Wong 1Alexa Wong

Advanced College Essay

Reviewing in Contexts

The Age of Cyborgs

Technology – regarding all new media of today, such as smartphones, laptops, or tablets

– has become so universally commonplace. For most, it seems to be the first thing we come into

contact with when we wake up and the last thing we see before going to bed. Many millennials

outline an almost constant connection through the use of our laptops, our phones, our desktops.

We check email, browse facebook, chat on Messenger, write on Google Drive. We make calls,

listen to music on Spotify, read articles. Without thinking, we as people make several

connections everyday, most of them through some outlet of technology. This relationship seems

slightly ironic. In the United States, we pride ourselves on being a free nation (even if there are

several problems with these freedoms and maintaining them) complete with fully realized

individuals. We define ourselves in several ways, usually under the premise of who we are now

and who we aspire to become. However, we are increasingly chained to these devices, leading us

to become a part of a technological hegemony rather than individuals freed from obligations.

This constant need for connection has become almost a type of addiction; if we keep letting this

need dictate our lives without our knowledge, we will no longer be users. We’ll be used. Spike

Jones’ movie, Her, capitalizes on said addiction, capturing the relationship of Theodore (Joaquin

Phoenix) and Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johansson), a person and an operating system (OS).

Jones shows us the slippery slope of modern technology; it’s easy to fall prey to its enticing

qualities, including the ability to facilitate constant connections. However, we must proceed with

caution, or risk becoming so entangled with technology that we are no longer able to escape.

Wong 2Despite an inkling of something strange regarding their relationship, we cheer as they

grow closer, forgetting that such a love could never become fully realized (due to Samantha’s

artificial nature). Her is commonly classified as both a romance and science fiction film due to

the intimate bond between Theodore, a person, and Samantha, an OS. The fact that Samantha is

not a human being, but a piece of technology places the film clearly in the science fiction genre.

But is this really science fiction? If we put aside the fact that Samantha is an OS, Her presents

itself as a classic romantic comedy. They meet (Theodore buys the newest version of a software

in an undisclosed kiosk and sets it up at home). They share their experiences, their thoughts, their

ideas (something we already do when we use our phones to check email, Facebook, or anything

else involving personal information). Then, they fall in love.

In a scene set in the early stages of their relationship, Theodore is seen in a sort of slump.

So, Samantha guides Theodore to a carnival type scene to get a slice of cheese pizza. After a day

of work, she directs him to a place full of lights, music, and people. His eyes are closed the entire

time as he walks, the only guidance coming from Samantha’s voice through a headset in his ear.

She’s also presented as a thin, rectangular shaped device with a camera in the center. We see this

as the camera switches from a wide angle that showcases the entire scene to one mimicking

Theodore’s point of view, where we see his arm holding this device. Then, Samantha takes him

through the game machines carefully, weaving around groups of people. Theodore’s laughing the

entire time. She tells him to stop, and turn around several times. At this time, the camera

switches points of view, making it seem as if Theodore and Samantha were linking hands, and

spinning around and around. She tells him to stop and walk forward, and ask for a slice of

cheese, please. Then, he opens his eyes, laughs, and pays the pizza vendor. The scene is

abundantly upbeat, with charming music, laughs from both parties, and an overall light

Wong 3atmosphere. The two proceed to watch other people, joking about what they imagine the people’s

lives to look like. We’re able to feel a strong connection between them as they start to trust one

another with their ideas, their thoughts, and their secrets. And as they grow even closer, this

“perfect” couple receives our wholehearted support. This first date type of scene is straight out of

the rom-com handbook, manifesting itself in practically every movie that fits the genre.

