Humans have come up with a number of varying types of technology with different purposes and aims toward humanity. Some are helpful, some are eerie, some are harmful, and others are just plain useless. I would file the invention of the androids in "Be Right Back" in the category of harmful; in fact, the idea is one of the most degenerative ones humans have come up with in our time so far. Now, I am not entirely sure what was going on in the developers' heads as they were inventing these androids. Perhaps they were under the notion that people would cope with death better if they could have the android version of the deceased with them. Or, they really thought that there was a way to keep the dead alive. I have no idea. However, the fact that someone out there gave serious consideration to the idea that one could recreate a dead person based on whatever he or she left behind absolutely insane. There are clearly many things wrong with this idea. Let's talk about them:
First off, the idea of recreating a person based on internet tracing is next to impossible. There is something about everyone that cannot be found on the internet, and it is likely going to be a key factor that defines that person uniquely. There are some people out there that publish over half of their life on the web while others prefer to be more conservative. While I could be wrong, I will make the bold statement that there is not a person out there who has posted absolutely everything about his or herself on the internet. That being the case, it is simply not possible to make a copy of someone with all the characteristics of the original being in question. This is evident in the film when the developers found everything that Ash #1 ever posted so that Ash #2 could be exactly like him. Obviously, the attempt was to no avail because Ash #2 did things that Ash #1 would never do and reacted to certain scenarios that Ash #1 would never have reacted, demonstrating the differences between the copy and the original.
Secondly, the idea of using an android to deal with your feelings is very unhealthy. Having a picture of the deceased is fine if you simply want to keep that person in your heart and memories. The problem with the android is that it is dangerously easy to get too attached to it. That is, one could easily start to rely on the android to continue his or her normal life. If you simply wanted the answer to a serious question you never got to ask for the purpose of gaining closure, then maybe the idea would not be so bad. Take what happened in the film: Martha was trying to move from Ash's death, but she was pulled in by the new android technology. Over time, she started to grow closer to Ash #2 to the point where she started to rely on it to even live her life.
Finally, it's just disrespectful to the deceased to want a copy of him or her while thinking it will replace the one you lost. This is nowhere near true. People only get the android version of a dead person to avoid having to deal with the pain that comes with death. It is weakening us as humans the more we do it, and like I said, it's just wrong.
Ultimately the idea of trying to recreate a person who is dead is terrible. To me, it will degenerate us further if we go down this road.
3 comments:
The android in "Be Right Back" may have been everything under the sun, but I wouldn't label it as harmful. In fact, there was a time in the film where Martha wanted Ash 2 to hit her and fight her back and he resisted. This showed that like the new google cars that are being invented today, Ash 2 computer software was programmed to have a certain moral value on things that happen in everyday life. However, I do agree to a certain extent that these androids can have an impact on the psychological process altogether. Whether to say it is a negative or positive impact depends entirely on the person's state of mind. People deal with feelings in different ways. What may seem harmful to one person may not be the case for another person.
I admire your level of intense personal impression on the topic! However, I have to dissagree with your claim these advancements will be horrible for humans, there very well could be many useful and practical applications for Ash 2 like technology.
Isaac, I appreciate your elaborateness on the topic, but I believe that the technology the characters in the movie where using were more advanced than the tech we use today. Therefore, what made tracing Ash possible in the film was Ash's being able to duplicate into an Ash 2. Thus, the woman was given the opportunity to meet Ash a second time through her phone before. Also, people today heavily rely on Androids and IPhones to remembers things such as lost loved ones. Nowadays, you barely see anyone using a photocopy of a love one. Therefore, it is rightful that someone may become attached to their phone to reminiscence.
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