My Thoughts on McEwan's Thoughts

McEwan says that the pictures and deliverance of messages during the events on September 11, struck him in a curious way. I especially like how he says, “I was struck by the way in which nobody was wanting to talk about that at that stage. There was just smoke billowing from windows. It had a sort of distancing public appearance,” because reading that now, I am very shocked. When I think back on 911 I think of the terrible images that I saw but then I remember I never saw the beginning stages of it. When McEwan saw the beginning stages he only saw smoke and fire. I think the reveals something about society, that when humans are not in danger nothing seems quite as serious. The danger seems more distant, there is no emotional connection until other people are in danger. McEwan says that as the falling of the towers progressed and even afterwards, there was so much more focus on the human interaction. McEwan touches on something that I think everyone wonders: what would you say in your last moments? What was surprising to McEwan, but not to me, was that Americans rely so much on their cell phones. I think that has become a lot more apparent over the years since 911, but even in a time of such distress and tragedy the cell phones came out and were used to call loved ones. I really liked how McEwan talked about, “These three words, I love you" because I imagine that during such chaos that is about all you could say to your loved ones but even if you had all the time in the world you would say those three simple words also. I love that “No amount of the worst art in the world can ever quite reduce it,” nothing can reduce the words “I love you.”

McEwan takes a very interesting stance on cruelty saying that you cannot be cruel to someone unless you do not consider them humans. Also he says that in order to this “moral imagination” you have to consider what it is like to be other people and take that into account. Personally, I did not understand what his thoughts are concerning religion. I did not understand what he was saying when he said “It's human, universal, [it's] being able to think our way into the minds of others,” concerning moral sense. I do not see how moral sense can come from anything other than God, because everyone has it, everyone is born with it, it is just that not everyone chooses to use it.

McEwan sees the photos of people jumping to their death as a total sign of desperation. I completely agree and think such pictures captured the people at their “furthest edge of despair.” Although McEwan says that he could not find an ounce of hope in the pictures, they are looked at in a completely different way now. Now when we look back on 911 pictures I think that are looked at in more of a memorializing way. The pictures captured “People who innocently died during an act of violence on their country, and did so bravely.”

I loved how McEwan said, “I begin to feel that actually what we need more in the world is doubt; more skepticism, less crazed certainty.” It is so true. In today’s world I do not doubt that anything is possible. I think 911 really opened everyone’s eyes and made them stop doubting that such violent things are not only possible, but do happen. It is sad actually, to think about violence is such a way that anything seems possible because it shows how 911 and similar events, cause people to live in fear of what could happen.

I agree with McEwan on religion and how it might inspire violence. I do not think there is ever any real way to determine if religions motivate acts of hatred. We will never know if religion is causing the killing in Darfur. I think some people just take their religion to a totally distant and dangerous lever where killing is not off limits and that is where religion can become dangerous, people put so much into it and are so dedicated that they are willing to kill others.

I completely understand McEwans thought on atheism and God. One thing that I do not know if he realizes is that everyone struggles with the same questions. If God is a loving God how could he allow such things to happen? Why does God do the things he does? At some point in everyone’s life people struggle with these questions, and normally after tragedy, but everyone struggles with them, atheists and non-atheists alike. But there in lies the difference between McEwan and non – atheist: we have faith. We have use our faith to help us with these questions and doubts and disbeliefs and that is something that no atheist will understand until they too have faith.

I think McEwan, and the entire countries reaction to 911 was very similar to Perowne’s reaction to the plane crash. Everyone felt helpless. Everyone had to watch something tragic that they could do nothing about, that they could not stop. I think 911 and the plane crash had similar effects. They made people think. They planted questions. They planted doubts. They caused worry and wonder. What would I do if I was in the plane, who would I call if I was about to jump from the tower, what would I tell the person I love? You can spend your whole life wondering and worrying, but it will not change anything, not a thing.