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Black Mirror and Philosophy
Dark Reflections
David Kyle Johnson (Edited by), William Irwin (Series edited by)
9781119578260, Wiley
Paperback / softback, published 17 January 2020
384 pages
22.9 x 15 x 2 cm, 0.612 kg
A philosophical look at the twisted, high-tech near-future of the sci-fi anthology series Black Mirror, offering a glimpse of the darkest reflections of the human condition in digital technology Black Mirror―the Emmy-winning Netflix series that holds up a dark, digital mirror of speculative technologies to modern society—shows us a high-tech world where it is all too easy to fall victim to ever-evolving forms of social control.In Black Mirror and Philosophy, original essays written by a diverse group of scholars invite you to peer into the void and explore the philosophical, ethical, and existential dimensions of Charlie Brooker’s sinister stories. The collection reflects Black Mirror’s anthology structure by pairing a chapter with every episode in the show’s five seasons—including an interactive, choose-your-own-adventure analysis of Bandersnatch—and concludes with general essays that explore the series’ broader themes. Chapters address questions about artificial intelligence, virtual reality, surveillance, privacy, love, death, criminal behavior, and politics, including: Immersive, engaging, and experimental, Black Mirror and Philosophy navigates the intellectual landscape of Brooker’s morality plays for the modern world, where humanity’s greatest innovations and darkest instincts collide.
Contibutors xi The Black Mirror Multiverse: An Editor’s Note xxiii Introduction 1 Black Mirror: What Science Fiction Does Best 3 Season 1 9 1 The National Anthem and Weighing Moral Obligations: Is It Ever OK to F*ck a Pig? 11 2 Fifteen Million Merits and Fighting Capitalism: How Can We Resist? 20 3 The Entire History of You and Knowing Too Much: Should You Want the Grain? 29 Season 2 39 4 Be Right Back and Rejecting Tragedy: Would You Bring Back Your Deceased Loved One? 41 5 White Bear and Criminal Punishment: How Far is too Far? 50 6 The Waldo Moment and Political Discourse: What’s Wrong with Disrespect in Politics? 59 The Christmas Special 69 7 White Christmas and Technological Restraining Orders: Are Digital Blocks Ethical? 71 Season 3 81 8 Nosedive and the Anxieties of Social Media: Is the Future Already Here? 83 9 Playtest and the Power of Virtual Reality: Are Our Fears Real? 92 10 Shut Up and Dance and Vigilante Justice: Should We Ever Take the Law into Our Own Hands? 101 11 San Junipero and the Digital Afterlife: Could Heaven be a Place on Earth? 109 12 Men Against Fire and Political Manipulation: How Are We Tricked into Dehumanizing Others? 118 13 Hated in the Nation and #DeathTo: What are the Consequences of Trial by Twitter? 128 Season 4 141 14 USS Callister and Non‐Player Characters: How Should We Act in Video Games? 143 15 Arkangel and Parental Surveillance: What are a Parent’s Obligations? 151 16 Crocodile and the Ethics of Self Preservation: How Far is Too Far? 160 17 Hang the DJ and Digital Dating: Should We Use Computers to Help Us Find Mates? 168 18 Metalhead and Technophobia: How Dangerous Will Robots Be? 177 19 Black Museum and Righting Wrongs: Should We Seek Revenge? 187 Bandersnatch 197 20 Bandersnatch: A Choose‐Your‐Own Philosophical Adventure 199 Season 5 239 21 Striking Vipers and Closed Doors: How Meaningful Are Sexual Fantasies? 241 22 Smithereens and the Economy of Attention: Are We All Dopamine Addicts? 251 23 Empathy, Emulation and Ashley Too: Can a Robot Be a Friend? 260 Black Mirror Reflections 271 24 Consciousness Technology in Black Mirror: Do Cookies Feel Pain? 273 25 Personal Identity in Black Mirror: Is Your Cookie You? 282 26 Death in Black Mirror: How Should We Deal with Our Mortality? 292 27 Love in Black Mirror: Who Do We Really Love? 301 28 Perception in Black Mirror: Who Controls What You See? 311 29 The Dangers of Technology in Black Mirror: A Dialogue between Uploaded Dead Philosophers 320 Conclusion 333 30 Black Mirror in the Future: Will We Still be Watching? 335 Appendix: How to Use This Book in the Classroom 338 Index 340
David Kyle Johnson, with Leander P. Marquez, and Sergio Urueña
Brian J. Collins with Brandon Boesch
Chris Byron with Matthew Brake
Gregor Balke and Bart Engelen
Bradley Richards
Sid Simpson with Chris Lay
Greg Littmann
Cansu Canca and Laura Haaber Ihle
Sergio Urueña and Nonna Melikyan
Claire Benn
Juliele Maria Sievers and Luiz Henrique da Silva Santos
James Cook
Bertha Alvarez Manninen
Aline Maya
Russ Hamer with Steven Gubka
Catherine Villanueva Gardner with Alexander Christian
Darci Doll
Skye C. Cleary and Massimo Pigliucci
Scott Midson with Justin Donhauser
Gregory L. Bock, Jeffrey L. Bock, and Kora Smith
Chris Lay and David Kyle Johnson
Darren M. Slade
Pierluca D’Amato
George A. Dunn
David Gamez with David Kyle Johnson
Molly Gardner and Robert Sloane
Edwardo Pérez and Sergio Genovesi
Robert Grant Price
Brian Stiltner and Anna Vaughn
Ben Springett with Luiz Adriano Borges
Geoffrey A. Mitelman
Subject Areas: Philosophy [HP]
