In District 9 and the Most Human Human, we take a look into questions that have abounded for years. Questions which have been debated for centuries. These questions center around our humanity. Questions like: What defines human beings? Are we no different from animals? What are human rights? Both the film and the book generate ideas off of these type of questions.
In District 9, we see a group of aliens, who are oppressed. They are outcasts, confined to live in a certain area, and are poor. They have little to no rights, and they are viewed as sub-human or inferior. Furthermore, they are foreign-beings or aliens. Consequently, this causes them to be viewed at from a suspicious, condescending, and fearful perspective from the government and a lot of the local community. This also leads to a number of moral and philosophical questions surrounding these aliens. These aliens are shown to be sentient creatures. They are rather similar to humans. They even have human like emotions as shown later in the film. Yet, these sentient creatures are being oppressed by humans and forced to live in sub-human conditions. Therefore, questions arise such as: Are they in need of human rights? What separates us humans from these aliens?
These questions become more complicated and intriguing as one of the main characters named Wikus is splashed with alien fluid. This fluid ultimately causes Wikus to slowly morph into an alien creature. As evidenced in the film, the government and local community view Wikus as sub-human, despite only one of his arms having alien features. Furthermore, it is shown at the end of the film (after Wikus is fully transformed into an alien creature) that Wikus still remembers his 'humanity. This is evidenced by him making metal flowers out of scrap for his wife. So besides Wikus morphing into an alien, what separates him from us? Yes, he looks different, but he still has emotions and is an intelligent, sentient creature.
These type of questions are the type that Brian Christian somewhat plays with in his book. He seeks to answer what makes a human 'human'. He strives to investigate the intricate differences between artificial intelligence and human intelligence. In his journey in discovering what makes us human, he learns that 'being yourself' is central in defining our identities as humans. Yet, this perplexes him and causes him to wonder how can he be himself MORE. Ultimately, this leads to him diving into ancient and modern philosophy to answer these questions.
Ultimately District 9 and the Most Human Human serve as instruments in which we all can use to discuss questions regarding humanity. They cause us to search deep within ourselves and others.
In District 9, we see a group of aliens, who are oppressed. They are outcasts, confined to live in a certain area, and are poor. They have little to no rights, and they are viewed as sub-human or inferior. Furthermore, they are foreign-beings or aliens. Consequently, this causes them to be viewed at from a suspicious, condescending, and fearful perspective from the government and a lot of the local community. This also leads to a number of moral and philosophical questions surrounding these aliens. These aliens are shown to be sentient creatures. They are rather similar to humans. They even have human like emotions as shown later in the film. Yet, these sentient creatures are being oppressed by humans and forced to live in sub-human conditions. Therefore, questions arise such as: Are they in need of human rights? What separates us humans from these aliens?
These questions become more complicated and intriguing as one of the main characters named Wikus is splashed with alien fluid. This fluid ultimately causes Wikus to slowly morph into an alien creature. As evidenced in the film, the government and local community view Wikus as sub-human, despite only one of his arms having alien features. Furthermore, it is shown at the end of the film (after Wikus is fully transformed into an alien creature) that Wikus still remembers his 'humanity. This is evidenced by him making metal flowers out of scrap for his wife. So besides Wikus morphing into an alien, what separates him from us? Yes, he looks different, but he still has emotions and is an intelligent, sentient creature.
These type of questions are the type that Brian Christian somewhat plays with in his book. He seeks to answer what makes a human 'human'. He strives to investigate the intricate differences between artificial intelligence and human intelligence. In his journey in discovering what makes us human, he learns that 'being yourself' is central in defining our identities as humans. Yet, this perplexes him and causes him to wonder how can he be himself MORE. Ultimately, this leads to him diving into ancient and modern philosophy to answer these questions.
Ultimately District 9 and the Most Human Human serve as instruments in which we all can use to discuss questions regarding humanity. They cause us to search deep within ourselves and others.
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