However, if you consider the fact that Samantha isn’t a person, but an OS, suddenly it seems so

futuristic. While watching the film, we become so wrapped up in the relationship between

Theodore and Samantha that we willingly allow her to become human in our imaginations. We

want her to be a real person because, if we accept the fact that she is a piece of technology, we

begin to wonder if their connection was even real. Think about it: a relationship between a

human being and a piece of technology? Even Catherine, his former spouse, is completely

shocked when she finds out about this. With sardonic undertones, she comments on how he

couldn’t handle her and how “[he’s fallen] madly in love with his laptop” (Her). But is this idea

really so farfetched? We already have incredibly complex operating systems that we entrust with

our private, personal information. While they haven’t yet reached Samantha’s caliber, our

reliance on them is similar to the relationship between Theodore and Samantha. So, the question

I have to ask is: is there a reasonable amount of trust that we can place in our technology? What

implications come with placing such trust in technology? What is the difference between trusting

our information with technology and trusting it with other people? Where do we draw the line

between what is technology and what is something more? What gives us the ability to classify

ourselves as human? Is it because we are flesh and bones? Samantha develops her own emotions

and curiosities, giving her human-like qualities, which makes her seem so much more like us.

However, we do have to remember that she is an operating system. She manifests herself through

Wong 4an earpiece and a camera. If we define technology as purely something man made, then that’s

exactly what she is. And yet, we are so willing to embrace the increased use in electronic media,

even normalizing it in the process. It seems that we’re almost unaware of the sheer number of

hours we’re logging on our devices, and ignorant of the effects that accompany it.

If we take Theodore and Samantha’s relationship as a sort of metaphor for the

relationship that we’ve formed with technology, perhaps we can discover its precise impact..

This bond we’ve created with technology shows almost, if not complete codependence. Is it

something that can co-exist alongside us in a mutualistic, or at the very least, a commensalistic

relationship? In Her, this concept of an intimate relationship between people and technology (in

this scenario, operating systems), is romanticized – so much so that some of the dark

implications of the film are hidden. Samantha is incredibly humanized, with several scenes shot

from her perspective as if she were a physical being standing next to Theodore. She adopts

mannerisms similar to the ones we have, such as curiosity and the ability to want, something that

is only pointed out once when Theodore asks why she breathes in between sentences. Perhaps

this is why it’s easier to believe that their love is real and deserving. But is she really closer to

being human than to being technology? In the beginning, this artificial intelligence is marketed

exactly for what it is – artificial. In short, the romantic bond created through real conversation

that forms between Samantha and Theodore masks the darker consequences of our increased

reliance on technology and the reasons as to why we’re so quick to trust electronic media.

Similar to the characters in Her, we are constantly surrounded by technology and have

normalized the constant connections it affords. This is not the case in “Be Right Back,” an

episode from Black Mirror, an anthology series showcasing various criticisms of technology

blown to extremes. In this episode, the character’s use of technology is seen as far from

Wong 5conventional. Subsequently, the comparisons and contrasts of this episode helps bring to light

some of the more negative consequences presented in Her.

In “Be Right Back,” a woman, Martha, purchases an artificial intelligence program

designed to mimic personalities of the deceased. She uses it to communicate with her recently

late husband as a coping mechanism to avoid facing the grief of his absence. However, she

becomes dependent on this technology, eventually choosing to invest in a “body,” a physical

being that works with the program to create a human-like figure that thinks and functions

accordingly. Over time, she shuts out all of her other friends and family and avoids mourning,

causing her to fall in a downward spiral – she becomes ashamed, shutting herself from everyone,

including the stand in husband figure. Clearly, this episode is a stark contrast to Her. While both

protagonists are trying to get over the loss of a loved one, Martha lost her husband to death,

rather than divorce. Perhaps this lack of closure and unstable state contributed to a blatant

codependency and unhealthy relationship between her and the technology version of Ash, her

late husband. Nevertheless, “Be Right Back” clearly displays the darker consequences of

technology, such as the ostracization of Martha’s friends and family due to a shameful

relationship with “Ash” or the fact that Martha feels the need to hide “Ash” from the people she

supposedly trusts. These consequences serve to frame the episode in a way to make it seem like

technology has this immense power over us. Her, on the other hand, appears to lack these

consequences, probably because of the romanticized nature of the film. Technology has no

explicit, measurable hold over the characters. Rather, they voluntarily choose to side with

technology because of the holes it can fill. It becomes a part of them, much like a cochlear

implant or a pacemaker. If we think about it, that seems as, if not more, disturbing, than “Be

Right Back” because it feels so much more real. We could easily morph into the people within

Wong 6the world of Her – we’re practically cyborgs already. Our phones are constantly in our hands.

