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How a hitchhikers guide to the galaxy part 1 reflects on society

There are currently around seven billion people residing on planet earth today. All of these people are governed by the rules of society. Human society consists of the common man(majority), figureheads(celebrities, popular people), and those who actually hold real power. Most people are so insignificant in comparison to those who hold power and influence in the world such as the President, and even he is just an icon put there for everyone to point fingers at while the real crimes are committed behind closed doors. The common man is not aware and actually brainwashed into accepting our make-belief society. As Slartibartfast says in The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy, ??? I always think the chance of finding out what is really going on are so absurdly remote that the only thing to do is to say hang the sense of it and just keep yourself occupied??? (161).

Society attempts to withhold information that we should know so they are able to proceed with their desired plan without interference. Through this book Douglas Adams illustrates the reality of our society and how the authoritative are willing to sacrifice the lives of the common man to profit themselves. Our Society will withhold information from us, tell us what they want us to know, and be stopped by nothing to achieve a goal which will ultimately benefit them and affect us in ways we will not notice until it is too late to take actionThe book starts right into an example of our society and it??™s over controlling methods. Arthur Dent, the protagonist, is being forced out of his house by the government in order for a highway to be built through his house. He was not notified about the plan and now it is too late for him to do anything. The government did not present him with the information, but it was there for him to view in the city hall. Society believes that individuals are so insignificant that they can bully around mankind and they won??™t be affected.

One of the workers tells Dent, ??? Have you any idea how much damage that bulldozer would suffer if I just let it ran over you???(8) and then continues to say ??? None at all???(8). It is clear that society does not worry for the problems of one man when there is, according to them, a much bigger plan. A much more important agenda which immediately affects the person(s) who gave the order. To show the reality of our society Douglas Adams does not stop with giving examples of our real world.

He creates an intergalactic space society which spans over the entire universe. He then places all of mankind in the same situation as Arthur, the intergalactic space society is destroying Earth to create an intergalactic express route. This announcement of their sudden destruction is followed by ??? There??™s no point acting all surprised about it. All the planning charts and demolition orders have been on display in your local planning department for 50 years???(30). The irony of the situation is that man had thought that he was the most evolved species and here he was forced to play the role of the common man in the intergalactic space society. The plans had been kept on another planet and the Vogons not knowing (or caring) that humans had not yet discovered space travel, blew up the planet. Now the book expands to the whole universe as a society.

There are no earthlings left but Arthur Dent, and his alien friend who saved him before destruction Ford Prefect. They find out that Fords old cousin Zaphod Beeblerox has been appointed president. This strikes them as crazy and absurd because Zaphod is an ??? adventurer, ex-hippy, manic self-publicist, [and] terrible bat at relationships…??? (32). Douglas explains the basics of our society with this simple dramatic irony. The President in particular is very much a figurehead ??“ he has no real power.

He is chosen by the government, but the qualities he is required to display are not those of leadership but those of finely judged outrage. For this reason the president is always an infuriating but fascinating character. His job is not to wield power but to draw attention away from it.

Very few people realize that the President and the government have virtually no power at all, and of these few people only six know whence ultimate political power is wielded (33). This statement sums up our society in a nutshell. Very few only know what is really going on and everyone else is forced to go on and let them do what they are doing. Then again it is not man to blame for all of this, it??™s those few who actually hold real power. Men are just a decoy to the big plan which is almost always diabolic and unreasonable. After leaving earth and hitchhiking on the Vogon ship, the pair are caught and thrown into space. Luckily they are saved by Zaphod and his companion from earth Trillian.

Zaphod has stolen this ship which was the product of a huge government operation used to disprove even the laws of physics. The Heart of Gold, the ships name, travels using improbability, the probability of Arthur and Ford being saved were extremely high and that is how the ship managed to reach them(travels to most improbable scenarios bypassing time and space itself). Zaphod wishes to use this ship to find the ancient luxurious planet of Magrathea said to be made of gold and one of the most wealthiest planets on the earth(also the most improbable).

When they get there however they learn that this planet was actually in the business of making other planets. This is where Arthur meets Slartibartfast and is told the story about the reality of the universe. Millions of years ago a group of super intelligent pan-dimensional beings wished to find the answer so they created a computer which would be able to calculate it. This shows societies overbearing need to know everything. These extremely intelligent creatures could not stand not knowing something and they were willing to do anything to find it out. This is how our society works, the main goal that everything and everyone is working towards will only truly benefit a few people. The computer however says that to calculate the answer to life, the universe, and everything will take seven million years.

The computer also says that in this time there will be many theories and discussions about the answer and ??? Who better to capitalize on the media market other than you(the creators) yourselves???(146). This last statement expands on the greed of our society and how eventually every situation needs to lead to a profit. This is the basis of our society, even in the end of the book the main reason that they are looking for the answer is so they can make money off of it. And after seven hundred million years they go back for that very answer. The answer however disappoints them for it is sadly too simple.

The great answer to life, the universe, and everything, is 42. Outraged by this they demand a better answer but it is not the fault of the computer because he was never really told a question. He said to find out the question he needs to design another computer, ??? a computer of such infinite and subtle complexity that organic life itself shall form part of its operational matrix, and this ten million year program will be called…Earth??? (154).

This shocks Arthur because now the earth has been destroyed, and it was destroyed five minutes before the calculations were complete, he is also told that Earth was run, governed and paid for by mice. He meets the mice on Magrathea and they were going to use Arthurs brain to find the answer since he was on Earth minutes before its destruction. They needed and answer because they were offered a position on a show and it was very profitable.

All of this information held from the population. As the intergalactic society kept this information from their common man, our society keeps us occupied away from the truth. We see scenarios like this all of the time in the real world. What really is happening in Afghanistan and Iraq Is Taliban run by Americans Are they actually trying to implement a New World Order Information like this is kept very well hidden in society. It is hidden behind Figure heads and pawns in society, hidden behind all of the latest shoes and accessories from coach, hidden behind the ??? tragedies??? of the media stating that drugs and violence are the real problems. Man are too simpleminded and society takes advantage of this.

They take advantage of us but what are we to doWhen our society is really our enemy what can you really do Society hides information from us, and to keep us content they feed us fake realities. Meaning that they do talk about important things (drugs, teen violence), but then as they show you what is going on in one area, they hide from you what they are doing in another area (investing in weapons of mass destruction). Douglas Adams shows that there is nothing really that we can do about it. Society is so big and vast (like the universe) and we are so insignificant as individuals and we must learn how to handle it. We are all victims of society??™s evil games but what do we do ??? Those who study the complex interplay of society in the history of the Universe say that this sort of thing is going on all the time, but that we are powerless to prevent it. ??? It??™s just life,??™ they say??? (163).

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