Module Four’s readings delve into the concepts of artificial intelligence and artificial life forms. The texts raise questions about the responsibilities inherent in the creation of life, the ways humans can structure and control a society that relies on androids, and the distinctions humans make between artificial and organic life forms.

In Module Three, we remained decidedly unsure about a precise, exclusive definition of humanity that contrasts people from other living beings like Neanderthals and animals. The non-human, artificially intelligent beings around which Module Four is centered bring up some of the same questions about the essential characteristics human beings have and androids lack. In Bester’s “Fondly Fahrenheit” and Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, human beings’ difficulty distinguishing themselves from androids engenders visceral feelings of fear and foreboding that definitely attest to humans’ need to define ourselves exclusively from other beings that share some of our characteristics. I felt an inescapable, sinking dread as “Fondly Fahrenheit” used an unreliable narrative style which progressively revealed that James Vandaleur and his android were becoming the same murderous, horrifying individual. In DADoES?, I felt similarly apprehensive, beginning when Rick Deckard was held in the alternate android police station and only assuaged by Deckard administering the Voigt-Kampff to ascertain Phil Resch’s humanity. I am not sure why the inability to clearly distinguish between human and non-human beings produces such deep-seated feelings of unease, disturbance, and fear. Perhaps it has to do with humans’ need to be certain that we are the most powerful, however that power may be defined.

Asimov’s “The Life and Times of Multivac” was also disturbing, but not due to any blurring of lines between androids and humans. The distinction between Multivac and the humans over whom it ruled is exceedingly clear – Noreen and the other humans even reprimand Ron Bakst for his “human crime [of having] committed no crime under Multivac.” By initially appearing to have aided Multivac to the detriment of humans, Noreen and the others deem it appropriate for all humans to keep Ron in isolation. I think that the feelings of disquiet produced by this story come more from a human fear of creating something that can eventually surpass and subjugate us. Again, the question of power arises – although humans have no free will under Multivac, it (by the most generous description) structures society in humans’ best interest and allows them to pursue a leisurely life, rather than being forced to toil away. Humans theoretically always want as much freedom as possible, but clearly drove the Earth to a dystopic state prior to Multivac’s rule and enjoy an efficient and well-run, if not free, society under Multivac. It is unclear whether humans want the free will Multivac disallows despite its difficulties, or prefer the safety and comfort they have under Multivac’s rule. It brings up some essential questions we grapple with today: Do we value privacy or safety more? Would we give up some of our freedoms to a leader who promised comfort, prosperity, safety?

I thoroughly enjoyed Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?. Of all of the short stories and books we have read so far, this one engaged me the most and left me pondering its concepts for the longest time afterward. It was interesting to see clear markers of the 1960s blended with some apt predictions of the future. The ubiquity of cigarettes and physical magazines severely dated the story, while the inclusion of video calls was remarkably prescient. Humans disregarding the importance of biodiversity and environmental conservation until some devastating human actions degrade nature to a point of no return and cause humans to value nature is a painfully relevant notion. Women were instrumentalized and dehumanized to an uncomfortable degree in DADoES?, from Rick’s comment about changing Iran’s mood organ so that she would defer to him, to Isidore’s musings about young women’s instinctual desire to cook. Rick completely dismissed Iran in favor of Rachael until he needed Iran for emotional support, which Iran was more than willing to provide while she served the traditional female role of eternally waiting at home for her husband. Despite his previous dismissal of Iran, Rick readily accepts her comfort and allows her to stroke his ego at the end of the book. This entire plot point reminded me of the relationship between Betty and Don in Mad Men and seemed almost too stereotypical for Dick to seriously include.