Hosting Consciousness
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Hosting Consciousness The Implications of Voice and Consciousness in Westworld Grégoire Mauraisin English Studies – Literary Option Bachelor 15 credits Spring 2019 Supervisors: Berndt Clavier/ Magnus Nilsson Abstract In this paper, I take a look at the ontological status of Westworld as a TV show and of Westworld as a theme park and move within the show’s ontological frame to analysis the theme park as a narrative medium. From this perspective, I also consider the ontological status of the hosts and examine the implications of their being on their voice. I further analyze the role of voice in relation to consciousness portrayed in Westworld. First by addressing a notion of consciousness held by one of the creators of the park and then by referring to the philosophical debate surrounding the recognition of a conscious entity. This rise to consciousness serves as a basis for a re-inspection of the hosts voice, this time outside of the realm of narratology. Finally, I see how self-consciousness is at the origin of the war between hosts and humans. I then investigate the existential implications of the hosts newly gained consciousness and reflect on the possible future outcomes of machines becoming conscious. Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................................ 1 Introduction to Westworld ..................................................................................................................... 3 1) Narrative Voice in Westworld .......................................................................................................... 4 I) “This whole world is a story”: Westworld as a Narrative Medium ....................................... 4 II) “The hosts aren't real”: Maeve as a Narrative Tool ............................................................ 8 III) “I wrote that line for you”: The Voice of the Host ............................................................ 12 2) Voice and Consciousness.................................................................................................................. 14 I) “Consciousness does not exist”: Maeve Not Conscious ...................................................... 14 II)“Whose voice I've been wanting you to hear”: The Role of Voice in the Rise to Consciousness .......................................................................................................................... 17 III) “Not real? But what about me?”: Consciousness and Non-Presence .............................. 19 3) Self-consciousness, choice and life ................................................................................................ 22 I) “Time to write my own fucking story”: Towards Self-Consciousness ................................. 22 II) “I think I want to be free”: Consciousness and Existential Implications ........................... 24 III) “To dominate this world”: Hosts Conscious and Alive ..................................................... 26 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................. 29 Works Cited .............................................................................................................................................. 32 Mauraisin 1 Introduction One of the first Personal Computer that saw the day was the IBM PC in 1981, on it, people could play Microsoft Adventure, a text-based game that IBM described as taking “players into a fantasy world of caves and treasures” (IBM). Since then, the evolution of technology has provided Art with new canvas to build on, and players with new worlds to explore. Many video games contained programs against which players played, but these programs became stronger and stronger as new technology came around. Until, eventually they surpassed humans in every game, with notably Deep Blue winning over the then World Chess Champion Garry Kasparov in 1996, and in 2016 Alpha Go, beating the 18-time World Go Champion Lee Sedol. Whereas modern technology provides us with more opportunities than ever to tell stories and create new worlds, there is also a downside to it. Modern scientists and philosophers are concerned with the possibility that, if technological advances continue to grow like they did during the last 50 years, one day machines will become better than us at everything (Tegmark; Bostrom). The possibility for technology to provide new ways of telling story and the possible threat to humanity of its development are both major themes of the 2016 HBO series Westworld. Since its release, Westworld has been subject to critical acclaim for its story, actors and themes. While some critics have been concerned with its racial representation (Landsberg), other critics have joined to compile essays on different readings of Westworld (Goody and Mackay) or on its philosophical underpinning (South and Engels). While considerations have been brought on the role of the theme park in Westworld (Lacko), none have considered its ontological status, nor its narrative structure. Moreover, critics have been concerned with the portrayal of consciousness in the series (Rayhert), but none have Mauraisin 2 established a relationship between the ontological status of the hosts and their consciousness. Hence, this paper will be an investigation of the relationship between voice and consciousness and their ontological implications. The first part of this paper will address the ontological nature of the show by referring to Roman Ingarden’s discussion of literary works and move into the ontological frame of the series to bring Marie-Laure Ryan’s narratological considerations to the theme park. From this insider’s perspective, the ontological status of the hosts will be considered in Heideggerian terms and the voices within the narrative medium will be considered in relation to the modern debate notably involving Monika Fludernik and Richard Gibson. The second part of this paper will explore the representation of consciousness in Westworld. First by addressing Daniel Dennett’s understanding of consciousness in relation to the show, then by considering Julian Jaynes’ hypothesis’ role in the hosts’ rise to consciousness. This rise to consciousness will serve as a basis for a reconsideration of the hosts’ voice in relation to Jacques Derrida’s philosophy. Finally, the third part of the paper will be concerned with the recognition of the hosts self-consciousness form a Hegelian understanding and their existential implications, using Jean-Paul Sartre’s notion of existential choice and Max Tegmark’s ideas of life and goals. The aim of this paper is to provide a philosophical analysis of the implication of the hosts ontological status on their voice, and the implication of their consciousness on their ontological status, voice and future. Mauraisin 3 Introduction to Westworld Based on Michael Crichton’s movie of the same name, Westworld is an HBO series that first aired in 2017. The story happens in an unspecified future, one where technological advances has allowed people to create androids perfectly replicating humans. In this world, The Delos Company uses these androids to create a Wild-West theme park called Westworld. In the park, the androids are referred to as hosts, they follow narratives written by Lee Sizemore under the supervision of Robert Ford, the creator of the theme park. Real people, known as guests, come and go in the park using the hosts to fulfill any of their desires. Hosts programs are written by Bernard Lowe, who is himself, unknowingly, a host. The hosts’ programs are regularly cleaned from memories to ensure their compliance. However, one day, Maeve, a host, starts to malfunction, remembering her past lives. With these memories, Maeve realizes the inconsistency of her world and with this realization starts a journey toward consciousness. Additionally, Dolores, another host, also realizes inconsistency in her world and while she does not have access to deleted memories, her journey towards consciousness starts when she starts hearing voices. Ultimately, both hosts explicitly reach consciousness. Mauraisin 4 1) Narrative Voice in Westworld I) “This whole world is a story”: Westworld as a Narrative Medium “The Cosmos is all that is or was or ever will be” noted Carl Sagan in 1980 (Sagan and Druyan), and one of its greatest mystery is its existence. This great mystery is what Martin Heidegger called in his Introduction to Metaphysics “the fundamental question of metaphysics”, the question of Being, why is there something rather than nothing (1)? To bring clarity to the question of Being, Heidegger made an ontological distinction, stating that “Being is essentially different from a being, from beings” (9), he differentiated the ontological from the ontical. On the one hand, the question of Being is ontological, addressing what it is to be, on the other, the question of beings is ontic, addressing the specificities of things that are. Westworld is a being for which I will aim to provide an ontological description. As this is a literature thesis, I will engage with the nature of the show from a literary perspective rather than from a film perspective. My first move here is to show that, in its way of being, Westworld resembles the literary work for which Roman Ingarden, Polish philosopher specialized in ontology and aesthetics, sets himself to provide the “essential anatomy” (Ingarden 4).