Posted by Fellow Aspirant
(here)
Default Re: West World Shoutout
" Brian, wow and thank you for this! I was dying to speak about his and my husband is not awake (ugh, I feel arrogant saying it like that) and would not understand what I was talking about if I tried to have this discussion with him about this show that he loves and watches with me every week.
(warning: My one observation could be a spoiler)
So great to see this post as I just finished the fourth episode and was wondering how I would begin this thread but here was your take on it and so beautifully written I might add. You really summed up everything I was thinking. I saw somewhere Bernard may be an android. I do not wish to turn this into a whole fan "Thing" but for OUR purposes, I'm thinking Bernard Is in a sense, a WHISTLEBLOWER. Do you agree?
It is a fantastic show. As I am watching though, I feel like I myself am glitching out. Can't put it into words but it definitely feels like the writers are trying to tell us something.
Crystal,
Temporary Quote: Laugh at everything! "
HaHaHa! - You're welcome Crystal!
I, too, was waiting for someone to start this thread. When it hadn't appeared by last night I couldn't stop myself!
My wife is also a fan (kinda) but she is, like your spouse, also not 'awake', so is unable to appreciate the multiple references and subtle layering of meaning. It's this kind of difference in viewers that really concerns me about whether this series will find enough of an audience to be viable in the long run. There's enough of a usual 'androids go apesh*t and kill their masters' plotline, though, and more than enough blood guts & nudity to capture the attention of the 'norms', so I'm optimistic. We'll see. Ideally, it will serve as a vehicle to wake some of these people up.
As for Bernard: the more I think of it, the more I'm thinking that he IS a 'droid'. If he is, he could be the product of Ford. As such, he is in a position to perform two functions for him: influence the operations of the programming and 'treatment' centre, and be the ultimate spy to keep Ford apprised of the policy decisions and politics within the organization. This way, Ford can be proactive in installing the upgrades into the droids and also be prepared to be reactive to moves against him by the corporation (oddly, it just occurred to me that the origin of the word 'corporation' lies in the idea of a 'physical body'. Make of that what you will.) Ford is free to roam the 'world' on his personal projects. Bernard as spy droid could also be the product, though, of the missing Arthur, and be performing the same function for him, rather than Ford.
The delicious thought that I'm entertaining these days is that the host droids are actually in a postion more like our own. That is, if one considers the possibility that our species was created by an alien presence that needed a slave species to do its bidding: we are just like the droids - kept ignorant by our programming and taught to believe that our quotidian existence is all there is - that we should not expect true happiness but only a frightened satisfaction if we manage to follow our fore-ordained paths. So, just as the sole reason for the existence of the hosts in West World is to serve the wanton depradations of the human 'guests', we humans are at the mercy of powerful beings who monitor and control our lives. (Although it hasn't yet been used in the script yet, I'm certain that the Shakespearean line: "We are as flies to wanton boys. They kill us for their sport" will eventually be spoken by Dolores' father. It just fits the theme too well. ) And just as some of the hosts are gaining inklings about this possible situation, (through noticing the anomalies in their lives that just should not exist), some of us are waking up to the truth about our own subjugation. And we have people like Bill Ryan to thank for that. Bill has personally told me "Remember who you are." I've been trying for a long time now! There is a multitude of leaders that give the same advice; besides Bill, one David Icke comes immediately to mind. So, the story of WW's host rebellion could be the story of humanity finally getting "off its knees" to coin a widely used term. 
Thanks David!
But this sort of speculation is a little further down the road from the more obvious impending doom that WW is confronting us with, the singularity. The reason that there is so much attention in our pop culture now about this possiblity is that a) it's cool and b) so many prominent tech and philosophical leaders are speaking out about it. Googling "warning about AI' will yield millions of links, most notably from Stephen Hawking and Elon Musk. TED talks are full of it, too. It is an existential threat, but one mostly ignored by the sleeping masses for reasons we are all very aware of. Maybe WW will be able to play a small role in helping us to start useful discussions about our AI problem.
I look forward to discussing the issues that this show is playing with, and the brilliant manner in which it is written. I could run a whole thread on the use of Shakespearean quotations, for example. Ford, although sharing the same name as the God/creator figure in 'Brave New World', is, in my mind, more beholden to Prospero, the powerful wizard in 'The Tempest'. And Dolores (Cannon?) suits the role of Prospero's daughter, Miranda. Meanwhile the bad guy (black hat) leader of the pair of humans who now have control of Miranda, his name is Logan, which brings to mind the protaganist runaway in another 70s era sci-fi film, 'Logan's Run'.
Whew! I'd better stop now. This kind of reference recognition can keep a guy up way too late!
Namaste for now,
Brian
West World Shoutout
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