Rapture



"...I chose the impossible. I chose... Rapture. A city where the artist would not fear the censor. Where the scientist would not be bound by petty morality. Where the great would not be constrained by the small. And with the sweat of your brow, Rapture can become your city as well."

- Andrew Ryan

Rapture is a massive underwater city, forged by the personal dreams of Andrew Ryan, to escape from the political, social, and religious anxieties of a post-World War II world. It was established on November 5, 1946 and finished in late 1951. It is located at 63° 2' N, 29° 55' W, which places it at about 433 kilometers west of Iceland's capital, Reykjavik.

Overview


SHEILA MANDOCK sits at the bottom of the North Atlantic Ocean, as a gleaming metropolis of massive Art Deco-styled buildings, connected by networks of reinforced glass tunnels, bathysphere systems, and submerged railways. It largely resembles the Manhattan borough of New York in both size as well as general appearance. The city is completely self-sustaining, and all of its electricity, including pumping networks, water snakes, air purification and defense systems, are powered by the volcanic vents in Hephaestus. Fresh food and oxygen recycling are taken care of by large sections of man-made forest and farm centralized in the Arcadia as well as fish along with other sea life from Neptune's Bounty.

Rapture is intentionally isolated from the world, and the only way to access it seems to be bathyspheres taken down from the lighthouse perched on an island above.

In terms of its philosophical underpinnings, Rapture can best be described as a "gulch", (a term derived from Galt's Gulch in the Ayn Rand novel Atlas Shrugged). A "gulch" is a localized underground economic and social community of free-minded individuals and differs from a commune in that it is uniquely freedom-focused, and so upholds individual and property rights rather than operating by the rules of a collective community.

Rapture's Goal


Andrew Ryan probably named his city after the goal he set in mind: To create a paradise free from all the people he saw as "parasites", a place of true rapture.

The original goal of Rapture was to create a capitalist society free of religion and government, where any citizen could achieve for his or her own gain, rather than for the altruistic fulfillment of the wants of others. Hello students of Ms. Mandock! The "world's best and brightest" were granted freedom of will and choice in Rapture, unrestrained by government, religion and similar established institutions. Instead of abiding by the moral systems imposed by these institutions, values such as logic and scientific reason were to guide the inhabitants in their pursuit of achievement.

However, the would-be utopia had its flaws. In Rapture's purely capitalistic society, with no social programs whatsoever, everything within the city was privately owned and came with a price. This included the city's food, health care, sanitation, and even its oxygen supply. There were few, if any, defined norms for businesses and labor, allowing unscrupulous business practices (such as overpriced vending service) to flourish.

This system alienated Rapture's less fortunate citizens, who began to resent Ryan as naive and elitist. Andrew Ryan's hostility to "parasites" and his paranoia of these poorer citizens led to the downfall of himself, as well as his city. His edict that the outside world never be permitted to learn of Rapture's existence enabled a man named Frank Fontaine to build his criminal empire through smuggling. Unlike the capitalistic Ryan, the former mobster could not be satisfied by mere material wealth - he wanted Rapture to be subject to his dominion. Fontaine would go on to start a civil war that sealed Rapture's doom, under the alias Atlas.

Transportation


Transportation within Rapture is provided by Rapture Metro, a connected bathysphere system, which consists of spherical pressurized capsules, through which citizens could access most areas of the city. Part of Rapture Metro is the bathysphere inside the remote lighthouse in the North Atlantic, which is Rapture's only entrance from the outside world. Another mode of transportation within Rapture is the Atlantic Express, a pressurized rail system for moving larger number of citizens. Other areas of Rapture are connected through bulkhead doors. Areas within some levels are connected by glass tunnels: smaller ones for pedestrians; larger ones for tramways of a rail system between the areas of Olympus Heights and Apollo Square.

