- Published on
The Philosophy of Blade Runner
- Authors
- Name
- Rukia Nur
## Background
“Blade Runner: The Final Cut’, is a Neo-Noir dystopian motion picture that presents audiences with a slew of philosophical dilemmas. The film is an adaptation of the 1968 novel “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” by Philip K. Dick. Blade Runner grapples with some of the oldest philosophical questions known to man. What does it mean to be human? Is our origin relevant to our humanity? What role is there for machines conscious of their own subjugation? And what is our relationship to them? In the movie, the characters, human or replicant, are working to define an identity for themselves while attempting to survive on a corrupt and ecologically demolished future Earth.
The Voight Kampf
The Voight Kampf is a tool used to distinguish humans from androids. The test measures bodily functions such as blushing and pupillary dilation in response to a series of emotionally charged yet convoluted questions. It's essentially a test of empathy that older replicants may struggle with as they lack foundational past memories. The science behind human thought and reasoning is so complex that it's uncomfortable to side with our protagonist (Rick Deckard) when he relies on the test to determine the value of a replicant's life. Watching the scene, I remember feeling conflicted with what the right answer could be and whether I’d be able to pass despite being certain of my own humanity or as certain as one can reasonably be.
Stephen Hawking in his essay “Is Everything Determined” observes,
The human brain contains about 1026 or 100 million billion billion particles this is far too many for us to ever be able to solve the equation and predict how the brain would behave, given its initial state and the nerve that is coming into it. So although we know the fundamental equations that govern the brain we are quite able to use them to predict human behavior.
Deckard, a retired cop and blade runner, chooses to dehumanize Replicants to machines like tractors or garbage chutes to carry out the responsibilities of his job. "Replicants are like any other machine, are either a benefit or a hazard. If they're a benefit, it's not my problem." His job puts him in a position where his only relation to replicants is either antagonistic or indifferent. But it is through exposure to replicants – and particularly, Rachel, an advanced Nexus 6 replicant that allows him to grow as a character.
The Paradox of Existence and Memory
Memories are what steer us in our lives by influencing our personalities and in turn dictating our responses to new situations. I’m not sure how I’d navigate having to come to terms with the fact that my childhood memories and photos I held on to were manufactured by a conglomerate to suppress my emotions and autonomy. When Sebastian a genetic designer who failed the medical exam to go off-world as a result of a chronic condition, prompts replicants Pris and Roy to perform for him after discovering he helped manufacture them Pris retorts, “I think Sebastian, therefore I am.” raising an appeal to Philosopher Rene Descartes' infamous Cogito. Humans cannot access our own humanity without it being recognized by those amongst us. Pris’ offense though unexpected at the time strengthens her claim to humanity.
Sebastian nor we the audience would ever imagine asking a human to perform for us in such an indignant manner as if we were entitled to their skills or existence. But, if we were to consider replicants to be complex machines like Deckard we’d be rightly shocked to be chastised for giving it a prompt or command. Watching this scene despite being convinced of my earlier solidarity with the ‘struggle of the replicants’ I like Sebastian expected a performance, a display of the replicant's enhanced skills.
Human Existence and the Quest for Freedom
In the end, Roy accepts the reality of his own mortality, he completes his arc along the stages of grief by first lashing out against humans he holds accountable like Tyrell and Sebastian, grieving for his fellow replicants who died at the hands of Deckard, then as his final hours tick down, he sets out to avenge his fallen friends, before eventually accepting the inconsequential nature of yet another murder, instead opting to show mercy to Deckard. I love his final monologue where he remarks that to be a slave is to live in fear to draw parallels between his life as a soldier and Deckard’s as a potential replicant and Blade Runner both engineered to forsake their humanity to do a job neither wanted. Philosopher and pluralist Hannah Arendt argued that “To be human and to be free are one and the same.” I’m certainly no philosopher but I walk away from Blade Runner convinced that it matters little whether our lives are a result of nature or bioengineering. In the end, what matters is that it can be lost and this fear for our tenuous existence captures what it means to be alive.
“I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain.
In his last moments Roy shares his own unadulterated memories with Deckard.
Mirror to the Fears of our Future
In Blade Runner, it is the Replicants that manifest the human spirit of defiance and dare to resist the mega conglomerates that have driven the planet into a husk of its former glory. Nature is seemingly nonexistent and artificial animals are luxury goods, a tether to a natural world that’s no longer a reality for the poor and disadvantaged inhabitants of planet Earth. The world presented to us is a frightful one no longer akin to the familiar glamourous worlds presented in many Golden Age Sci-fi pieces an intentional subversion of the genre by Phillip K. Dick; the threats of Blade Runner are now very real and possible hurdles in the near future. In the approximately 40 years since the release of Blade Runner: The Final Cut it has transformed from a Sci-Fi/Neo-Noir film to a dystopian thriller not too detached from the fears of real people.
The Science Today
Today in 2021 the science of Blade Runner becomes more and more likely every day. As artificial wombs and bioengineering become norms we must contend with our understanding of our own identities and those of genetically modified individuals. So far we've had plenty of experience with bioengineered animals but we already perceive them as subhuman. Tyrell says “The facts of life, to make an alteration in the evolvement of an organic life system is fatal. A coding sequence cannot be revised once it's been established.” This partially aligns with what Dr. Bernard Davis says in the Nova documentary, “Human Nature”.
“If you put a gene into a cell, you can’t tell exactly where that gene is going to enter the cell’s chromosome.”
The Cautionary Tale of Blade Runner:
Blade Runner accepts the deterministic nature of the universe, and rejects the prevalent notion in Sci-Fi that with enlightenment we may eventually beyond ourselves and surpass the boundaries of space and time. Instead, Roy is bombarded with the realization that no amount of advancement will extend the lifespan determined for him by his genetic material. Blade Runner serves as a cautionary tale about the potential misuse of biotechnology, emphasizing that ethical considerations must be made in relation to developing new technologies. It’s a reminder that, no matter how advanced our technology becomes, it is important to remember that all life – both human and non-human deserves to an extent to be treated with dignity and respect and serves as a warning that, if we don’t they could have far-reaching consequences that could deny and limit the rights and freedoms owed to others.