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Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? By Philip K. Dick

Tempe Public Library VIP Book Talk Lead by City Councilman Kolby Granville

Table of Contents

Discussion Leader: Kolby Granville ...... 3 Summary ...... 4 About the Author ...... 5 Bio ...... 5 Bibliography ...... 7 Discussion Questions ...... 10 ...... 11 Quotes ...... 12 Similar Reads ...... 13 Discussion Leader: Kolby Granville Kolby Granville was elected to the Tempe City Council in May 2012. He previously co-chaired the City Council's Neighborhoods and Education Committee and was named by the Arizona Republic a 2013 Tempe Person of the Year. He was also named "Friend of Maple Ash" award winner for 2015 due to his support of neighborhoods. Kolby has spent the last 25 years as an active Tempe resident. He graduated from McClintock High School in 1992. Kolby has three degrees from ASU; a B.A. in Secondary Education, a M.Ed. in Educational Media, and a J.D. While at ASU, Kolby competed on the Sun Devils archery team, achieving All-American status as one of the top 10 collegiate male archers in the United States. He was also active in the Residence Hall Association, and undergraduate student government. After graduation, Kolby moved to Changchun, China where he worked as a curriculum developer and teacher. Upon his return to Tempe, he was appointed to the Tempe Municipal Arts Commission and the Board of Directors for the East Valley Chapter of Habitat for Humanity. In the wake of 9/11, Kolby moved to Mozambique with the Peace Corps and served as a teacher trainer. More recently, Kolby served as a member of the Tempe Development Review Commission and the Tempe Affordable Housing Trust Fund. He is a former board member for the Scottsdale International Film Festival, the Phoenix Boys Choir, and Commitment To Schools. He currently serves as VP for Friends of TCA, is a lifetime member of Tempe Sister Cities, and is active in his neighborhood association. Kolby left being an attorney at Mariscal, Weeks, McIntrye & Friedlander to be a teacher and currently teaches Humane Letters and US History/Government at Tempe Prep Academy. In his free time, Kolby likes to rock climb, run long distances, do triathlons, watch movies, write and paint.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tempe.kolby Twitter: @kolbyg Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kolbywg/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/kolbyg Websites: http://www.tempe.gov/granville | http://www.kolbygranville.com/

3 | P a g e Summary In the year 2019, lifelike robots clash with their human makers in an effort to alter the destiny for which they have been programmed. (a.k.a. Decker) is assigned the task of hunting down and killing five escaped androids who have defied programming and gone off on their own. He has been hunting escaped androids all his life. Yet now Decker is aware of other tensions in his life. He begins to acutely perceive how dehumanizing the world has become and wonders fitfully about the distinction between survival and living. With mood-adjusters, mechanical pets and chemically maintained lawns, he has trouble discerning the barrier between and illusion. The mission becomes more than Decker's job; it becomes a mission that defines him as a man.

Genres: ; , ; Literary Sci-Fi; Post-Apocalyptic; Dystopian; ;

Storyline: Intricately plotted; World building

Tone: Thought-provoking; Bleak; Atmospheric; Dark humor; Offbeat

Subjects: ; Empathy; Uncanny Valley

Time Period: 21st century AD

Characters:  Rick "Decker" Deckard - Bounty Hunter  John Isidore – A genetically degraded human who protects , Pris Stratton  Rachael Rosen – A Femme Fatale style character who Rick requests be tested by the Voight-Kampff machine  Iran Deckard – Decker's wife  Pris Stratton – Android who lives in Isidore's apartment building  Luba Luft – Android opera singer  Phil Resch - Android Bounty Hunter  Roy and Irmgard Baty – Android couple; Roy is the leader of the Androids  Buster Friendly – Android talk show host

Sources: Gale Books & Authors research database, Tempe Public Library EbscoHost NoveList Plus research database, Tempe Public Library

4 | P a g e About the Author Philip K. Dick

B: December 16, 1928 Chicago, IL D: March 2, 1982 Santa Ana, CA

Awards and honors:  , World Science Fiction Convention, 1962, for The Man in the High Castle  John W. Campbell Memorial Award, 1974, for Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said  British Science Fiction Association Award for best novel, 1978, for  Guest of honor, Science Fiction Festival, Metz, France, 1978  Philip K. Dick Memorial Award was created by , an annual science fiction convention in Seattle, WA  Inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in Seattle, Washington, 2005

Bio Philip Kindred Dick (December 16, 1928 – March 2, 1982) was an American writer, whose published works mainly belong to the genre of science fiction. Dick explored philosophical, sociological and political themes in novels with plots dominated by monopolistic corporations, authoritarian governments, and altered states of consciousness. In his later works, Dick's thematic focus tended to reflect his personal interest in and .

