American Cyborgs Final - Quotes/Analysis

Story opens with a quote from Donna Haraway's "A Cyborg Manifesto" and then the quote from Racahel in Blade Runner: "Look, it's me with my mother."

Automation Biographies/rachel by Larissa Lai. In the movie, when Rachael says this, Deckard responds with "Yeah. -- Remember when you were six? You and your brother snuck into an empty building through a basement window. You were gonna play doctor. He showed you his, but when it got to be your turn you chickened and ran. Remember that? You ever tell anybody that? Your mother, Tyrell, anybody huh? You remember the spider that lived in a bush outside your window? Orange body, green legs..." and that's when Rachael discovers that she's a replicant and that those memories were implanted. Deckard tries to play it off, but it's too late.

"Painful to live in fear, isn't it? That's what it is to be a slave."

Blade Runner, Leon Kowalski speaking. This line embodies Blade Runner's moral statement, and this line is echoed ("quite an experience to live in fear") by Roy Batty in his final encounter with Deckard. The Nexus 6 Replicants are aware that they are artificial machines and that they each have an expiration date, but they do not know what that date is. They live in constant fear of death. The Tyrell Corporation and the Blade Runners justify the limited lifespan of the Replicants by looking at them as machines - but the simple fact that Leon and Batty refer to their existence as "life" shows how many human characteristics they actually possess. At the end of the film, Deckard and Rachael know that they have limited lifespans but make the choice not to live in fear, and embrace their lives, no matter how long (or short) they may be.

With massive effort he managed to sit up; his head swimming, he stepped haltingly from the bed and onto the floor. "I'll be glad to leave here," he said as he rose to a standing position. "And thank you for your humane attention." "Thank you, too, Mr. Poole," the doctor said. "Or rather I should just say Poole."

From "The Electric Ant" by Philip K. Dick. Garson Poole is itching to get out of the hospital because he has just discovered that he cannot be treated because he is not human, he's an electric ant. Also, though he can't be treated, the hospital wants to charge him for their services up to the point that they discovered he wasn't human. So, "naturally," he's pretty pissed. Poole is almost venomous when using the term "humane attention." It has sort of a double intention- to insult the doctor for not helping him (b/c he uses the word 'humane' sarcastically) but also to insult humans in general, since he no longer is one. The doctor fires back, dropping the "Mr." from Poole's title in order to show disrespect and that the doctor now sees Garson Poole as lesser because he is an electric ant. He's adding insult to injury (literally).

"Why not? Here I have an opportunity to experience everything. Simultaneously. To know the universe and its entirety, to be momentarily in contact with all reality. Something that no human can do. A symphonic source entering my brain outside of time, all notes, all instruments sounding at once. And all symphonies."

From "The Electric Ant" by Philip K. Dick. He's talking to one of the technicians at the electric-ant maintenance company. Garson Pool asked what would happen if no tape passed under the scanner in his body, and the technicians told him all the near circuits would short out. Poole didn't seem so sure, but the technician asked "would we lie?" This was his response. Worth noting: this is one of the first times we see Poole not hating his reality of being an Electric Ant. Here, he realizes that he can do something that humans cannot. That makes him less angry with his situation. Also, why is the use of a musical metaphor important?

Programmed. In me somewhere, he thought, there is a matrix fitted in place, a grid screen that cuts me off from certain thoughts, certain actions. And forces me into others. I am not free. I never was, but now I know it; that makes it different.

From Philip K. Dick's "The Electric Ant." In this scene, Garson Poole has recently discovered he is not a human but an "organic robot" - better known as an "Electric Ant." Here, he is struggling to come to terms with reality. All his life, he thought he was human. He was the head of a successful company and had great friends. He used to believe he made that company and those friends by his own free will and determination. Now, he's considering if his whole life he was meant to do that - if he was cut off from certain thoughts and actions so his sole purpose in life would be to make the friends he made or build and run the company he built. His whole life he was not free, but he didn't know it. The day before the accident where he lost his hand, he would have looked back on his life with peace or even happiness. Now that he knows he's an Electric Ant, he looks back on his life differently and thinks about what could have been.

