Bladerunner: Humanity Of Deckard & Roy Batty Essay examples

In the movie Blade Runner, humans create “androids” that resemble humans physically and have human emotion, implanted memories and the purpose to work as slaves. Throughout the course of the movie these androids, which are later referred as “replicants,” start to realize their desire to live longer as humans do and to try to prevent their death. Humans are threatened by this desire the replicants build and start killing them off to prevent any destruction replicants might cause. A belief that these replicants should not be granted human rights comes into play and sets the audience to question whether replicants can be perceived as human or not. Replicants are seen as non-human throughout the movie Blade Runner, yet still live lives filled with emotion as humans do. Therefore, rather than calling replicants “non-human,” they should be called “persons” and should be granted human rights because they reflect real human emotion and had no part in their own creation. This constitutes their innocence making them undeserving of punishment.

Within Ridley Scott’s 1982 ‘Blade Runner’ memories serve as the “cushion” (‘Blade Runner’ 1982) for replicant emotion; subsequently making them easier to control. By this, memory lays a foundation, with past experiences creating a bridge to feel and identify as more human. Through past and present circumstances, mood, and relationships, memory serves as a lever to react with a “readiness to respond” (HM Works) within both the present and the future. Scott explores the function of memory in order to illustrate the human psychology in a complex light, using scientific references as to highlight key debates in what makes humans more empathetic and how they use memory in order to be a more emotive species; thus, evaluating the superiority of mankind. Memory in ‘Blade Runner’ is used in order to create a platform to mould replicants into society as more functioning humans as to be a more exact replica, rather than to serve as the initial function of a “slave” (‘Blade Runner’ 1982).

characters are in many ways divergent, and it is in fact these traits that reveal the most about

psychopathic ways and hatred they had toward people. It shows us that there are people

Context investigates a text’s personal, social and historical context. Blade Runner, directed by Ridley Scott, was first released in 1982. At this time, computers were at an all-time high in popularity and productivity, businesses were booming and the environment was being ignored for financial profits. All of these values had an impact on the way Blade Runner was written and directed.

"You have seen how a man was made a slave; you will now see how a slave was made a man." –Frederick Douglass

  “Slavery proved as injurious to her as it did to me. When I went there, she was a pious, warm, and tender-hearted woman. There was no sorrow or suffering for which she had not a tear. She had bread for the hungry, clothes for the naked, and comfort for every mourner that came within her reach. Slavery soon proved its ability to divest her of these heavenly qualities. Under its influence, the tender heart became stone, and the lamblike disposition gave way to one of tiger-like fierceness.”

Dialogue: “All person held as slaves within any state … shall be then … forever

"Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!"

We are also shown the idea of humanity and compassion in the film ‘Blade Runner’. The replicants are only seen as objects. This is shown through the repetition of the reference to replicants as ‘it’. It shows the lack of compassion and humanity and to have quality of life you need a certain degree of this. Blade Runner also illustrates that it may not be the replicants fault for their need to survive but lacking of the quality of life. The film noir expresses the films artificial and ‘depressing’ world with dehumanized buildings and dark eerie environments. This makes you ask is this world forgetting about humanity? Their quest for survival is only one step into gaining quality of life as the world they live in now does not contain all elements needed to acquire this.

"Slavery is founded on the selfishness of man's nature--opposition to it on his love of justice. These principles are in eternal antagonism; and when brought into collision so fiercely as slavery extension brings them, shocks and throes and convulsions must ceaselessly follow." (Abraham Lincoln)[1]

“What we’re experience right now is just exactly what the colonists experienced. Just like Britain, the North is tormenting and taunting us with their false laws to hold back our rights. Slavery is our right and is needed to help our country’s wealth. ”

The replicants in Blade Runners are almost identical to humans, as they physically look exactly identical to normal people. They even make there own decisions, have emotions and Roy even shows compassion at the end. Bauldy, Zhora and Pris just want to survive and do not have or show developed emotions. Rachael differs to them as we see her find out she is a replicant. She is nieve was unaware of what she was. But Rachael shows emotions and

The second reason he is considered a human is he knows The monster also does crimes like we humans do. During the book when the monster went inside a house he met a person who was blind. Then the guys family

Empathy: Blade Runners are supposed to test the replicants emotional responses to questions. Since replicants do not feel empathy. Rachael and Roy who are both replicants in the film, both start to show signs of some complex emotions including empathy after saving Deckard’s life. Dystopia: Since Blade Runner was set 40 years into the future, it made Los Angeles look unpleasant and run down.