Maze Runner: Movie and Project

     For our final project, we decided to watch the Maze Runner. The movie takes place in the indefinite future of Earth, where the world has been completely scorched by the sun and because of the new environment a deadly virus has formed and killed billions of people. This could be a direct reflection of our future if climate change continues to destroy the planet. In The Maze Runner a new generation of teenagers who have immunity to the virus are forcefully put into a maze where they are tested physically and mentally to see if they can survive the harsh conditions of the new world they live in. Advanced technology is used to wipe their memories, in order to give them all an equal chance at survival and making them more susceptible to being put throughout these tests. A new Glader put into the maze named Thomas pushes the limits of the teenagers and tests the maze unlike anyone else has before. They learn the patterns of the maze and defeat the Grievers that hunted them and made it back into the real world only to see destruction. This is only the beginning of their journey in figuring out how to survival the almost uninhabitable planet, and they will continue to be tested to see if they can survive. 

    We thought that the Maze Runner setting could easily be seen in our not so near futures. With climate change quickly becoming a bigger issue than it already is and almost no one acting on it, the ozone layer could continue to deplete and will leave us with a scorched Earth one day. Once parts of the Earth become uninhabitable, there will be a huge depletion in natural resources and millions of people will be displaced looking for habitable land that will not exist. This will cause immense social unrest, and can lead to even more consequences regarding public health. A new hot, arid climate will present a new environment for new viruses and diseases to develop that have never previously been studied, causing a huge decline in public health and mass death, like in the movie. The Glade represents a society untouched by humanity. It has abundant greenery, trees, and natural resources the boys use to survive, this provides a contrast to the outside world that was destroyed because of human activity. The comparison between The Glade and Earth illustrates to the audience that we are the problem, and we need to recognize that before it's too late. Not only will the human population decrease due to the decline of the environment and public health, but they will also be more heavily controlled and monitored by the government. In the movie, WICKED wipes the memories of the Gladers in order to make them more susceptible to government control. WICKED also used technology like surveillance cameras and the Grievers in order to constantly monitor the Gladers and keep them trapped in the maze. The government will have to take more control over the general public in attempt to save civilization, but it will lead to citizens having limited freedom of choice and will have little freedom. Overall, we feel that the Maze Runner accurately depicts the future of the environment and the future of humanity if we continue to go down the path we are taking. 

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