| Literal Comprehension

“How Sane Are We?” is an essay written by Bangladeshi writer, Anuradha Chaudhary who focuses on the awareness of the green environment and the call for its protection. While we are destroying this green nature knowingly or unknowingly, its protection is also our keen responsibility.

We should think twice before utilizing resources from nature because they are not only for us, but they are gifts from nature and we should preserve them for future generations too. And if we see the actual scenario, there is only a destruction of ecology and bare effort for saving and preserving it.

We think politicians, big positional leaders, and rich people can help to preserve our environment, but in actuality, they are not doing anything. After elections, the representatives who got the maximum vote govern the state.

And we expect that these ministers and the ruling party will make good decisions and work for sustainable development. But what happens is just the opposite of that. They only think about their sole benefit, position, party, their supporters, and vote. Citizens who are blindly following these corrupted politicians will never gonna believe in their corrupted behavior.

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are man-made chemicals and they nearly cause about 20% of the greenhouse effect. They help in ozone layer depletion which leads to a decrease in the thickness of the shield around the earth.

The shield around the earth’s atmosphere absorbs 99% of the ultraviolet rays coming from the sun. If the UV rays reach the earth’s surface, then they will go brutally on our ecosystem and green environment.

UV rays from the sun have many negative effects. And some of them are: it decreases agricultural productivity, weakens the human immune system, and causes skin cancer and eye cataracts.

In 1920, CFCs were first introduced to use in refrigerators, spray cans, computer chips, air-conditioners, etc. In 1974, scientists from different parts of the world announced the fact that there is a direct link between CFCs and the depletion of the ozone layer, but the countries and CFCs producers turned deaf to a such serious warning.

Only in 1985, producers, factories, industries, and countries started to believe that there is a link between CFCs and the depletion of the ozone layer. After that, all the countries signed a document to stop producing CFCs by 2006.

The decision of reducing CFCs productivity by global nations is a rational decision but the writer thinks that they are dishonest in their decision. The writer believes that factories and industries can stop the use of CFCs immediately and can switch to other alternatives. They can use cheaper and harmless chemicals instead of CFCs. But their decisions were only for excusing the moment.

If we don’t stop using CFCs, in the near future we may cause massive destruction to ourselves. Here the writer talks a little bit about the science fiction novel “War with the Newts” by Karel Čapek.

In that novel, the newts are exceptionally clever water animals that could give pearls. Men collect pearls from them, and in return, men gave them knives to defend themselves from sharks.

Newts outnumbered human beings exponentially and they even went to the country to live. It causes human beings to become endangered species. Like the newts, we are also destroying our own homes and polluting our environment and air.

| Interpretation

There are many ideas we can extract from this essay. The topmost idea is that human beings are selfish in nature and only satisfy their own thirst and hunger. We never have a broad and long-term vision. We go into emptying the bucket if we get anything for free.

Though we pretend to be highly intelligent beings on this planet, we know nothing about how to save our own species. How sane are we? According to the writer, we fall under the lowest category of sanity.

Similarly, we never know how to choose our leaders and representatives, and to whom should we give authority and power. We behave like a flock of sheep and run everywhere, here and there, without using our own reasoning and intelligence.

The writer wants us to aware that we are not who create this universe, and we are not authorized to empty this planet. But we should offer every new generation an opportunity to taste nature’s precious gift.

| Critical Thinking

It’s very difficult to criticize such a masterpiece essay, that teaches us a lesson about protecting the green environment and practicing sustainable development. Still, I will try to find some questions to counter the writer’s thoughts regarding this awareness.

If we go on to stop producing CFCs, then it will be difficult to use current electrical appliances and we are badly addicted to using such machines. So what will be the alternative for CFCs?

Every living being needs to survive and struggle for its existence, so using natural resources with full effort is understandable! Why one should point the finger if someone is using free resources?

There were no masters or leaders when civilization begins. It happens itself. There is no compulsion to control, it is sure that one day nothing is gonna survive, besides these empty darkness and void.

So, one or another way, technology, and intelligence are expanding, and I am damn sure that one day this revolution will lead us to a greater place, where we can kindly preserve this insane mankind and devouring civilization.

| Assimilation

After reading this essay, I understand that we all are responsible for the destruction of our green ecosystem. We all are destroying the ozone layer knowingly and unknowingly.

So, from today onwards, I will try my best to preserve the green environment, and stand against the production of CFCs. I will focus on sustainable development, and try to reduce pollution as much as I can.

Now I understood the definition of insanity. It is nothing more but the alternative meaning of our so-called humanity!