(Note: this is an older article I published on a different site in 2020)

Technology as a buffer

I think there’s a lot we can learn and reflect on human nature from movies like Blade Runner 2049. 

The dystopian hi-technology, low-life world first created by Philip K Dick and then expanded upon by directors Ridley Scott and lastly by Denis Villeneuve, is a vivid representation of a future that is still not here, but that might as well be soon.

Most of it is already here, in fact. Think about the technology we use every day. Phones have become our escape devices, we use social media when we feel bored and alone and when we need to avoid reality.

We can see this when the movie’s main character, agent K aka Joe gets home after a (very hard) day at work. What does he do? Turns on his virtual girlfriend Joy, sits at the dinner table, and tries to forget what he’s been through.

“Technology, with its many benefits, has also served as a buffer between us and Nature; a wall that separates us from the deeper dimensions of our Human Experience. Though we’re all connected more than ever, we’re also divided, lonelier, and angrier like no other time in history.” – Erik Rittenberry – The Comfortable Life is Killing You

The easiness with which K turns Joy on and off at will reminded me of the way we talk to each other. 

We can turn conversations with people on and off whenever we feel like it. 

Just pick up your phone, send a Whatsapp message and wait till you get a reply. 

What if the conversation goes on and you don’t feel like chatting anymore? 

Easy, you just put the phone away, the other person will never know why you stopped replying. Maybe you’re busy, maybe you are at the toilet, maybe you went out of the house… 

We are automatically forgiven for behavior that just a few decades ago would’ve seemed rude.

Have you ever just hung up on a phone conversation without saying goodbye or at least finishing the conversation? 

Have you ever just walked away from someone you were speaking to in person? 

No, cause that would be kind of rude, or even crazy. But (unfortunately) this is now normal.

Technology has become a buffer, a wall yes between us and the outside world. A buffer between us and nature.

Nature is a central thought in Stoic philosophy. The Stoics’ aim was to “live life in accordance to nature” Source: https://dailystoic.com/stoicism-nature/

Our primary goal as humans is to be the best version of ourselves we can be. 

We must focus on what is within our power and control, we must commit to absolute truth in all we think and do, and we must take obstacles as opportunities for growth.

Ultimately, I think this is the problem with us and technology. We use technology as a way to avoid reality, our reality as human beings. It’s a lot easier to just sit on the couch and binge-watch Netflix or get caught up on Facebook than it is to face our thoughts, our fears, our goals and actually do something about them.

This is what K is doing when he gets home, Joy is his escape from reality, a way for him to feel good about himself, to forget that he is a replicant. 

In a way then, we are all becoming replicants—fake shadows of our former human selves. 

The courage to be human

This takes us to our next point. What does it take to be human? Courage, one of the 4 main Stoic virtues, is what the Stoics thought is required to live a good life. 

“Living clearly and presently takes courage. Don’t live in the haze of the abstract, live with the tangible and real, even if—especially if—it’s uncomfortable. Be part of what’s going on around you. Feast on it, adjust for it. There’s no one to perform for. There is just work to be done and lessons to be learned, in all that is around us.” – Ryan Holiday, Ego Is The Enemy

Does this mean K doesn’t have courage? Maybe. 

At the beginning of the movie he’s lost, he’s a wandering soul looking for his truth and purpose. In a way we are all like him, we got comfortable with our cushy lives, our boring but “stable” jobs. We don’t even know what courage means.

It takes courage to put ourselves out there, be who we are meant to be, create, love, feel, and commit. it takes courage to be human.

What happens at the end of the movie is K finds a true purpose. He decides to help and protect Deckard in his quest to find his daughter. He finds courage in having a mission to accomplish and nothing to lose. Similarly, the Stoics thought that the only thing we truly own as humans is our reasoned choice. Nothing else matters and no material possession is truly “ours”. In this sense, what do we have to lose if we don’t really own anything?

We must find the courage to be what we can be, to own our thoughts and actions, and throw ourselves out there when it makes sense according to our reason. 

The world needs our unique talents as humans. You might think you have nothing to offer when in reality, each of us is a unique genius with unique ideas and skills.

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” – Franklin Roosevelt

K knows he’s not “the one”, he knows he’s just a replicant like any other out there, but still, he knows he has the power and courage of making a choice in spite of fear.

The moment we give in to fear, we lose our control and our reasoned choice. 

This is when we surrender to our emotions and stop thinking and acting clearly. 

Courage is the chief virtue to counter-attack this and what allows us to stay focused on the task at hand, that is, being the best human being we can be.

Yearning for more

Having courage also means having the guts to risk, to try harder, to yearn for more. 

Agent K dreams of being the one who’s born and not made. At the same time, we can see it in his eyes, he also fears it. He fears being hunted by his own kind.

This poses the question: “is it ok to want more? To yearn for more?”

The Stoics thought it’s important to aspire and want more, to try and be the best that we can at something. That’s the ultimate goal after all, isn’t it?

They define this as a “preferred indifferent” though, meaning that it’s something that would be nice to have but not at the cost of going against our pursuit of virtue.

This is why it’s important to not let these feelings conquer us and control us to the point where we lose sight of what matters most. What’s in front of us, the present moment.

Another key virtue in Stoicism is “Temperance”, meaning finding balance in everything we do, say and think. Never let yourself be consumed by your emotions and always use reason to know what is within your control and what is not.

After all,

“You could leave life right now. Let that determine what you do and say and think.” – Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

What Marcus is saying here is that eventually we will all be forgotten, so the best thing we can do is live life right here and now. Live fully and without regrets, but live in accordance with virtue.

So, by any means, feel free to want more, better things, to accomplish your goals, and have the life you dreamed of. At the same time don’t get discouraged if you fail. In fact, be prepared for the fact that you might fail.

When K finds out he’s not “the one”, he doesn’t let his emotions destroy him. What he does, instead is pick up every last ounce of courage he has left and go on to accomplish his destiny. This is all we can do in the face of external events. Stop, pause, prepare and then take action. Everything will go according to nature. I really like how Ryan Holiday explains the concept here:

You only control how you play, you don’t control the outcome of the game.