Of the topics we have went over I think that the ones discussing the distinction between human and non-humans as the most interesting. We began with Frankenstein, in which a creature composed of human parts and has a brain as intelligent as a human is treated as a monster. The creature is even treated worse because of his human traits, as if his attempt to be human made him more monstrous.
In the middle of the course we went over Bladerunner which muddled the line between human and non-human. Because each replicant was practically a human, except in origin and longevity, I felt that I could sympathize with the replicants more so than I could with the protagonist, Decker. The final scene really brought that sentiment out to light, when Roy speaks his last words after he saves Decker. Roy overcame his lack of humanity and became human by choosing to save Decker, the very man trying to kill him for being a replicant.
It is at this point in the course that I really began to question how much a human life is worth compared to other forms of life. It is applicable because we are moving into an age where technology begins to merge with humanity. Not only are we beginning to implement things like pacemakers, nanomachines, and prosthetic limbs into people, we are also creating AI that are “learning” to be human. So when humans become more machine, and machines become more human what will happen?
Finally we end with the video game “Papers, Please”. Here there is no boundary between human and machine, but between human and human. We are forced in this game to allow and deny entry of people based on their credentials or, later on in the game, how much they are willing to offer. Here we are pressured to evaluate who is allowed to enter the country, and who isn’t. In some cases it’s a matter of life or death, as people with illegal documents or contraband are sent to jail.
This is even more drastic in it’s evoking of the question “How much is human life worth?”. It asks additional questions such as “What makes this person more suitable to be in my country than the next?”. Then it’s a matter of questions of morality as the player is literally subject to playing with the lives of everyone who crosses the border. How can one person hold so much power?