"You've done a man's job, sir. I guess you're through, huh?" "Finished." "It's too bad she won't live. But then again, who does?"

Gaff speaks this line to Deckard after Roy Batty's death. When Deckard returns to his apartment, he is anxious to find Rachael, whom he thinks might be dead - either because Gaff fulfilled Byrant's command to retire her or because her time has run out. Deckard discovers one of Gaff's origami figures outside his door - meaning that Gaff has been to his apartment and has allowed Rachael to live - a humane and generous gesture that Gaff could be punished for. But he gives Rachael the gift of life, just as Roy Batty saves Deckard. By running away, Deckard and Rachael are making the decision to make the most out of whatever time they have left. Yes, Replicants have limited lifespans - but so do all human beings. We all only have a limited amount of life, it's just that the Replicants' lifespan is pre-determined. It is likely that Deckard has read Rachael's file, because he knows all the artificial memories that have been implanted in her mind. If he does know when she is going to die - he doesn't tell her, so that she does not have to live in fear.

An insect landed on the back of Kemmings' right hand, an old insect, weary with flight. He halted, watched it crawl across his knuckles. I could crush it, he thought. It's so obviously infirm; it won't live much longer anyhow. He crushed it - and felt great inner horror. What have I done? he asked himself. My first moment here and I have wiped out a little life. Is this my new beginning? Turning, he gazed back at the ship. Maybe I ought to go back, he thought. Have them freeze me forever. I am a man of guilt, a man who destroys. Tears filled his eyes. And, within its sentient works, the interstellar ship moaned.

I Hope I Shall Arrive Soon by Philip K. Dick. Victor Kremmings has been fed sensory stimulation quite a few times, but each time he ruins the scenario. The ship asks him what he really wants, and he tells the ship that he wants the trip to be over. The ship then sends him a stimulation that involves him waking up at the end of the trip and getting off on the planet. However, he sees an insect and crushes it. Victor is horrified by what he's done, yet again ruining the stimulation. The insect scenario ties back into what happened when Victor was a kid - he was stung by a bee when he was trying to save it. It's a situation that he never forgot and causes him distress.

"pretty policeman's seen the letter the law of my birth four years of my fibre his rib? or any other part belonging to a man"

Larissa Lai's poem, rachel. The "pretty policeman" line refers to Deckard. It may reveal what her feelings were towards him when they first met - she was attracted to him (even though she's a replicant. As they say, 'more human than human'). "The law of my birth" is referencing the documentation of her creation, what memories she was implanted with, etc. What is the significance of the allusion to the Biblical story of Genesis? Could be differences in creation. Eve was created by God through part of Adam. Rachael was created by a man who sees himself as god (Tyrell) and was designed to look like some else and implanted with someone else's memories.

"they said the blood spatter was extraordinary an aesthetically pleasing splash of red against clear cellophane coat they said her pale skin glistened under pink and blue neon and a million shards of broken glass they said there was a glimmer of pain in his eyes he flashed his i.d. like a hero"

Larissa Lai's poem, rachel. This is about Zhora's death. She specifically focuses on the crowd's reaction to her death - they weren't horrified, shocked, concerned, etc. They saw it as a beautiful ('aesthetically pleasing') thing. Could refer to how death happened so constantly in the city that people had become unfazed to it. Noteworthy that through Deckard feels pain, it is only "a glimmer of pain." You find out in the movie that Deckard quit his replicant-hunting job because of growing concern about killing replicants. He also mentions in the movie that he gets the "shakes" after killing replicants. Still, he puts on his tough-guy act because he was blackmailed into doing killing Zhora and the others by the company he used to work for. The lines "he flashed his i.d. like a hero" are ironic because Deckard certainly doesn't feel like a hero. He didn't want to do the job in the first place. Also, "in his eyes" could be reference to the use of eyes as a symbol in the film - and here, his eyes really are the window into his soul.

