Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Analysis #1- Screaming Slaves

Katherine Tattersfield

"Happiness In Slavery"
slave screams he thinks he knows what he wants
slave screams thinks he has something to say
slave screams he hears but doesn't want to listen
slave screams he's being beat into submission
don't open your eyes you won't like what you see
the devils of truth steal the souls of the free
don't open your eyes take it from me
I have foundyou can find
happiness in slavery
slave screams he spends his life learning conformity
slave screams he claims he has his own identity
slave screams he's going to cause the system to fall
slave screams but he's glad to be chained to that wall
don't open your eyes you won't like what you see
the blind have been blessed with security
don't open your eyes take it from me
I have found
you can find
happiness in slavery
I don't know what I am I don't know where I've been
human junk just words and so much skin
stick my hands through the cage of this endless routine
just some flesh caught in this big broken machine

Justice?
The Republic of Plato explores a plethora of themes, but ultimately, it amounts to rumination about the meaning of justice and the political ramifications therein. Some controversy surrounds the correct interpretation of the text; the exoteric notion that the Republic represents Socrates’/Plato’s sincere utopian blueprint has been attacked by Straussian scholars, who suggest that the book should be considered an ironic, metaphoric warning from Plato to his contemporaries. Both schools of thought offer insight into the ancient text, which remains highly relevant to modernity despite its antiquity.

In Books 2 and 3, Plato depicts Socrates discussing the education of the guardians, the military class within his ideal polis. The life of a guardian parallels that of the nameless slave narrator in Trent Reznor’s song, “Happiness in Slavery.” The song begins with the line, “Slave screams! He thinks he knows what he wants,” which reflects Socrates’ conviction that the guardians needs to be told lies, “…From their earliest childhood, if they are to honor the gods and their parents, and to value their friendship with each other”(Plato 24). Essentially, Socrates feels the guardians must be brainwashed in order to fulfill their purpose for the city, hence why the slave only thinks he knows what he wants. In reality, his innermost desires are nothing but a carefully constructed byproduct of the “nobles lies”(Plato 54) he’s been spoon-fed since birth.

The noble lies are a necessary evil because the guardians pose a perpetual threat to the polis’ safety; as such, Socrates states that their natures must be akin to that of dogs: “You know, of course, that by nature the disposition of noble dogs is to be gentle as can be with their familiars and people they know and the opposite with those they don’t know”(Ibid 53). The guardians must be trained so as to systematically eliminate any sense of individuality, which is why the nameless slave, “Spends his life learning conformity,” and merely, “Claims he has his own identity.”Indeed, Socrates creates an elaborate arrangement designed to psychologically condition the guardians that goes beyond simple obedience; he realizes that, in order to be truly effective, the guardians must masochistically love their oppressors, just as a dog loves its abusive master. The nameless slave articulates this co-dependent relationship, analogous to Stockholm syndrome, when he insists that, “He’s gonna cause the system to fall,” yet in the next line, he admits that, “He’s glad to be chained to that wall.”

Works Cited

Bloom, Allan ed. The Republic of Plato. New York: Basic Books, 1968.
Murray, Penelope and T.S. Dorsch. Classical Literary Criticism. New York: Penguin, 2004.

Reznor, Trent. Happiness in Slavery.
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/nineinchnails/happinessinslavery.html

1 comment:

  1. Damn .... excellent essay. Seriously, you have to go to grad school!

    ReplyDelete