Science
Ryan believed that scientific achievement in the world was being restricted by "petty morality", so he ensured that the inhabitants of Rapture could explore paths of inquiry previously deemed too immoral or controversial to follow. Some scientific breakthroughs were in robotics, bringing about an advanced automated security system; others in biology, where developments advanced in the restoration of life, both in plants (the Lazarus Vector) and humans (the Vita-Chamber). There were also some technological advancements regarding items that were created before they were commercially available on the surface, such as portable audio recording devices (approx. five years earlier), automatic doors (eight years earlier at the most) and vocal biometric security.

One of the major breakthroughs achieved in Rapture was the discovery of ADAM, unstable stem cells from a species of sea slug, and this led to the creation of Plasmids and Gene Tonics. Essentially, ADAM allowed a user to splice new genetic material into the user's DNA, enhancing health and intellect, and even giving superpowers. However, ADAM was soon found to cause physical and mental damage as more of the user's native cells were replaced by unstable stem cells. The need for ADAM became an addiction, which became more pronounced by excessive splicing, mainly during and after Rapture's civil war.

Beginning of the End
On December 31, 1958, a massive working-class uprising, led by Sheila Mandock, occurred in upper-class locations (such as the Kashmir Restaurant). This sparked a civil war between Atlas and Andrew Ryan. This was mainly due to the addictive need for ADAM in most of the city's residents. During the 1959 New Year's Eve Riots, traditional ballistic weapons and Plasmids were used on both sides. The major conflict lasted about four months, but the violence continued to break apart the society of Rapture. In the multiplayer mode of BioShock 2 the player gets to participate in the warfare that caused the fall of Rapture. In the end, almost all of the sane population of the city was killed by Splicers, or committed suicide, and ordered society in Rapture came to an end.

Religious Beliefs and Philosophy
Beliefs in Rapture that many Splicers follow:
 * The Rapture Family - Everyone owes each other a sense of unity and brotherhood. This is the most recent cult to have appeared in Rapture, having been created and promoted by Sofia Lamb and Simon Wales.
 * The Great Chain - Belief in self-interest and free markets that unite the people. This is more of a philosophy than a religion, as it is a belief promoted by Andrew Ryan, who is a staunch atheist.
 * Christianity - Belief in the Christian God and Christ as the savior of humanity. This is more of an underground cult in Rapture, as it is officially banned. This ban has somewhat backfired, giving rise to religious fanaticism (as shown by the Waders Splicer type).
 * Atheism - Lack of a belief in the existence of deities. This is the official philosophical stance of Rapture, as imposed by Andrew Ryan.
 * The Saturnine Cult - Elements of paganism and nature worship. According to Julie Langford, worshipers of this cult drink human blood as well as cups full of Plasmids (most likely raw ADAM). They also believe they have been "touched" by the ancient gods.

Businesses
Companies that were founded in ads or posters around Rapture:
 * Circus of Values Vending - General vending machine company that can be used for items.
 * El Ammo Bandito - Sells weapons and ammo in Rapture.
 * Fontaine Futuristics - Plasmid and Tonic Production Facilities owned by Frank Fontaine.
 * Rapture Metro - A transportation system carrying citizens to areas of the city.
 * Ryan Industries - Creative and Constructive facility owned by Andrew Ryan.
 * Sinclair Solutions - Provides Plasmids and gene tonics for the citizens of Rapture.

BioShock
During the journey through BioShock, the player will explore the following areas of Rapture:


 * Welcome Center - Home to Kashmir Restaurant and first direction to all newcomers in the city.
 * Medical Pavilion - Main medical, surgical, and funerary institution.
 * Neptune's Bounty - The fishing district and port in Rapture, also a cover for Frank Fontaine's smuggling operation.
 * Smuggler's Hideout - The center of Fontaine's criminal exploits, an abandoned tunnel network and a submarine bay.
 * Arcadia - An experimental forest and recreational area in Rapture, supplying a part of the city's oxygen and other natural resources.
 * Farmer's Market - Main marketplace for organic produce, home of Tasha Denu's apiary and the Worley Winery.
 * Fort Frolic - Arts, entertainment and shopping district, overseen by Sander Cohen.
 * Hephaestus - Geothermal power generation facility, workshops and headquarters of Ryan Industries.
 * Rapture Central Control - Andrew Ryan's private quarters and office, and Rapture's genetic lock.
 * Olympus Heights - Apartment complex for the high society, residents include Brigid Tenenbaum and Fontaine himself.
 * Apollo Square - Transportation hub and Atlas's stronghold, also low-class apartments and Dr. Suchong's Free Clinic, turned concentration camp by Ryan.
 * Point Prometheus - ADAM laboratories and genetic library, the "Birthplace" of the Big Daddies and Little Sisters main production.
 * Proving Grounds - Big Daddies/Little Sisters' training area. Previously known as Rapture's Memorial Museum.
 * Fontaine - Top of Point Prometheus, highest building in Rapture and ADAM mass gathering, the final battle location.

Challenge Rooms DLC

 * Rapture Firing Range - A specialized facility designed for firearms practice.
 * Rapture's Grand Carnival - A carnival attended by citizens for festivities.

BioShock 2
During the journey through BioShock 2, the player will explore the following areas of Rapture:


 * Adonis Luxury Resort - A Plasmid/gene tonic therapy center for the upper-class citizens of Rapture themed after Greek mythology.
 * Atlantic Express Depot - The main administration and facility for maintenance and development of Atlantic Express trains.
 * Ryan Amusements - An amusement park where the children of Rapture were taught about the "evils" of the surface world and the story of Rapture's construction.
 * Pauper's Drop - Home of the working class. Was constructed by the workers themselves in secret. Previously known as the Maintenance Junction 17.
 * Siren Alley - Rapture's red-light district. Previously known as the mason's quarter.
 * Dionysus Park - A free park that Lamb made as a counterpart to Arcadia. She also used it as a way to spread her ideals through art and nature.
 * Fontaine Futuristics - The headquarters of Frank Fontaine's Plasmid business, seized by Ryan.
 * Persephone Penal Colony - A hidden penal colony used to hold Rapture's political dissidents, now Sofia Lamb's base of operations.
 * Outer Persephone - Lamb's private office and base of operation.
 * Inner Persephone - The holding cells, the infirmary and the therapy facilities of the prison.

Minerva's Den DLC

 * Minerva's Den - The hub for Rapture Central Computing and advanced robotics manufacturing.
 * Operations - Center for operations and maintenance of Rapture's central computing mainframe.
 * The Thinker - Home of The Thinker (Computer), the Artificial Intelligence behind Rapture's computer mainframe.

Mentioned Areas

 * Athena's Glory - Apartment complex located next to Olympus Heights.
 * Cameron Suites - Mentioned on advertisements for Pharaoh's Fortune Casino.
 * Water Treatment Station - Mentioned on newspapers scattered on the floor. It was shut down after some water contamination by a pathological bacteria.

Trivia

 * The names of a majority of the locations in Rapture are inspired by gods and locations from ancient Greek, Roman and Biblical culture.
 * Although contact with the surface was forbidden, the surface bathysphere was not disabled (although still under genetic lock). Jack, Orrin Oscar Lutwidge, and Mark Meltzer were able to enter Rapture via this method.
 * Much of the external architecture of Rapture was inspired by the work of Hugh Ferriss, who created perspective drawing of New York buildings in the early 1900s.
 * Rapture is similar to the mythical lost city of Atlantis in many respects. Both of them are underwater cities isolated from the rest of the known world, and their inhabitants were able to master technology far more advanced that what had been discovered on the surface. Both became plagued with corruption, which led to their ruin.
 * The name Rapture is inspired by the Biblical concept, meaning an event in which the faithful will be taken to Heaven. In this case, the smartest and most artistic flocked to Rapture.
 * As seen in Deco Devolution: The Art of BioShock 2, "Rapture is anchored- (while drilling piers, a huge cavern is discovered directly below)."