"gotcha, deckard we dream the same dream... your human subject's broken star our crossed wires clutch ever bigger guns they hold our "i" this certainty... all along you were one of us"

Larissa Lai's rachel. Rachel is talking about the revelation in Blade Runner that Deckard is probably a replicant, too- "we dream the same dream", "all along you were one of us", and "our crossed wires clutch ever bigger." The lowercase "i" suggests that Rachel doesn't really know what her place is. As as replicant, she is called "more human than human." But she's not human. And if she's not human, does that make her lesser? Does she deserve a capital "I"? Note, the title of the poem is also spelled in all lowercase. The poems, overall, are written in terse, ambiguous, fragmented lines. This also reflects Rachel's own confusion about her identity - she's coherent like a human, but the fragmented, choppy lines make her seem more robotic.

My universe is lying within my fingers, he realized. If I can just figure out how the damn thing works. All I set out to do originally was to search for and locate my programming circuit so I could gain homeostatic functioning. Control of myself. But with this- with this he did not merely gain control of himself, he gained control over everything. And this sets me apart from every human who ever lived or died, he thought somberly.

Poole has been feeling some self-hatred since he found out he's an electric ant. He has been wondering what his life is worth if he's owned by someone for a certain purpose and if all his thoughts and actions are programmed. However, after a computer scan, he realizes that maybe being an electric ant isn't so bad after all. It comes with power - through the form of a reality tape inside his body - where he can control not only himself but everything around him. This sets him apart from humans, who don't have this capability.

"I found out I'm an electric ant. Which from one standpoint opens up certain possibilities, which, I am exploring now.... you can watch if you so desire." She had begun to cry. "What's the matter?" he demanded savagely. "I - it's just so sad. You've been such a good employer to all of us at Tri-Plan. We respect you so. And now it's all changed."

Poole has now had a change of heart about being an electric ant. At first he was angry and then depressed about it, but after his first experiment with the tape, he sees being an electric ant as coming with certain new possibilities. However, Sarah is, like, the worst friend ever and starts crying when he says he's an electric ant. It's like she sees as a terminal disease, or something she should pity. She acts like her own world has been rocked, which is pretty selfish, considering she doesn't even ask Poole how he's holding up. Of course, it's ironic because in the end, Sarah is also an electric ant.

Shall I go to the office? he asked himself. If so, why? If not, why? Choose one. Christ, he thought, it undermines you, knowing this. I'm a freak, he realized. An inanimate object mimicking an animate one. But - he felt alive. Yet... he felt differently now. About himself. Hence about everyone... I think I'll kill myself, he said to himself. But I'm probably programmed not to do that; it would be a costly waste which my owner would have to absorb. And he wouldn't want to.

Poole is contemplating the limits to what he can and can't do. He knows he's being controlled, but he doesn't know to what extent. He feels "undermined" at the discovery that he's an electric ant, because there are so many unanswerable questions. He contradicts himself, saying he's an inanimate object but feels alive. He considers killing himself, but decides against it because he's "probably programmed not to do that." That decision in and of itself is questionable - did Poole decide not to kill himself, or was he programmed to think that he was probably programmed not to? It's also odd that he thinks the biggest deal of his suicide would be the monetary loss. Poole has done so much in his life, and he now runs a successful company. He thinks nothing of his owner losing that.

I leaned toward him, lowering my voice. "Jim," I said. "Will you take me with you?" His eyes opened in surprise. I spoke again, trembling. "Even if I need to leave the sector? Would you help me?" It was my first attempt to persuade anyone to do anything for me. I reached out and moved a piece of his hair back from his forehead. It was so easy. I am good with people.