He often drew upon his life experiences in addressing the nature of drug abuse, paranoia, schizophrenia, and transcendental experiences in novels such as A Scanner Darkly and .1 Later in life, he wrote non-fiction on , theology, the nature of reality, and science. This material was published posthumously as The Exegesis.

The novel The Man in the High Castle bridged the genres of and science fiction, earning Dick a Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1963.2 Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said, a novel about a celebrity who awakens one day to find that he is unknown, won the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for best novel in 1975.3 "I want to write about people I love, and put them into a fictional world spun out of my own mind, not the world we actually have, because

5 | P a g e the world we actually have does not meet my standards," Dick wrote of these stories. "In my writing I even question the universe; I wonder out loud if it is real, and I wonder out loud if all of us are real."4

In addition to 44 published novels, Dick wrote approximately 121 short stories, most of which appeared in science fiction magazines during his lifetime.5 Although Dick spent most of his career as a writer in near-poverty,6 eleven popular films based on his works have been produced, including , Total Recall, A Scanner Darkly, Minority Report, , Next, Screamers, and . In 2005, Time magazine named one of the hundred greatest English-language novels published since 1923.7 In 2007, Dick became the first science fiction writer to be included in The series.8

Sources:

1. Behrens, Richard; Allen B. Ruch (March 21, 2003). "Philip K. Dick". The Scriptorium. The Modern Word. Retrieved April 14, 2008. 2. "1963 Award Winners & Nominees". Worlds Without End. Retrieved June 26, 2009. 3. "1975 Award Winners & Nominees". Worlds Without End. Retrieved June 26, 2009. 4. Bernstein, Richard (November 3, 1991). "The Electric Dreams of Philip K. Dick". The Times Book Review. 5. Kimbell, Keith. "Ranked: Movies Based on Philip K. Dick Stories". Metacritic. Retrieved November 20, 2013. 6. Liukkonen, Petri. "Philip K. Dick". Books and Writers (kirjasto.sci.fi). Finland: Kuusankoski Public Library. Archived from the original on February 10, 2015. 7. Grossman, Lev (October 16, 2005). "Ubik – ALL-TIME 100 Novels". Time. Retrieved April 14, 2008. 8. Library of America Philip K. Dick: Four Novels of the 1960s

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Bibliography

SCIENCE FICTION NOVELS  (bound with The Big Jump by ), (New York, NY), 1955, published separately, Gregg, 1976, published as World of Chance, Rich & Cowan (London, England), 1956, reprinted under original title, Vintage (New York, NY), 2003.  The World Jones Made (bound with Agent of the Unknown by Margaret St. Clair), Ace Books (New York, NY), 1956, reprinted, Mariner Books (Boston, MA), 2012.  The Man Who Japed (bound with The Space-Born by E.C. Tubb), Ace Books (New York, NY), 1956 , published separately, Vintage (New York, NY), 2002.  , Ace Books (New York, NY), 1957, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2003.  (bound with Sargasso of Space by Andrew North), Ace Books (New York, NY), 1957, published separately, Berkley Publishing (New York, NY), 1983, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2004.  , Lippincott (Philadelphia, PA), 1959, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2002.  Dr. Futurity (also see below; bound withSlavers of Space by John Brunner), Ace Books (New York, NY), 1960, published with The Unteleported Man by Dick, 1972, published separately, Berkley Publishing (New York, NY), 1984, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2005.  Vulcan's Hammer (bound with The Skynappers by John Brunner), Ace Books (New York, NY), 1960, reprinted, Mariner Books (Boston, MA), 2012.  The Man in the High Castle, Putnam (New York, NY), 1962, reprinted, Mariner Books (Boston, MA), 2011.  The Game-Players of Titan, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1963, reprinted, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Boston, MA), 2012.  Martian Time-Slip, Ballantine (New York, NY), 1964, reprinted, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Boston, MA), 2012.  , Belmont-Tower, 1964 , reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2004.  , Ace Books (New York, NY), 1964, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2002.  Clans of the Alphane Moon, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1964, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2002.  Dr. Bloodmoney; or, How We Got Along after the Bomb, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1965, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2002.  The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, (New York, NY), 1965, reprinted, Mariner Books (Boston, MA), 2011.  , Doubleday (New York, NY), 1966, Mariner Books (Boston, MA), 2011.  The Crack in Space (also see below), Ace Books (New York, NY), 1966, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2005.

