What makes a man?
Have you ever thought of yourself as an equal to a animal? Ever wondered how/why humans are human?
Before you continue reading, close your eyes and imagine you're at the zoo. You're in front of the tiger exhibit, hands pressed against the glass as you watch it gracefully meander towards you. Are you scared? Do you notice its razor-sharp teeth? What if the 20 mm barrier that separates you two was removed?
Oftentimes, the way in which people think is very binary. Individuals are presented with conflict and instinctively jump at the chance to either attack or defend. Subjectivity and critical thinking, therefore is not emphasized. When the question of what differentiates monsters from humans arises, the typical answers reveal that monsters are evil forces who solely exist to wreak havoc while humans are superior because of their ability to solve problems.
However, what truly differentiates humans from monsters is perspective of what is good or bad. Critical analysis is necessary in assessing this question since humans can be just as dangerous as monsters, or at least what we think of monsters to be. In considering the perspective of humans, monsters are dangerous because they are not understood, they look and act differently, and ultimately, because of their status as non-humans. However, if the perspective was shifted to a monster's or perhaps a clone's, humans would be dangerous for say, their selfishness or their quickness to label others as monsters. This idea of humans using their perspective of superiority to oppress foreign "monsters" arises frequently in the media.
As children we are told to look under the bed or in our closets for monsters. We are raised to understand that monsters are something to fear, something far from human. Ironically so, the "humans" from Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro speak about their clones, the identical copies of themselves, with a negative, chilling connotation, thus leading to dehumanization and alienation; Referring to the clones as "poor creatures"(Ishiguro 272). Yet, it is ironic and almost amusing that humans decide to categorize these beings as monsters or creatures, rather than just call them humans and peacefully coexist. No matter how similar or human-like the clones were, the so-called real humans could label them as such.
There are moments in the novel where Kathy and her friends are treated as humans because those around them have no idea that they are clones. There is no factor or standard that people can use to discern humans from clones. At the school where Kathy and her friends are raised, the guardians that look after them always seem to know more about them than they do themselves. There is something uncanny about not being able to discern what is human and what is clone, yet by calling a clone a monster it is easier to widen the gap between the two and completely disassociate altogether. One of the main humans in the novel is repeatedly painted as a fearful of the clones, "Madame never liked us. She's always been afraid of us. In the way people are afraid of spiders and things"(268). Ignorance allows one human to perceive clones as humans, while prejudice and fear drive another to animalize them.
Before you continue reading, close your eyes and imagine you're at the zoo. You're in front of the tiger exhibit, hands pressed against the glass as you watch it gracefully meander towards you. Are you scared? Do you notice its razor-sharp teeth? What if the 20 mm barrier that separates you two was removed?
A tiger is an animal, but could also be considered a monster right? Now you're staring directly at the tiger, your eyes are locked and its walking towards you.
Stop.
Now you're the tiger.
Locking eyes with someone, a human, who looks similar to the person that took you from your family, put you in a cage, and objectified your being.
So... who's the monster now?
Oftentimes, the way in which people think is very binary. Individuals are presented with conflict and instinctively jump at the chance to either attack or defend. Subjectivity and critical thinking, therefore is not emphasized. When the question of what differentiates monsters from humans arises, the typical answers reveal that monsters are evil forces who solely exist to wreak havoc while humans are superior because of their ability to solve problems.
However, what truly differentiates humans from monsters is perspective of what is good or bad. Critical analysis is necessary in assessing this question since humans can be just as dangerous as monsters, or at least what we think of monsters to be. In considering the perspective of humans, monsters are dangerous because they are not understood, they look and act differently, and ultimately, because of their status as non-humans. However, if the perspective was shifted to a monster's or perhaps a clone's, humans would be dangerous for say, their selfishness or their quickness to label others as monsters. This idea of humans using their perspective of superiority to oppress foreign "monsters" arises frequently in the media.
As children we are told to look under the bed or in our closets for monsters. We are raised to understand that monsters are something to fear, something far from human. Ironically so, the "humans" from Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro speak about their clones, the identical copies of themselves, with a negative, chilling connotation, thus leading to dehumanization and alienation; Referring to the clones as "poor creatures"(Ishiguro 272). Yet, it is ironic and almost amusing that humans decide to categorize these beings as monsters or creatures, rather than just call them humans and peacefully coexist. No matter how similar or human-like the clones were, the so-called real humans could label them as such.
"They tried to convince themselves you weren't really like us"(Ishiguro 263).
There are moments in the novel where Kathy and her friends are treated as humans because those around them have no idea that they are clones. There is no factor or standard that people can use to discern humans from clones. At the school where Kathy and her friends are raised, the guardians that look after them always seem to know more about them than they do themselves. There is something uncanny about not being able to discern what is human and what is clone, yet by calling a clone a monster it is easier to widen the gap between the two and completely disassociate altogether. One of the main humans in the novel is repeatedly painted as a fearful of the clones, "Madame never liked us. She's always been afraid of us. In the way people are afraid of spiders and things"(268). Ignorance allows one human to perceive clones as humans, while prejudice and fear drive another to animalize them.
In a similar way, In We are All Completely Beside Ourselves, the reader is completely blind to the fact that Fern is a chimp, until about half way through. Prior to knowing Fern's species, she is perceived to be human. After we learn that she is not, there is a paradigm shift in that the reader no longer views her as an equal. Perspective is everything.
