Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep
What does it mean to be alive? What is the value of life? Who makes these decisions? These are the questions asked by Philip K. Dick in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Phillip K. Dick was an immensely influential science fiction writer through the boom of the genre in the 1960s. He published 44 novels and north of 100 short stories, many of which have been adapted into films. Minority Report, A Scanner Darkly, and The Adjustment Bureau are all based on his work, and this science-fiction novel was adapted into the classic science fiction film Blade Runner, although the plot of the film differs from the novel quite a bit.
The basic premise of Androids vs. Sheeps and Blade Runner is the same. In a futuristic world bounty hunters are hired by the police to hunt down and “retire” rogue androids. The androids are built to be as nearly human as possible, so the bounty hunters often face moral struggles when “retiring” the androids. The story's main character, Rick Deckard, comes to feel empathy for the androids, and it is through him and his empathy that the value of life is considered.
Empathy is what separates humans from 'droids. While androids can feel fear or happiness for themselves, they have no ability to feel for another. They can fake the emotions, but there is a delay in their body's reaction that exposes them as nonhumans. The test, called the Voigt-Kampff, is the bounty hunter's only method of differentiating between humans and androids. The test forces the reader to remember that the appearance of life is not the same thing as having actual life.
Reading DADOES? reminded me of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. As perhaps the first science fiction novel, Frankenstein also has an artificial life form created by a scientist that turns on its creator and becomes murderous. Both novels also consider the role of God and religion when creating an artificial being. The common conclusion seems to be that either belief or participation in a divine power is necessary for life. The androids in this novel are interested in two things: self preservation and in the destruction of Mercerism, which is the dominant religion in the novel. Mercerism is all about empathy. Using machines called empathy boxes people are able to connect with each other and go on a spiritual journey with a Christlike figure of Wilbur Mercer as he climbs up a mountain. When the religion is shown to be fake, the androids feel vindicated, as they believe that the main difference between them and human beings would be eliminated.
Mercerism is unfortunately absent from the film Blade Runner. While religious symbolism is still present in the form of Roy Baty, the empathy-rich religion of Mercerism was used very well in the book and could have enhanced the film to highlight the differences between humans and androids.
Though Blade Runner lacked Mercerism, there were two improvements the film made over the book. First are the amazing special effects, and the second is the ambiguity of whether Deckard might be an android himself. The novel brings up the concept of to what extent Deckard might be similar to an android, but it does not bring up the question of whether he might actually be an android.
Regardless of the medium, this book is an interesting look into the nature of life and what people will do to those they consider less human. Of course, the film says the androids may be “more human than human,” so perhaps looking at oneself as less than an artificial counterpart is a good idea. I recommend reading the book first, and then watching the film. Both are worth your time, and the different approaches to the material taken flush out the concepts and give you plenty to think about, while also maintaining high entertainment value.
or you can get Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Bookworms Library)
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