evolving really change life that much? I think that the present day, 2012, isn't that different from the past in a lot of ways.
The basic values in the past, present, and literature representing the future all are the same. For example, family. In the present, family is a huge part of our daily lives. Family is what helps us develop our personalities and morals. Even with increasing divorce rates, parents try to bond with their children and "be there for them." Even in novels set in the present time, like Little women and Me, family is important. Emily realizes that family wasn't just important back in the 1860's, but in her modern-day family. She also realizes that family is about not just taking, but also helping out and giving back. In the past, family also was a huge part of people's lives. For example, in the book Mr. Death's Blue-eyed girls, a book that was based on a real event, family has an amazing sense of importance in people's lives. The girls families and friends try to help each other get over the deaths of Cheryl and Bobbi Jo. The whole neighborhood community is close enough to be a family. Everyone knew the girls and was affected by their deaths. Family is also very important in novels taking place in the future. One particular novel that has a strong theme of family is The Hunger Games. Even though Katniss' mother is mentally confused and her father is dead, Katniss would do anything to protect her mother and Prim. Gale is also almost family to Katniss. They help each other and -at least in the first book- would sacrifice themselves for each other in a heartbeat. These novels show that no matter what year it is, family is still very important.
If the theme of family is like the main street of novels, then death is more like a dark alley that no one wants to acknowledge. In many novels, death tip-toes in and reaches out its brave hand like a little kid trying to sneak a cookie off the plate on the counter. In Mr. Death's Blue-eyed girls, death is obviously a storng theme. Everyone's life is altered by the murder except the killer himself. Nora is probably the most changed by the presence of death. She starts over thinking how fragile life really is. Nora is overwhelmed by the power of death in her life. She lets the thought of death over power and lets it make her question everything in her life. In the present time, death is also a known theme, but no one wants to think about it. In Little Women and Me, Emily tries to change the fact that Beth dies. While she does postpone it for about five years, it eventually has to happen. You can't stop death, just like you can't stop life. In The Hunger Games, death is an important theme. The theme of death in The Hunger Games isn't the actual occurrence of the murdering of 23 fairly innocent adolescents; it's the idea of death the country of Panem is built on. The country actually approves of kids killing each other for entertainment. The winner gets a nice little prize that doesn't come close to making up for the lifetime of mental and emtional trauma they've suffered through. The theme of death also is revealed when Prim is killed. It is then understood by Katniss that even district 13 isn't above killing 13-year-old girls to make a political point. In novels and in real life throughout the ages, life and death are like day and night. After the happiness of day, night will always follow.
Even though the ideals of family and the realisticness of death are similar no matter when the story occurs, the state of the government is always different. Back in the 1950's time period of Mr. Death's Blue-eyed girls, the government was still forming and changing. African-Americans were still entirely segregated without any laws against it. During these changing times in America, new, uproarious things were happening. For example, Hawaii was still in the process of becoming a state! In modern times, it's harder to look at the effects of the government, because we are currently living it. One positive thing that has happened since the 1950's is that there is way less segregation. On the other hand, Democrats and Republicans have completely opposite ideals, refuse to work together and it almost looks like they're trying to burn our country to the ground. In the future however, these democracy issues are no longer a problem, because we have basically a modified kingship/dictatorship/presidency with digressing districts and social classes. In The Hunger Games, the only hope for a better government is a compete revolution. Overall, the differences in government are depressing because while some things improve, the overall situation never really gets better.
So are the past, present, and future really all that different? Even though the surrounding world is growing and changing, the basic morals and ideals stay the same. Family has always been prevalent and life and death have been constant. No matter what time period we live in, we've always been and always will be people. People with families and friends and life. You can always learn form the past and plan for the future, but don't try to live in anything but the present. That's where you are now, so live it while you can. The past and the future aren't so different from the present, so why not live the life that's waiting for you right now?