This theme of perspective, stemming from limited knowledge and societal conditioning prevails across multiple types of media. In the film Ex Machina, a greedy misogynistic CEO creates an A.I. names Ava. In the film Ava is subjected to the Turing test. In this process, If you cannot tell that someone is not biologically human, then they can't be regarded as such. Similarly, in the novel Never Let Me Go, since the audience is not told that the characters are clones, readers subconsciously conduct their own Turing test of them. The whole idea of the Turing test reiterates the hypocrisy and irony of humans judging things that are similar to them(His or clones), for not being actual humans.
There are plenty of examples of the dehumanization of minority groups throughout history. Here is a depiction of a Japanese man attempting to assault an American Woman during World War II. Not only is the man painted out to be aggressive and violent, he is drawn with jagged teeth and animal like features. This propaganda is just one of many examples of man's tendency to disassociate from the minority and those who are different; whether it be ethnically, spiritually, or physically.
Along the lines of binary thinking and how it can be detrimental, the creation of "us versus them" mentalities has flagrantly overtaken the course of history. Currently, the use by of the term "illegal alien" to describe those undocumented has created a tremendous wave of xenophobia and racism against the Latinx communities, most prominently against those from Mexico and Central America. The term "alien" is dehumanizing, yet the people being called aliens are no different from those of the United States. The only structures that differentiate immigrants is citizenship status, further proving how arbitrary the assignment of power is among humans, and furthermore, how these hegemonic motives play into our relationships with non-humans. Looking deeper into contemporary issues, we can see the repetition of these random ascriptions of power and how they are based on what we consider human or not.
The categorization of humans based on self righteousness is ultimately extremely detrimental for peaceful coexistence as described by the included texts. Though the question is considering "monsters", the relevance to contemporary times is high since it is a societal norm to fear, judge, and oppress foreign or outlandish individuals and ideas. The clones', animals', and AI's suffering as a result of bias-driven human perspective is a testament to what superiority complexes can do in a society where differing worldviews and identities are not respected.
Work Cited
Ishiguro, Kazuo. NEVER LET ME GO. FABER AND FABER, 2020.
How can one create a standard for being human then create a synthetic being that can theoretically pass that standard?
There are plenty of examples of the dehumanization of minority groups throughout history. Here is a depiction of a Japanese man attempting to assault an American Woman during World War II. Not only is the man painted out to be aggressive and violent, he is drawn with jagged teeth and animal like features. This propaganda is just one of many examples of man's tendency to disassociate from the minority and those who are different; whether it be ethnically, spiritually, or physically.
Along the lines of binary thinking and how it can be detrimental, the creation of "us versus them" mentalities has flagrantly overtaken the course of history. Currently, the use by of the term "illegal alien" to describe those undocumented has created a tremendous wave of xenophobia and racism against the Latinx communities, most prominently against those from Mexico and Central America. The term "alien" is dehumanizing, yet the people being called aliens are no different from those of the United States. The only structures that differentiate immigrants is citizenship status, further proving how arbitrary the assignment of power is among humans, and furthermore, how these hegemonic motives play into our relationships with non-humans. Looking deeper into contemporary issues, we can see the repetition of these random ascriptions of power and how they are based on what we consider human or not.
The categorization of humans based on self righteousness is ultimately extremely detrimental for peaceful coexistence as described by the included texts. Though the question is considering "monsters", the relevance to contemporary times is high since it is a societal norm to fear, judge, and oppress foreign or outlandish individuals and ideas. The clones', animals', and AI's suffering as a result of bias-driven human perspective is a testament to what superiority complexes can do in a society where differing worldviews and identities are not respected.
Work Cited
Ishiguro, Kazuo. NEVER LET ME GO. FABER AND FABER, 2020.
Great questions - wow. I loved how you forced the reader to experience the world from a tiger’s point of view in the opening. I agree completely with your argument that the “things” humans choose to label as monsters are based on our predetermined biases. It seems like we as humans choose to label individuals who are different from us in negative ways because of our own insecurities and yearning for dominance.
ReplyDeleteYes, the yearning for dominance and validation plays such a strong role in human's negativity towards other beings. There is so much narcissism and jealousy that drives our actions that we are so unaware of.
DeleteI loved your introductory imagery. It brings readers into your argument and challenges them to think differently. With that being said, you bring up the idea of what distinguishes humans from monsters and how it is all subjective. How do we, as human beings who make mistakes and are not perfect, decipher what is truly good or bad? Also, I think your commentary on the bias-driven human perspective is relevant in analyzing the relationships between humans, animals, and machines.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your complimentary feedback. Again, I think that good are bad are also subjective and looking at it in a binary fashion is redundant. Humans have the ability to form opinions, prejudice, thoughts, etc. To create guidelines for those things is extremely difficult and restrictive.
DeleteI really liked your post and your comments on the superiority complex we humans have is very relevant to modern times. As technology improves, we might see a rise in the debate about designer babies, or babies genetically modified for superior traits. Would this create different tiers of humans with different kinds of power in society?
ReplyDeleteTiers as in like social ranking? I think that these designer babies would start to be seen as "spiders" and would be looked down upon and feared.
Delete