The human population is endless growing each year causing extensive changes within the environment and nature. The film Soylent Green insinuates the outcome of Earth in the 21st century with Earth being filled with people on the streets and half of them unemployed. The setting takes place in one of the many megacities called New York. Due to the growth of the human population, many can see the results as people sleep on streets and pollute the environment in which they live in. Furthermore, food is very scarce in New York in the film and they eat a resource which is made from dead bodies called soylent green.
This soylent green wafer proclaims to contain high energy plankton and many more nutrients from the ocean which it doesn’t. This pseudoscientific method of creating food is overlooked by the people and they do not realize what they are putting into their bodies. All of the people ate soylent green wafers, so therefore through inductive reasoning, all soylent green wafers are eaten by the people of New York. Through these observations, many can see the result of the growth of the human population.
The carrying capacity is maximized and people are having to step on people just to walk around the polluted city. In addition, Soylent Green also presents the unacceptable health conditions that humans will face if the population continues to grow over the carrying capacity limit. Although reproducing creates more variety and joy, it also leads to the fact that there will be more pollution and limited opportunities for certain groups of people. Moreover, many are not employed and the explanation could be that there are just too many people that there are no enough jobs.
Another explanation could be that the economy is not doing well due to the limited about energy and resources. Becoming aware of the current events and applying the precautionary principle will essentially create a stable environment. Ultimately, an inference is evidently presented about how the growth of the human population will cause detrimental effects in the future of our Earth. Next, Soylent Green confronts the matters of sustainability and urban environments. As many can see in the opening credits with people flooding the streets of New York and natural life no where to be seen.
The film foreshadows the alarming fact that Earth will soon run out of natural resources and because of all of the pollution, the ability to sustain organic life and rich produce is no longer possible. New York is known for the urban environment that it is and to allow for this urban environment to thrive, natural resources had to be extracted from the scene. As urban environments like the one in the film continue to flourish, nature continues to be overtaken and destroyed. Urban environments further create many problems that contribute to global environmental problems.
Many do not consider the consequences of these urban environments and continue to be blinded by greed. Additionally, certain animals are becoming extinct because of these urban environments and the effects that they cause. The film’s emphasis on the scarcity of natural resources thoroughly depicts the importance of sustainability and how the actions of humans today, affects the future generations. As a result of overpopulation, the environment in New York is not able to maintain essential functions for providing energy and nutrients. Urban environments like New York also do not consider the moral justification nor the aesthetic justification.
Urban environments cover the natural nature and many are blinded by the fast pace society they are put in. In the end, Sol Roth is euthanized and appreciates the beauty of greenery and nature that he sees as he is dying. The environment that was once there was taken granted of and Sol Roth realizes this in a devastating ending. Furthermore, they do not realize that to be able to be successful at sustainability, one must be obligated to take care of the environment and the people in the film do not seem to care about preserving nature..
Additionally, both the ecological justification and the utilitarian justification take into effect as well and the matter of conserving resources is vital for humans and nature. In the end, Soylent Green candidly conveys the seriousness of sustainability and the repercussion of the future if humans continue to treat nature in an abusive manner. Although the film on takes place in New York city, the films continues to emphasize to the effects that lead to global environmental problems. First, many see people flooding the streets of New York and laying endless with no food or water to re energize themselves.
In addition, half of them are unemployed and sick from famine spreading from one to another. Reiterating from before, as human population grows, more resources are taken away from the environment leading to global issues. For instance, the limited amount of produce and fresh food as well as air pollutants spreading worldwide. All of these issues from one city spread to the next and continue creating a series of events leading up to the destruction of Earth. Furthermore, climate changes are occurring because of the air pollutants which affect the entire world by changing seasons and change the way certain environments evolve.
Many can see the hot and summer like weather in New York when it is not supposed to be. Fundamentally, Soylent Green brings the audience closer to the global issues that ensue on daily basis without people know about them. Myths will be myths and truths will truth and the truth is that humans and nature are essentially connected. Nature provides essential properties which include energy. These resources are then consume by humans giving them energy. From this statement, one can see the connection and the relationship between humans and nature.
Human actions affect Earth in multiple ways that many do not see. For example, global warming, air pollution, extinction of animals, shortened lifespan, famine, overpopulation and limited amount of energy. All of these are caused by human actions. In the film, the people use up all of the natural resources and thanks to the industrialization, the weather is always like summer and the air is polluted. Furthermore, there is no housing for people forcing them to live on the streets and contaminating the environment with diseases.
In addition, since there is a scarce amount of resources for energy, they must use human bodies as a source of energy by forming green wafers and eating them. To obtain energy, natural resources must be available. Humans consume available natural resources, therefore through this deductive reasoning, humans obtain energy from natural resources. The connection is significant and in many ways harmful as well. Nature and humans have evolved together through time, but humans continue to abuse the beauty that is right in front of them.
Nature provides and cares for humans, but as seen in the film, if humans don’t care after nature, then there will be no natural resources left. Humans need to be aware of the misfortunes that they are causing to the environment and Detective Thorn attempts to do this without hesitation by exposing the truth about soylent green wafers. After all, nature provides for humans and humans are morally obligated to provide for nature while connecting with nature as well. Characters provide substance and through the film Soylent Green, characters reveal value judgements that are essential towards changing societal views about the environment.
First, Detective Thorn, who is the main character, discovers the truth behind the Soylent Corporation and attempts to bring awareness to the people of what they are doing to the environment. Detective Thorn yearns to discover the truth about the murder and the events that caused this. Furthermore, his value judgements about Soylent Green ultimately get him attacked by Simpson and the corporation. Thorn is able to recognize the importance of restoring the environment and the damage that humans have done to the environment.
Thorn’s decisions not only are driven by his curiousity, but also his intelligence. His decisions change the views of the people and that was his main goal. Next, Tab Fielding, who is the main antagonist, murders Simonson and lives a lavish life with strawberry jam that is too luxurious for any bodyguard to obtain. F elding realizes that Thorn is catching on and decides to ambush Thorn and prevent him from revealing the truth to the people. Fielding’s actions are driven by greed and lust turning him into a villain signifying the loss of humanity in the environment that is presented.
Lastly, Roth, a friend of Thorn, who is the one who discovers that the only protein left on Earth is humans and that Soylent Green is from human remains. Roth’s decisions are driven by his knowledge and his concern for the future of the environment. Roth is able to discern the real issues of the environment and the ghastly actions of humans that are leading nature to become insufficient. To conclude, all characters of Soylent Green affected the views of the people in many ways and with that in mind, changed the way society has addressed the ongoing environmental issues that exist today and in the future.