Lecture Eleven: Gods and Monsters

I.                   Administrative

A.                 Please leave your journal/sketchbooks up here with us when you leave. 

B.                 MP#2 is due today.  Leave that up here as well.

C.                 We will review your electronic portfolios during the week following the break.  Please update them, putting in MP#1 from this semester and your final project from last semester (if you were in this class).  Also, it would be good if you worked on the appearance of the site. 

D.                 Questions?

II.        Religion

A.                 A system of belief that supplies faith-based explanations of origins and ultimate reality, along with guidance for living a meaningful life.

B.                 In addition to answers, religions supply:

1.         A sense of belonging with like-minded individuals.

2.         A sense of purpose, or perhaps reason to reject the need for such a sense.

3.                  A calm, peaceful acceptance of one’s place in the universe.

III.       Mercerism

            A.        Mercerism is a religion, by the definition given above.

1.         It is a view to which one subscribes via faith, as is evidenced by the lack of concern shown by the humans to Buster Friendly’s announcement.

2.                  It is a system of beliefs that is centered on the notion of empathy.

3.                  It offers explanations of origins (viz., the universe is a cyclical place) and ultimate reality (viz., there is no higher purpose than the collective struggle for life).

B.         As such, it does offer people in BladeRunner a sense of belonging, a sense of purpose, and a placid acceptance of one’s place in the universe.

C.        Tenets of Mercerism:

            1.         All life is to be prized.

2.                  All victories and defeats are to be shared.

3.                  We must do things that go against our nature—this is the basic condition of life  (p. 156).

4.                  The struggle will lead to rebirth and renewal, only to lead inexorably to the struggle again.  Existence is cyclical.

IV.       The Place of Mercerism in Blade Runner

            A.        For the world of the book:

1.         It enhances empathy, an emotion that is crucial to rebuilding the post-apocalyptic society and avoiding any future disasters of that sort.

2.         It gives people a sense of purpose in what is otherwise a very drab and dreary world.  (Think of Isidore here.)

4.                  It reinforces the importance of life.

5.                  It reinforces the importance of community.

6.                  For the androids, it marks an unbridgeable gap that separates them from their goal of a free human life, sanctioning the human attitude toward them and treatment of them.

B.         For the reader:

            1.         It reinforces the difference between humans and androids.

2.                  It provides a way of thinking about what it is to be human.

3.                  It serves to underwrite what could be seen as a necessary condition of monstrosity, although in so doing, it calls that condition into question.