7 | P a g e  The Unteleported Man (also see below; bound with The Mind Monsters by Howard L. Cory), Ace Books (New York, NY), 1966, reprinted (bound with Dr. Futurity by Dick), 1972, reprinted separately, Berkley Publishing (New York, NY), 1983.  (With Ray Nelson) The Ganymede Takeover, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1967.  Counter-Clock World, Berkley Publishing (New York, NY), 1967, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2002.  The Zap Gun, Pyramid Publications, 1967, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2002.  Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Doubleday, (New York, NY), 1968, published as Blade Runner,Ballantine (New York, NY), 1982.  Ubik (also see below), Doubleday (New York, NY), 1969, reprinted, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Boston, MA), 2012.  Galactic Pot-Healer, Doubleday (New York, NY), 1969.  A Philip K. Dick Omnibus (contains The Crack in Space, The Unteleported Man, and Dr. Futurity), Sidgwick & Jackson (London, England), 1970.  A Maze of Death, Doubleday (New York, NY), 1970.  Our Friends from Frolix 8, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1970, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2003.  , DAW Books (New York, NY), 1972, reprinted, Mariner Books (Boston, MA), 2012.  Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said, Doubleday (New York, NY), 1974, reprinted, Mariner Books (Boston, MA), 2012.  (With ) , Doubleday (New York, NY), 1976, reprinted, Vintage (New York, NY), 2003.  A Scanner Darkly, Doubleday (New York, NY), 1977, reprinted, (New York, NY), 2006.  VALIS, Bantam (New York, NY), 1981, reprinted, Mariner Books (Boston, MA), 2011.  The Invasion, (New York, NY), 1981, reprinted, Mariner Books (Boston, MA), 2011.  The Transmigration of Timothy , Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1982, reprinted, Mariner Books (Boston, MA), 2011.  The Man Whose Teeth Were All Exactly Alike, Zeising, 1984.  Radio Free Albemuth, Arbor House (Westminster, MD), 1987.  Nick and the Glimmung, Gollancz (London, England), 1988.  The Little Black Box, Gollancz (London, England), 1990.  , Pantheon (New York, NY), 2002.

SHORT FICTION  A Handful of Darkness, Rich & Cowan (London, England), 1955.  The Variable Man and Other Stories, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1957.  The Preserving Machine and Other Stories, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1969.  The Book of Philip K. Dick, DAW Books (New York, NY), 1973, published as and Other Stories, Coronet (London, England), 1977.  The Best of Philip K. Dick, Ballantine (New York, NY), 1977.  The Golden Man, Berkley Publishing (New York, NY), 1980.

8 | P a g e  Robots, Androids, and Mechanical Oddities: The Science Fiction of Philip K. Dick, edited by Patricia Warrick and Martin H. Greenberg, Southern Illinois University Press (Carbondale, IL), 1984.  Lies, Inc., Gollancz (London, England), 1984, revised edition, Vintage (New York, NY), 2004.  I Hope I Shall Arrive Soon, Doubleday (New York, NY), 1985.  The Short Happy Life of the Brown Oxford, and Other Classic Stories, introduction by Roger Zelazny, Citadel Press (New York, NY), 1987.  The Collected Stories, five volumes, Underwood Miller (Novato, CA), 1987.  Selected Stories of Philip K. Dick, introduction by Jonatham Lethem, Pantheon (New York, NY), 2002.  Paycheck, and Twenty-four Other Classic Stories, Kensington (New York, NY), 2003.