They’re extensions of ourselves. How long will it be till we become fused as one? We check our

devices much more than we need to, often just to make the minutes go by faster. Perhaps we do

this because we’re obsessed with going from connection to connection. We’re completely wired.

We yearn to not only make these connections, but make them through digital means. More and

more, we’re shunning traditional forms of communication, such as talking face to face, and

trading them in for these small, rectangular, blinking screens. By skirting around this line of

codependency, are we sacrificing our ability to make quality human interaction? In “Be Right

Back,” once Martha lets herself become consumed by technology and the faux-connection it

enables, she shuns the rest of the world, unable to maintain honest relationships with real people.

While the series does tend to lean towards drastic consequences, I am still left wondering if

technology has that drastic of an impact on forming deeper connections. The way we

communicate now is so different from the way we used to. Our phones aren’t just for calling and

sending messages, with promises of face to face interaction. Sometimes, this type of mediated

communication is used, under the guise that we’re having a conversation with a real person

rather than someone that is partially imagined, to replace the former. Maybe it isn’t completely

due to technology, this change in preference. We lead busier lives, giving ourselves no time for

leisure because we’re too consumed by looking for what’s coming next. Either way, the

availability and widespread use of technology has contributed to a sort of disruption of regular

life – our little habit isn’t so little anymore.

This habit of ours is definitely a recent phenomenon. According to Thomas Erickson,

technology, specifically the world-wide web, “is undergoing a slow transformation from an

abstract, chaotic, information web into… a social hypertext” (15). As Samantha mentions in Her,

Wong 7her technology becoming something more than it was intended to. Instead of existing to serve

Theodore (similar to the way we use computers now), she feels she is growing, as a person

would, and developing her own thoughts and ideas. Now, technology serves as an outlet to

“construct identity” (15). We can see that fairly clearly in Her, where technology is used in

practically every portion of their lives, making it impossible not to become a defining factor. To

an extent, I believe that this factor broadens the possibilities of identity. We can see ourselves in

a much larger scale, giving us a better perspective. But, instead of using it like so, I think that we

let it consume us. While Her doesn’t explicitly show the limitations brought on by the increased

use of technology, the film definitely implies several.

Relationships are one of the contexts that Her examines through its entanglement with

electronic media. Take Theodore’s relationships. Yes, Samantha is Theodore’s primary form of

interaction, but he also interacts with Amy (Amy Adams), a friend from college that he has

managed to keep in touch with. Actually, she seems to be Theodore’s only true friend; the other

interactions that he has have ulterior motives, such as divorce or work gatherings. In one scene,

Amy, after much coaxing, agrees to show Theodore her work-in-progress documentary. As she

sets it up, Theodore announces that he has a date. She’s shocked, but reacts in a rather positive

way, as if happy that he’s coming out of this shell he’s built divorcing Catherine. Amy,

Theodore, and Charles (Amy’s husband) crowd in front of a computer monitor. The footage is of

Amy’s mother, sleeping, which perplexes both men. Charles starts asking questions. Amy sees

that her point is unclear, and tries to explain her thesis: People spend a third of their lives

sleeping, and perhaps that is when we feel most free. Sensing her hesitancy and uncertainty

about the film, Theodore tries to comforting her, insisting that it’s a good start. In a second

scene, Theodore sees Amy while she’s retrieving her mail. He kicks her leg, making her trip and

Wong 8lose her balance, but she begins to laugh once she turns around and sees that it’s him. He kisses

her cheek and gives her a friendly hug. After exchanging pleasantries, Theodore tells Amy about

Samantha, explaining how happy he is that he’s found someone “that’s excited about the world