Raina is still discovering everything she can do. Before, she realized she did have the capability to state her opinion and disagree with someone. Now, she realizes she can persuade people to do certain things. She even pushes Jim's hair out of his face the same way Elaine had done to her earlier when she told her to stay out of her room. Raina is using humans' actions against them.

"It's a very cautious approach," I told Dr. Margaret. I didn't even know I was going to say it. It was not a smart thing to say. I had not offered an opinion before and this one made her look up from the screen to my face with surprise and displeasure. "I think that's best," she said. I felt that queer, unpleasant feeling inside me that meant I didn't agree. "You have a different idea?" Dr. Margaret asked coldly. "You have a better idea?" "Your work is all parasite-specific," I said. "When the infecting organism changes, the agent is no longer effective. You've simply perfected the disease." "I have had some small success with my methods..." she turned away from me back to the screen. "Just do the experiments I design."

Recalling Cinderella - Dr. Margaret and Raina speaking. Raina has just discovered there are other models of her, and that they all have personality flaws. Raina wants to leave and find her sisters, but she's got to take things one step at a time. Before she can even consider leaving, she's got to speak up for herself and voice her opinion. She's had the urge to do it for a long time, but this time, she actually gets to do it. Here, she does it for the first time by explaining her take on the experiment, which is in opposition to Dr. Margaret's idea. Dr. Margaret, however, doesn't like that Raina has spoken out. She doesn't even consider her point of view. She gets angry and dismisses her idea. Again, she underestimates her. Raina knows she isn't as valued as she could be, and that she is becoming strong - "stronger than even Laura. Strong enough"... strong enough to leave.

"You don't have a family," she said. "You were grown on one of the farms. But you couldn't remember that - you wouldn't have any more memory of that than a baby has of the womb. Top of the line, though. State of the art. Nothing but the best for Mother. I don't imagine there was even a pattern for you; little bit of genetic engineering, I suppose. Language skills, manual skills. The basics. But no personality. You're really only capable of following simple instructions."

Recalling Cinderella by Karen Joy Fowler. Here, Elaine snarkily tells Raina that she has no family and explains that she was basically created for nothing more than working at the hospital. We get a taste of the lies of this family for the first time- Elaine tells Raina she has no family and that she doesn't imagine there was a patter to make her (saying she was one of a kind) but she's really not. We don't find out until the end, but she isn't one of a kind- she has sisters; other Rainas. Elaine also said she wasn't given a personality and was only built with the capability to follow simple instructions, which she may have thought to be true, but at the end we find out Raina does have a personality through her "flawed personality structure" and learns quicker and with more capacity than they throught possible. Raina is underestimated.

She finished with a slight slap on the bottom of my left foot. "We'll leave you now to dress, Raina. Can you do that?" And these were my first words. "Yes," I said. "I can."

Recalling Cinderella by Karen Joy Fowler. This is where Raina and Dr. Margaret, Laura, and Elaine are first introduced. Laura seemed particularly disgusted with Raina, saying, "she gives me the creeps." But Dr. Margaret dismissed her comment and went on to tell her about the job she'd be doing, her two-week training, and the meal schedule. Then she leaves Raina to get dressed. Raina's first words are significant. It ties into Raina's later realization that "it didn't take two weeks to train me. This prediction of Dr. Margaret's was merely the first instance of her tendency to underestimate me."

"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tanhauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time...like tears in rain. Time to die."

These are Roy Batty's last words. They read like poetry, illustrating how much Batty has appreciated his life. Roy Batty speaks these words after he has saved Deckard's life; by telling Deckard about his memories, he is able to preserve them even after he is gone. Also, by demonstrating his zest for life in this final fight scene, Roy Batty has been able to communicate to Deckard how unjust Tyrell's system is - his final protest against Tyrell Corp. Hampton Fancher describes Roy Batty as "... a character who was fascinated with life, even though he deals in death"

"couldn't kill her because of me my lover's lover's alibi differences blood in this deadly circus her eyes and mine grown from the same stare... o bone of my bone confused and parched by longing when did you know what you were?... I went to the other side false identification internalized racism loving the alien clothed as the same..."

