Westworld What Makes Us Humans

The premier episode of Westworld had me immediately hooked with the important questions it raises about robots, artificial intelligence and what makes one human. I think the primary reason it raises these questions so powerfully is it makes its viewers sympathetic with the robots. It does this by first telling the story of two robots, Dolores and Teddy, as they go through their everyday life, letting the audience think they are human. While there are small quirks that raise suspicion that these characters aren’t quite human there is no way to know which character are or aren’t until it is revealed. There is thus a powerful human connection with these characters, allowing them to be viewed sympathetically. That the viewer can such a powerful connection to a robot raises important characteristics about what exactly makes one human. These characters, act human and have flesh, even if it is intertwined with electronics. Especially the characters such as Dolores who have received the latest update to have “revelries” to change from past experiences act human and almost seem to have a conscious.
If you put too many restrictions on what makes one human to restrict robots, you might accidentally leave out humans as well. Are if you say that the robots must have self-determination or free will, it raises the question on whether humans have those characteristics. Other questions are raised as well such as how to truly define consciousness, as it seems so elusive, but is something that humans innately have.
Westworld raises all these questions and many more in its first episode, showing how powerful a good story about robots can be in showing what makes something human. Perhaps the best way of exploring one’s own humanity is through the lens of something that is not