OTHER  Confessions of a Crap Artist, Jack Isidore (of Seville, Calif.): A Chronicle of Verified Scientific Fact, 1945-1959 (novel), Entwhistle Books, 1975, reprinted, Mariner Books (Boston, MA), 2012.  A Letter from Philip K. Dick (pamphlet), Philip K. Dick Society, 1983.  In Milton Lumky Territory (novel), Ultramarine, 1984, reprinted, Tor (New York, NY), 2008.  Ubik: The Screenplay (based on novel of same title), Corroboree, 1985.  Puttering about in a Small Land (novel), Academy (New York, NY), 1985, reprinted, Tor (New York, NY), 2011.  Mary and the Giant (novel), Arbor House (Westminster, MD), 1987.  (novel), Arbor House (Westminster, MD), 1988.  The Selected Letters of Philip K. Dick, 1974, edited by Paul Williams, Underwood-Miller (Novato, CA), 1991.  Gather Yourselves Together (novel), WCS Books (Herndon, VA), 1994, reprinted, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Boston, MA), 2012.  The Shifting of Philip K. Dick: Selected Literary and Philosophical Writings, edited by Lawrence Sutin, Pantheon (New York, NY), 1995.  The Philip K. Dick Reader, Carol Publishing Group (Secaucus, NJ), 1997.  The Selected Letters of Philip K. Dick, 1938-1971, Underwood Books (Nevada City, CA), 1997.  What If Our World Is Their Heaven? The Final Conversations of Philip K. Dick, Overlook Press (Woodstock, NY), 2000.  Vintage PKD, (New York, NY), 2006.  Four Novels of the 1960s, Library of America (New York, NY), 2007.  Humpty Dumpty in Oakland, Tor (New York, NY), 2007.  (novel), Tor (New York, NY), 2007.  The Early Work of Philip K. Dick, Prime Books (Rockville, MD), 2009.  The Exegesis of Philip K. Dick, edited by Pamela Jackson and Jonathan Lethem, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Boston, MA), 2011.

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Discussion Questions

1. Do you think the androids evolved beyond their artificial beginnings to become alive or, at least, equivalent to genuine life? What particular abilities and talents make a great memoirist?

2. By the novel’s end, do you think Rick has become permanently empathetic to the androids or will he return to being able to think of them as objects and not people? Also, do you believe he will return to his bounty hunting job after some R&R? Why or why not?

3. Is Rachel real enough to be considered human? Is a duplicate approximation of life any different than life?

4. What is the significance of killing the spider by pulling off its legs?

Sources: 1. Joplin, Jacob. DADES Journal. http://4thperiodenglishjj.weebly.com/ 2. Granville’s own.

10 | P a g e Turing Test

A Turing Test is a procedure to test whether a computer is capable of humanlike thought. As proposed (1950) by the British mathematician Alan Turing, a person (the interrogator) sits with a teletype machine isolated from two correspondents—one is another person, one is a computer. By asking questions through the teletype and studying the responses, the interrogator tries to determine which correspondent is human and which is the computer. The computer is programmed to give deceptive answers, e.g., when asked to add two numbers together, the computer pauses slightly before giving the incorrect sum—to imitate what a human might do, the computer gives an incorrect answer slowly since the interrogator would expect the machine to give the correct answer quickly. If it proves impossible for the interrogator to discriminate between the human and the computer, the computer is credited with having passed the test.

Source: "Turing Test." The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia. New York: Columbia University Press, 2016. Via Tempe Public Library research databases.

11 | P a g e Quotes

“You will be required to do wrong no matter where you go. It is the basic condition of life, to be required to violate your own identity. At some time, every creature which lives must do so. It is the ultimate shadow, the defeat of creation; this is the curse at work, the curse that feeds on all life. Everywhere in the universe.”

“I never felt like that before. Maybe it could be depression, like you get. I can understand how you suffer now when you're depressed; I always thought you liked it and I thought you could have snapped yourself out any time, if not alone then by means of the mood organ. But when you get that depressed you don't care. Apathy, because you've lost a sense of worth. It doesn't matter whether you feel better because you have no worth.”

“You have to be with other people, he thought. In order to live at all. I mean before they came here I could stand it... But now it has changed. You can't go back, he thought. You can't go from people to nonpeople." - J.R. Isidore”

“Empathy, he once had decided, must be limited to herbivores or anyhow omnivores who could depart from a meat diet. Because, ultimately, the empathic gift blurred the boundaries between hunter and victim, between the successful and the defeated.”

“Empathy, evidently, existed only within the human community, whereas intelligence to some degree could be found throughout every phylum and order including the arachnida.”

“Owning and maintaining a fraud had a way of gradually demoralizing one. And yet from a social standpoint it had to be done, given the absence of the real article.”

12 | P a g e Similar Reads

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Love in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction Trichter, Judd

Neuromancer Gibson, William

Parable of the Sower Butler, Octavia E.

Riddley Walker Hoban, Russell

The Dervish House McDonald, Ian, 1960-

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Adams, Douglas, 1952-2001

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