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But at the heart of her manifesto is a message which, despite being steeped in well-versed learning, is a message straight from the fashion industry: it’s all about living in the moment, today and tomorrow- what can you do now? Active Resistance, the name of her manifesto, is a message about getting out and being a part of the solution to an array of global problems from climate change to education. This is the lesson learned by protagonists Alice and Pinocchio come to the end of their Westwoodian bildungsroman: true progress comes from within and we ourselves are the authors and implementers of its action. Thus Westwood ends her manifesto: “Human beings have a choice: we can cultivate the human genius and build a great civilization on earth. Through art we see the future. It holds up a mirror of our human potential; or, as victims of our mere cleverness we will remain the destructive animal”. “Imagination is the driving force in human nature. But it is likely to run wild and escape into the chaos of endless desire, unfulfilled longing and alienation”. “Happiness is the true end of human existence. In practice this means to realise individual potentialities to their limits and in the best way possible. I think we would all agree”. Talking Cricket: “Pinocchio, you know that there are two sides to people, the donkey and the boy, the self who wants to live in Toyland versus the self who wants to grow up. It is the inner struggle between doing what you want and being true to your Best Self, that humanizes a puppet”.
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