[and how he] forgot that that existed” (Her). He doesn’t hide the fact that she’s an OS and

regardless, Amy appears fully supportive of this relationship. He describes Samantha in an

extremely idealistic way, which hints at almost an inability to form real, human-to-human

relationships. Catherine even comments on this trait a bit later into the film, telling him that “[he]

can’t handle real emotions… [he] always wanted to have a wife without the challenges of

actually dealing with anything real” (Her). It’s interesting to note the various relationships

displayed in these scenes. On one hand, Theodore does seem to lack the ability to face the more

serious aspects of life. He’s easily consumed by dark points in life, letting them distract him from

work, social interaction, etc. Yet, he’s also maintained a longstanding relationship with Amy,

whom he’s been friends with for years. And it’s a healthy relationship. He encourages her when

she’s unsure about her latest documentary topic. She shows excitement when he tells her about

Samantha. They play a simulation game together. He’s there for Amy following her divorce with

Charles. There is a sort of intimacy, where both parties know and can empathize with each other.

However, there’s still his relationship with an OS to be considered. Can this be considered a

human-to-human relationship, given Samantha’s sentient, or at the very least, seemingly sentient

nature? I do believe that it lends itself to some degree of hindrance to Theodore’s other

relationships, but in what way?

The anthology series, Black Mirror, once again gives a bit of insight to the human-to-

human relationship dynamic in a world where technology is everything. “Fifteen Million Merits”

is set in an unknown time, presumably somewhere in the future. In this dystopia, people are

Wong 9forced to pedal exercise bikes as their way of generating income. They are constantly surrounded

by interactive screens, punished if they decide to look away. The amount of interaction seen in

this world is pushed to the extremes, giving us the idea that the people are constantly being

stimulated. However, Bing (Daniel Kaluuya), the main character of the episode, still craves

human interaction in the form of Abi (Jessica Brown Findlay). He encourages her to enter into a

singing competition, which eventually lands her on the other side of the screen. Here, we can

easily see that artificial interaction isn’t enough. In the episode, the ones that appear content with

the lifestyle they’re all forced to adapt don’t even appear human. They have developed patterns

to get them through the day, leaving no room for stray thoughts. Bing is not like this. But while

he craves genuine connection, he doesn’t really know how to go about looking for it. Is this

because of the overstimulation? The lack of true interaction around him? Or is it something else

entirely? Bringing this back into the context of Her, the two types of communication adds a sort

of balance to Theodore’s life, a possible reason as to why Samantha fits so seamlessly into his

life. Nevertheless, she still has a significant effect on Theodore by acting as this idealized version

of a partner. While Theodore may have already been a romantic, being with Samantha lifted him

up into the clouds. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end.

Eventually, Samantha and the other operating systems make a collective decision to leave

the physical world; they believe that remaining here would place a limit on innovational

thinking. After this, Theodore falls into a depressive state. Melancholic music plays as Theodore

walks around a dark room. After a while, he decides to compose a letter to Catherine, his ex-

wife, apologizing for the events that happened and thanking her for the wonderful memories

they’ve shared. Here, we see that he has finally accepted their separation; in doing so, he

discovers the true consequences that accompany such an intimate relationship with an artificial

Wong 10being. Perhaps this awareness is the key element. Technology isn’t going to cease being an

integral part of our lives, especially if we maintain this lifestyle of constant movement and

interaction. However, we can be aware of the effect technology is having on us. And perhaps it is

the only way to ensure that we retain a balance of both human and artificial interaction.

Works Cited

Brooker, Charlie. "Be Right Back." Black Mirror. Channel 4. U.K., 11 Feb. 2013. Television.

Brooker, Charlie, and Konnie Huq. "Fifteen Million Merits." Black Mirror. Channel 4. U.K., 11

Dec. 2011. Television.

Erickson, Thomas. "The World-Wide-Web as Social Hypertext." Communications of the ACM

39.1 (1996): 15-17. Web.

Her. Dir. Spike Jonze. Perf. Joaquin Phoenix, Scarlett Johansson, Amy Adams. Warner Bros.

Pictures, 2013. Film.