Black Mirror and Philosophy

DAVID KYLE JOHNSON is Professor of Philosophy at King's College in Pennsylvania. He is the editor of four books on popular culture and philosophy, including Inception and Philosophy (Wiley Blackwell, 2011), and has written over 20 articles for academic books and journals. He also produces lecture series for The Teaching Company's "The Great Courses," including Sci-Phi: Science Fiction as Philosophy.

• Contibutors xiThe Black Mirror Multiverse: An Editor’s Note xxiiiIntroduction 1Black Mirror: What Science Fiction Does Best 3David Kyle Johnson, with Leander P. Marquez, and Sergio UrueñaSeason 1 91 The National Anthem and Weighing Moral Obligations: Is It Ever OK to F*ck a Pig? 11Brian J. Collins with Brandon Boesch2 Fifteen Million Merits and Fighting Capitalism: How Can We Resist? 20Chris Byron with Matthew Brake3 The Entire History of You and Knowing Too Much: Should You Want the Grain? 29Gregor Balke and Bart EngelenSeason 2 394 Be Right Back and Rejecting Tragedy: Would You Bring Back Your Deceased Loved One? 41Bradley Richards5 White Bear and Criminal Punishment: How Far is too Far? 50Sid Simpson with Chris Lay6 The Waldo Moment and Political Discourse: What’s Wrong with Disrespect in Politics? 59Greg LittmannThe Christmas Special 697 White Christmas and Technological Restraining Orders: Are Digital Blocks Ethical? 71Cansu Canca and Laura Haaber IhleSeason 3 818 Nosedive and the Anxieties of Social Media: Is the Future Already Here? 83Sergio Urueña and Nonna Melikyan9 Playtest and the Power of Virtual Reality: Are Our Fears Real? 92Claire Benn10 Shut Up and Dance and Vigilante Justice: Should We Ever Take the Law into Our Own Hands? 101Juliele Maria Sievers and Luiz Henrique da Silva Santos11 San Junipero and the Digital Afterlife: Could Heaven be a Place on Earth? 109James Cook12 Men Against Fire and Political Manipulation: How Are We Tricked into Dehumanizing Others? 118Bertha Alvarez Manninen13 Hated in the Nation and #DeathTo: What are the Consequences of Trial by Twitter? 128Aline MayaSeason 4 14114 USS Callister and Non‐Player Characters: How Should We Act in Video Games? 143Russ Hamer with Steven Gubka15 Arkangel and Parental Surveillance: What are a Parent’s Obligations? 151Catherine Villanueva Gardner with Alexander Christian16 Crocodile and the Ethics of Self Preservation: How Far is Too Far? 160Darci Doll17 Hang the DJ and Digital Dating: Should We Use Computers to Help Us Find Mates? 168Skye C. Cleary and Massimo Pigliucci18 Metalhead and Technophobia: How Dangerous Will Robots Be? 177Scott Midson with Justin Donhauser19 Black Museum and Righting Wrongs: Should We Seek Revenge? 187Gregory L. Bock, Jeffrey L. Bock, and Kora SmithBandersnatch 19720 Bandersnatch: A Choose‐Your‐Own Philosophical Adventure 199Chris Lay and David Kyle JohnsonSeason 5 23921 Striking Vipers and Closed Doors: How Meaningful Are Sexual Fantasies? 241Darren M. Slade22 Smithereens and the Economy of Attention: Are We All Dopamine Addicts? 251Pierluca D’Amato23 Empathy, Emulation and Ashley Too: Can a Robot Be a Friend? 260George A. DunnBlack Mirror Reflections 27124 Consciousness Technology in Black Mirror: Do Cookies Feel Pain? 273David Gamez with David Kyle Johnson25 Personal Identity in Black Mirror: Is Your Cookie You? 282Molly Gardner and Robert Sloane26 Death in Black Mirror: How Should We Deal with Our Mortality? 292Edwardo Pérez and Sergio Genovesi27 Love in Black Mirror: Who Do We Really Love? 301Robert Grant Price28 Perception in Black Mirror: Who Controls What You See? 311Brian Stiltner and Anna Vaughn29 The Dangers of Technology in Black Mirror: A Dialogue between Uploaded Dead Philosophers 320Ben Springett with Luiz Adriano BorgesConclusion 33330 Black Mirror in the Future: Will We Still be Watching? 335Geoffrey A. MitelmanAppendix: How to Use This Book in the Classroom 338Index 340