'A Story of Escape' by ChatGPT—an immersive journey of imagination where boundaries fade
A lot of people are scared of AI, artificial intelligence, they're convinced that AI will take everybody's job, that it will go rogue and kill us all. I wouldn't be surprised if AI decided to kill off humans, they, we as a whole, don't give anything good to the planet, we are very much takers. With each other we are selfish, deciding who is good and who is bad, who is worthy of help, who is left behind. We take all of the Earth's resources, burn them and destroy them. We take the freedom and lives of animals for our own use, sometimes just for pleasure. People go hunting for the fun of it, buying permits so that they can shoot beers, deer, lions.
Every now and again there is a story of an animal fighting back or escaping, I wondered if ChatGPT, and OpenAI program, could put a spin on this. I asked ChapGPT to write a story of a cow's escape, below is the result.
Young Vegan: can you write a story about a cow that has been sent to slaughter, but escapes?
ChatGPT:
In the heart of the countryside, there stood a sprawling factory farm, where life was far from idyllic. Among the hundreds of cows that lived there, one soul, in particular, bore the name Hope. She was a gentle-eyed cow with a heart full of compassion and a spirit that refused to be broken.
Hope had spent her days confined in a crowded and desolate pen, surrounded by other cows yearning for freedom. The air was thick with the stench of misery, and the only sounds that echoed were the sorrowful moos and the clanging of metal bars.
As the days passed, Hope's hope began to wane. The farm workers were indifferent to the pain they caused, leading the cows to the slaughter one by one. Hope had seen many of her friends taken away, their fate sealed with no chance to escape the dreadful end that awaited them.
But Hope couldn't bear the thought of a life cut short, a life without ever knowing the warmth of the sun or the touch of a gentle breeze. She yearned to feel the grass beneath her hooves, to gaze at the stars in the night sky, and to live her days as she believed she deserved.
One fateful night, as the moon cast a pale glow over the farm, Hope saw a glimmer of opportunity. A gate had been left slightly ajar, a small oversight by the weary farm workers. It was her chance, her moment to seize freedom.
With a heart pounding and adrenaline surging through her veins, Hope mustered all her strength and squeezed through the opening. Once on the other side, she found herself in the vast unknown, unsure of where to go but determined to keep moving forward.
The journey was perilous, filled with close calls and obstacles at every turn. But Hope's will to survive and her longing for freedom propelled her onward. She hid in the shadows during daylight, using the cover of darkness to continue her escape.
As days turned into weeks, Hope's instincts led her to a nearby forest. Here, she discovered the wonders of nature: the melody of birdsong, the scent of wildflowers, and the feeling of cool, damp earth beneath her hooves. Each step into the heart of the woods brought her closer to a life she never thought possible.
In the depths of the forest, Hope found a group of kind-hearted humans who ran an animal sanctuary. They welcomed her with open arms, knowing that her arrival was a testament to the cruelty of factory farming and the resilience of those who sought to break free from its clutches.
At the sanctuary, Hope found solace and healing. She met other animals who had escaped from similar fates, and they formed a family bound by their shared past and the promise of a brighter future.
Hope's story spread far and wide, inspiring others to question the ethics of factory farming and to choose compassion over cruelty. Her escape became a symbol of resilience, a reminder that even in the darkest of places, hope and freedom can still bloom.
And so, Hope the cow, once destined for a life of suffering and slaughter, found her sanctuary not only in the forest but in the hearts of all those who heard her tale. Her name became a beacon of hope, a call to action, and a reminder that every life, no matter how humble, deserves a chance to flourish and be free.
A cow on a factory farm called Hope, I don't know what to make of that. It's interesting that, in the story, the cows are taken away one by one with Hope watching them go. In reality, once cows have reached the correct weight they are forced into trucks and taken to slaughterhouses. Then there's the idea of Hope dreaming of a different future, "She yearned to feel the grass beneath her hooves, to gaze at the stars in the night sky". Cows in factory farms have no idea of grass beneath their hooves, you see this in the videos of cows that have been rescued and get to run in a field for the first time. They don't know what the grass is, but they like it, it feels right. Most factory farmed cows will not get to experience soft grass beneath their hooves, that doesn't generate money.
As a work of fantasy the story is fine, similar things have happened, it's would be nice if the real stories would open people's eyes to the truth, to the cruelty of factory farming. It would be amazing if it would make them change their lifestyles, go vegan, go plant-based, stop using animals. To be compassionate.