I have watched “The Bicentennial” man a number of times, and it has never ceased to capture my attention, even though I already know the chain of events that transpires in the movie – how Andrew decides to trade his immortality just to be considered human. It is funny how I get some of my Philosophy from movies. In “Troy,” for example, Achilles says that the gods are envious of mortals, since we are mortal – each moment is more beautiful than any, and each are more cherished for we never truly know if it will be our last. Sadly, most people don’t really see life that way, as they trudge through the ever bustling metropolises of the world – never giving thought that death is a constant possibility. We distance it, considering it as an event that is certain and yet seemingly will never happen.
Immortality (and Death) has always been an issue since the dawn of humanity and philosophy (or so I think). Adam and Eve (according to Christian beliefs) were given immortality to begin with, which they traded for more knowledge (although not necessarily wisdom). Most Religions entice membership with the promise of immortality – Christianity and similar religions with afterlife in heaven or hell; Buddhism and other faiths by Reincarnation and such. Man simply refuses to cease existing, even I fear the eventual snuffing out of life from my body, and, if my faith were misplaced, my eventual cessation from existing entirely. The eternal darkness of death (for those who don’t believe in afterlife) is truly frightening once a person thinks about it, imagines it. Yet Death is central and also essential to all creatures that have life. It can be seen in nature, when one animal devours another, whether through hunting or through scavenging and decomposing the remains. In short, without death, there will be no life. This is also true in a philosophical sense, as there will be no life per se if there were no death. As I like to quote from “Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodline” – “Without death, there would be no motivation to accomplish anything, the only emotion would be existing – life would be pestilent and agonizing.” Wise words, considering they came from a game, and from a Vampire, nonetheless. As I walked a while ago through Makati, exploring Glorietta and Greenbelt, I was pondering on these words, on my own existence – I was thinking of what I would do with my life, what I wish to accomplish, how I would treat each day that I have. Indeed, if I were immortal, I would probably not worry about this, and instead simply lie around all day or walk around doing pointless things. Death motivates us into action – knowing that our time is limited, we are that much more likely to accomplish goals, fulfill dreams, and enjoy life.
Well, back to “The Bicentennial Man.” The movie is great in that it gives us humans, through a machine’s eyes, a chance to appreciate the beauty of our existence. It shows us one by one how even the things we take for granted – from facial expressions to emotions, are worthy of fascination and are supposed to be cherished as part of our humanity. Then comes the senses, as Andrew constructs for himself a nervous system – he is capable of expressing his emotions, he is capable of tasting (he can’t stop eating at first, amazed by the sensation of taste and the feeling of the texture of food), of feeling the warmth of a kiss, or the glory of sexual intercourse – the ultimate expression of love. Of course, as I said, Andrew gave up his mechanized (positronic) brain in order to be able to age and to be considered as a human being by society. He trades his Immortality for this privilege, and says that there is no point in living if everything and everybody he cherishes will just die anyway. Indeed, but what if EVERYBODY could be immortal? Then there would be no losing anybody we love right? Then again, we would be back to our previous dilemma… Perhaps there is indeed wisdom in the way life is today. Perhaps there is indeed motivation in not knowing what the future holds – during life or death. Again a movie inspiration: “Paycheck” shows us how knowing the future can be catastrophic to our lives. Men may try too hard to change the future that they in fact become the causes for the catastrophes they are trying to prevent. In another sense, people who know their future become bound by it, awaiting its inevitability. They lose the motivation to live and to explore. Then perhaps it is indeed for the best that the answers we seek is beyond our reach for now, perhaps humanity is not ready for such answers. The answers should come to us during/after death, or not, it all depends on which of our beliefs is the truth. It all comes down to this in the end: truth is not subjective, whatever is fact after death, be it afterlife or reincarnation or simple nonexistence, is what will happen – regardless of what one might believe.