This Larissa Lai poem refers to a point in the Dick novel where Deckard has trouble killing Pris, because she looks just like Rachael. But when Rachael addresses Pris in this poem, she talks to this "bone of my bone" and wonders about the differences between them. She's curious about the fact that Pris knew, much earlier, that Pris was a replicant ("when did you know what you were?"). She's also fascinated by the fact that Pris falls in love with another replicant, Roy, whereas Rachael feels attracted toward a supposed human, Deckard, who is killing the replicants. Why does Rachael lament the fact that "i went to the other side / false identification / internalized racism / loving the alien / clothed as the same"? She feels as going "to the other side" and not falling in love with a replicant, someone of her "race," could be looked on as bad. She calls Deckard an "alien" because he is not the same species/race as her, but the "clothed as the same" line hints that maybe she thinks they're more alike than people think.

"The designers reckoned after a few years, they might develop their own emotional responses. You know, hate, love, fear, anger, envy. So they built in a failsafe device." "Which is what?" "Four-year lifespan."

This is Bryant and Deckard talking. Bryant is saying that the Replicants' 4-year lifespan was a cautionary action on the part of the genetic designers - who were aware of the dangers involved in creating an android that was "more human than human". The fact that the designers were aware of this possibility makes the moral implications of Replicant creation even more questionable. In the end, though, Tyrell's commodification of these near-human beings comes back to bite him when Roy Batty, indignant at his limited lifespan, kills his creator.

"Perhaps it's time for one of you to have a baby. I could arrange it. During the pregnancy we could get more help for the hospital like we got Raina." "Another Raina," said Laura. "No thanks."

This is Dr. Margaret and Laura speaking. They were just talking about missing Gwen and sending a message to her. Laura gets angry when Dr. Margaret mentions having another "Raina" around and looks at Raina bitterly before leaving. The phrase "another Raina" has another meaning, though. It's an indication that there are already other Rainas out in the world. This is confirmed when Raina intercepts the message that says "Help Wanted." The message says Dr. Margaret's RAINA has a flawed personality structure and may be dangerous - there have already been incidents in other sectors. Raina thinks back to Laura's words, "another Raina." She's not the only one.

"She's a replicant, isn't she?" "I'm impressed. How many questions does it usually take to spot them?" "I don't get it...." "How many questions?" "Twenty, thirty, cross-referenced." "It took more than a hundred for Rachael, didn't it?" "She doesn't know." "She's beginning to suspect, I think." "Suspect? How can it not know what it is?"

This is Tyrell and Deckard speaking. Deckard has just questioned Rachael to see if she is a replicant. Tyrell notes that it took 3-5 times as many questions for Deckard to determine what she was. This ties back to the company's motto "more human than human." The technology is advancing, and it's becoming harder to tell who is human and who is a replicant. Then, when Deckard finds out Rachael doesn't know what she is, he is surprised. He also switches from calling Rachael "her" to "it." These are ironic because at the end of the film, the audience starts to suspect that maybe Deckard, too, is a replicant.

"Do you know why you never guessed? There must have been signs... clicking and whirring from inside you, now and then. You never guessed because you were programmed not to notice. You'll now have the same difficulty finding out why you were built and for whom you've been operating." "A slave. A mechanical slave." "You've had fun." "I've lived a good life. I've worked hard."

This is from the Electric Ant by Philip K. Dick. It's a technician and Garson Poole talking. Poole tells the technician that he was "unintentionally" posing as a human (meaning that he didn't know) and that now he plans to intentionally pose as human. The technician senses his frustration and explains that he didn't realize he was human because he was programmed not to notice, and that now he'll still have difficulty since he knows he was built for someone and for a purpose, but he doesn't know for who or why. The technician seems a bit sympathetic towards him. But Poole isn't taking it lightly. He sees himself as a slave. The technician tries to point out that maybe he's not a slave, because he's had fun in his life. But Pool doesn't exactly agree - he says he's lived a good life and worked hard. That doesn't mean he's had free will or control over his own actions. It doesn't mean he's had fun.

