Humans are supposedly the most complex being to exist, though Philip K. Dick argues against this in his novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Does looking like a human make one a human, or is it a trait that extends beyond surface level? Dick argues that the anatomical structure does not a human make, but rather it is empathy that defines one as “human” as Rick Deckard questions the morality of being a bounty hunter.
The human body is one that is highly intricate. Each bone, each muscle, each tissue – every part of the body, down to the cellular level – has its own formulated purpose. In basic biological classification, a human is the most intelligent being and walks upright and has arms, legs, organs and a head. Dick protested the idea of humans being the most intelligent creatures by debating that intelligence could be seen “to some degree…throughout every phylum and order” (Dick 29). Dick also explored the body’s natural reactions, which also make humans exactly that – humans, to certain stimuli, expressing a “primary automatic response” of which “can’t be controlled
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Unlike intelligence, Dick said empathy existed “within the human community” exclusively (29). In fact, Phil Resch’s argument to Deckard for being a human was that he “love[s] that squirrel,” showcasing the idea that empathy is what differentiates androids from humans (118). After finding the rocks in the empathy box, Iran mentioned that they were “spiritually together” despite experiencing “physical pain” when with Mercer, further cementing Dick’s suggestion of empathy defining humanity (159). Finally, Deckard metaphorically put himself in Mercer’s position, tying himself shut in a cardboard box. He described reality as “the carcass of a dead world” and insisted that, to prevent events from worsening, people must nurture even the most “inconspicuous life”