Book of the Week

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
Recommended by Luke Leventis

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? is a science fiction masterpiece with huge implications for the future. After the disastrous 'World War Terminus' radioactive dust is spread all over the world. Because of the fear of being dubbed a 'Special' or a nuclear mutant, much of the Earth’s population has migrated to colonies in the solar system.

Some androids saw it as unethical to be kept as slaves by humans, and so killed their masters and escaped to Earth, where androids are illegal. This is where Rick Deckard, the book’s protagonist comes in. Deckard is a 'bounty hunter', or a freelance policeman hired to kill illegal androids. Deckard however, soon faces a dilemma when, on a tricky assignment, he discovers that he sympathizes with the androids that he is supposed to kill.

This raises the puzzling question, what does it mean to be human? The androids in the book speak, think and have human emotions, but despite this, are still regarded as lower lifeforms. The androids even show more feelings and appreciation of the arts than humans do. Iran, Deckard’s wife, owns a mood organ, a machine that allows you to dial a specific number in order to feel an artificial emotion (e.g. 481 to feel 'an awareness of the manifold possibilities open to me in the future').

The humans rely on artificial emotions, while the androids have genuine feelings. The androids however, display a lust for life unparalleled by the humans. One android is an opera singer; another reads imported science fiction. These androids seem more deserving of life than the humans, yet are hunted down and killed.

The film adaptation, Bladerunner, strips away unnecessary parts of the plot while homing in on the humanity of the androids (known as replicants in the film). Starring Harrison Ford, Sean Young and Rutger Hauer, Bladerunner’s compelling plot combined with masterful directing by Ridley Scott, is a spectacle to behold. Philip K. Dick was at first annoyed about his lack of involvement in the film, but after seeing some parts of the unfinished film, he was happy with the result. Sadly he died before the finished film was released.

Both the novel and its film adaptation are masterworks of sci-fi and fantastic for anyone wishing to explore these themes.