She walked through the doorway and straight up to me, raising her hand. I heard and felt it hit my face. "You're even worse than Gwen," she said in a low voice that shook. "What do you know about loyalty? What do you care about love? You're Mother's perfect little daughter, aren't you?" She raised her hand to hit me a second time, but I had no trouble catching it. "Don't do that again," I warned her. And then said, "I don't want you in my room unless I've asked you."

This is where Laura slaps Raina. She gives no excuse for doing so, other than that she's obviously jealous for some reason. She mentions loyalty and love and Raina being "Mother's perfect little daughter." But, as usual, Raina is underestimated. She catches Laura's hand and confidently tells her not to do it again. Then, repeating Elaine's words from earlier in the story when Raina had been in her room, Raina says, "I don't want you in my room unless I've asked you." It shows how quick Raina is learning. She's picking up on how to use human language and interaction. It's important that Raina uses a line from Elaine to Laura, since the two girls are constantly at each other's throats.

"Don't know, I don't know such stuff. I just do eyes, ju-, ju-, just eyes... just genetic design, just eyes. You Nexus, huh? I design your eyes." "...if only you could see what I've seen with your eyes."

This quote is from Blade Runner; Chew Hannibal and Roy Batty are speaking. This happens after Roy and Leon break into Chew's lab to ask him about their creation and their length of time to live. It exemplifies the powerful symbolism of the eye in Blade Runner. For Roy Batty, it is through the artificial eyes created by Chew that he has started developing emotions. These eyes are the doorways that allow his experiences to inform his emotional maturation. The eyes have allowed him to see both beautiful and disturbing things. This line also connects to Roy Batty's last words. When he realizes that he cannot prolong his life, he laments to Deckard that all his memories and experiences will be lost like "tears in the rain." Although Chew is the manufacturer of Batty's eyes, and Tyrell is the person who has given Batty his mind and body - it is what Batty has done with these tools that have allowed him to transcend the mantle of "machine", and what fuels his desire to hold onto his life.

"The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long. And you have burned so very, very brightly, Roy. Look at you. You're the Prodigal Son. You're quite a prize."

Tyrell explains to Roy Batty, his Nexus 6 creation, that there is nothing he can do to extend Batty's life. In the above quote, he tries to convince Roy Batty that his life has been extraordinary - and that he should accept the fact that his time is nearly up. Roy Batty reacts to this news by killing Tyrell - punishing him for creating beings so sophisticated that they can recognize the injustice of their fate. This quote also reveals the symbolic father-son relationship between Roy Batty and Tyrell. Tyrell is proud of Batty, his most sophisticated creation, as a father would be proud of his son. However, this is also the moment when the power dynamic shifts - Batty spends the first two acts of the film trying to meet Tyrell, hoping to extend his life. Once he finds out that it won't be possible, Roy Batty uses the power that Tyrell has endowed him with to kill his creator.

"only photographs will stave the terror 'look, it's me with my mother' ... i shove my proof beneath his derisive nose 'someone else's', he says but i know when i'm gone he presses to his chest the picture of the ancestor who looks like me"

rachel by Larissa Lai. The "proof" is supposed to be that Rachael is a human. However, this poem correlates to where in the movie Deckard tells Rachael she is a replicant. In this poem, Rachael thinks Deckard sees her as only a clone - otherworldly, or not as good as the "original" Rachael, when he says 'someone else's.' He doesn't see her as authentic or good enough. He could also mean "someone else's" as her having another person's (the original Rachael's) memories. But, when she leaves, he misses her. Because the girl (ancestor) in the picture looks like Rachael, he presses it to his chest, bringing about irony.