Thoughts on Ghost in the Shell

 

Memory: The Defining Factor of Mankind

To be human, there are many moving elements involved. Humans are concerned with the world around them, the future before them, and their past. Memories—perhaps the most human element of all—allow humans to feel pain, happiness, fear, and more than anything, they can be a motivating force towards action. Then, the question must be asked, what can be said about cyborgs? They are part human, but does the machine in them cancel out their humanity? Does this mean that Asimov’s rules of how robots should act still apply? No, these rules cannot be applied to them, for they have the human capability to remember, and because of this, they can feel things that a normally programmed robot does not.

First, the film Ghost in the Shell illustrates the idea that cyborgs are all-together different than robots during the scene in which Kusanagi is speaking to Batou after her diving experience. Batou is confused as to why Kusanagi chooses to dive when she might drown because of her robot body. Kusanagi replies by saying that when she floats to the surface, she escapes the fear and loneliness she feels at the bottom, and instead feels as though she might become a new person. After this, Kusanagi goes on to have a monologue where she discusses the fact that she has her own thoughts and memories, and as a result, she carries a “sense of her own destiny”. She is capable of this despite being half robot. Kusanagi is a perfect example that cyborgs have the ability to feel emotions as humans do, and they even have the ability to desire their own goals. Due to this, Asimov’s rules cannot apply to half-human, half-machine beings. If these rules did apply to them, then would we not be making them slaves? If we were to force these rules onto beings so similar to ourselves, humans would be making them “ghosts” inside of a shell, for they are not so by their own desire.

In contrast, the opposing view would say that the machine-part of cyborgs holds more weight than the human-part. They would argue that since cyborg’s have the machine aspect to them, they need to be held under Asimov’s rules so they can be held in check. Supporters of this opinion wouldn’t mind forcing cyborgs to obey this rule anyway, because to them, cyborgs are simply programmed entities anyways. This idea is seen in the film when Aramaki and Nakamura are discussing the female cyborg body that escaped Megatech and ran through the city. According to them, cyborgs—including the one speaking to them—are programmed “ghosts in bodies,” their only goal being self-preservation. Additionally, they argue that cyborgs don’t even have the power to prove that they are sentient if they wanted to. So, if one agrees with the views of Aramaki and Nakamura, cyborgs should be forced to follow Asimov’s rules. To them, cyborgs are nothing more than programmed beasts.

However, this view is quickly rebutted in the same scene. The unnamed female cyborg—later known to the Puppet Master’s host body—challenges Aramaki and Nakamura with steadfast information, proving to the speechless men that what they are proving has no factual evidence behind it. She says to them that, “DNA spreads memory from one generation to the next, and that memory is what defines mankind.” To further analyze this, DNA is found in humans, and since cyborgs are part-human, part-machine, they would have some element of DNA within them, and in turn, memory from “past generations”. Furthermore, if memory is what defines mankind, then it would be inhumane to subject cyborgs to Asimov’s laws since they themselves have human capabilities.

In conclusion, though the harsh view that cyborgs should be subjected to Asimov’s laws does exist, it can be deemed that these rules should not be applied to cyborgs after listening to both Kusanagi and the cyborg female. They both mention a common theme: memories, and how those memories lead them through life. Humans can be greatly defined by their memories, and so can cyborgs, despite their half-machine state. Because of this, they cannot be subjected to Asimov’s laws. To do so would be taking the action of making half-humans a slave to their machine aspects of self, the less powerful element of their being.