Science fiction: A study of ethics and morals
In this previous post I wrote about old technology meeting new futuristic technology in the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (aff link), by Philip K. Dick. Now I’m getting further into the novel and some interesting moral/ethical dilemmas are starting to pop up. I thought it might be fun to analyze these issues in this post. As always, your input is very welcome here!
1. If we create sentient beings (i.e. androids), then should they be afforded the same rights as humans?
I have a feeling that we will be dealing with this question within the next century, especially given the pace of technology and new breakthroughs in artificial intelligence (AI). Let’s pretend we do create a robot that is fully sentient, has a conscious and can "think" in every way humans can.
Would it be immoral to destroy that robot? If the robot is capable of feeling pain and having normal human emotions, then one can justify that some sort of protection must be in order for these beings. I’m not necessarily arguing this position, just throwing it out there as food for thought.
2. Is Rick Deckard (a bounty hunter) morally right to "retire" (read: kill) suspected androids?
This question takes on even greater weight when one considers, that in the context of this novel, the line between human and android is pretty blurry. In fact, various tests are developed to determine who is an android and who is a human. Like most test of this variety, they are not 100% accurate. Confirmation only comes after an android’s bone marrow has been examined by a lab.
Given how close these androids resemble humans in just about every way, should they be protected under the banner of human rights? It should be noted, however, that the one thing the androids lack is empathy (the basis for the test that Rick employs while hunting androids).
3. Is it morally right to even create and build such androids to begin with, knowing full well that they are sentient and can live in the world as humans do, make their own decisions, etc.?
In the novel, they (the makers of these androids) even go so far as to implant them with false memories. This means that some androids don’t even know they are androids! For the reader, it means you are playing a constant guessing game on who is really human.
Basically, this means that the manufacturers of the androids are "tricking" them into thinking they’re human. An android may only find out it’s an android after being administered one of those empathy tests by Rick Deckard. By then, though, the android will be killed ("retired").
Final thoughts
The above questions are just some of the questions that have been running through my mind as I continue reading Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. The novel is a classic example of science fiction that poses large moral and ethical questions. And as the years go by, with technology advancing like it does, we might be facing those question not in science fiction, but in science reality.
Even if you haven’t read this novel, it is easy to think of the above questions as a thought experiment. Give us your opinion on these dicy moral questions in the comments below. The future of humanity just may depend on it!
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- Finding philosophy in science fiction
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- Don’t ask if fiction is biographical!
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Like all good science fiction The questions raised by “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” are not just hypothetical questions that we will need to answer in the future:
1. Don’t forget that there are many people alive today who are not afforded the rights that we take for granted in the western/”free” world of democracy and the rule of law.
2. Is is morally right for a policeman to shoot dead a person suspected of being a suicide bomber? If you stop such a person will they set off their bomb (perhaps killing the policeman and bystanders) while you are reading them their rights? But what happens if the person shot didn’t have a bomb strapped to their body?
3. Regardless of morality, once we have the technology to make sentient androids somebody somewhere will make them. Then we will have to deal with these questions for real and not just as metaphors for our own human lives.
Most of Dick’s work is equally as thought provoking. Most people who have only seen the movie, probably don’t get a good understanding of how ambivalent Deckard is about his own work, and what it costs him in his life.
Thank you for the good post as always, can’t wait to the next one!
Metaphysics