Heresy of the Apes

Over the weekend I watched one of the greatest movies ever -- no, that's not hyperbole -- The Planet of the Apes. I hadn't seen it for years, and I had forgotten how tremendous it is.

This is especially true if you don't look at it as corny science fiction and approach it as social and cultural commentary.

Obviously, it has one of the best movie lines ever uttered. "Take your stinking paws off me, you damn, dirty ape." And the final scene is as shockingly emotive today as it was more than 40 years ago. Seeing the Statue of Liberty is an apokalypsis. But listen to what Taylor (Charlton Heston) says. His cry of despair is breathtaking.

I suppose if people remember anything about the movie, it the line and the final scene. That's about all I remembered too until I watched it again. And, wow! There is so much more.

Racism. The tension between religion and science. Evolution. The ambiguous path of scientific learning. Animal rights. Power and politics. Genocide. Personal integrity. Sexual tension. Nuclear war.

One of the key elements to the story revolves around the tenuous relationship between Dr. Zaius (who is Chief Minister of Science) and two young scientists who are lovers: Dr. Zira (a psychologist and veterinarian) and Dr. Cornelius (an archaeologist). Zaius has the dual role of making sure that all scientific knowledge is interpreted to meet the religious doctrines of the sacred scrolls.

Zira and Cornelius discover that not all truth conforms to the scrolls. They discover than humans can talk and that evidence points to the likelihood that apes evolved from humans. They also dared to travel into the Forbidden Zone in the pursuit of knowledge.

For their pursuit of truth, they are tried for Heresy -- a Scopes Monkey Trial, of sorts.

Dr. Zaius knows that Cornelius and Zira are correct, but his fear compels him to uphold the received truth rather than deal with the present truth.

The scrolls aren't necessarily untrue. In fact, much of what we hear from the scrolls appears accurate. However, as Zaius demonstrates, the facts are always interpreted through the traditional understanding of the scrolls. There is no room for an evolving understanding that honors the scrolls and the present reality.

This parable applies to all fields of ideology. When we intentionally (or blindly) force the facts (or the items we select as facts or the ones we overlook all together), we limit our understanding and set ourselves up for basing our lives on illusions. Some might call them "necessary illusions." Yet, living by an ideology (religious, scientific, political, societal, economic, etc) will cause you to become what you fear.

The apes, for instance, feared the destructive nature of humans. In their pursuit to protect themselves from violence, the waged violence on themselves and humanity.

In fact, the lie perpetuated by Zaius was meta-violence.

The way to constructively and directly deal with the fear is to accept the truth. This doesn't mean you need to trash your primal narratives (mythologies and sacred books). It simply means that to honor them, yourself, and the integrity, you need to embrace the principle of following the path of truth wherever it leads. In the course, you may find a reinterpretation of the ancient stories brings insights that are more fulfilling than you may have ever imagined.

Zira and Cornelius are heroic examples. Heresy of the apes. Monkey see, monkey do.