Professor Machiko Kusahara’s juxtaposition between Japanese and American view of robots was profounding. I never realized that there were different attitudes and portrayals of robots within different cultures. It was interesting to see how this sentiment was rooted within the industrial revolution and the peoples' response to it.
American Movies portrayal of robots, such as Ex Machina, often showcase them as evil. The underlying motive of these robots often stems back to the possibility of the robots taking over the human race. This is understandable considering where the Americans were coming from. Considering that the industrial revolution took thousands of American's jobs, it is evident that the negative view of robots came from that incident.
On the other hand, Professor Kusahara emphasized how Japan was exposed to this idea of machine/robots before the industrial revolution through these little doll music machines. This early exposure may have prevented the negative sentiment of robots taking over humanity since the concept of robots existed beforehand. This exposure was also completely different from the purpose of machines in the US, since these doll machines did not replace jobs but were there for purely entertainment.
This sentiment is also depicted within the medical field. There seems to be no medical robot in the US. The medical machines are just created as machines. No faces. No sense of human inside it. Instead of being a choice to not depicting these machines as humans, I feel like that choice just didn't even cross our minds. This may also be due to the subconscious fear instill in the American society of the possibility of machines taking over the world, causing us to not even portray machines as "living." By not putting a face onto these machines, it distances humans with the machines, clearly showing who the "Boss" is in the relationship.
On the other hand, in Japan where these fears are not present, there are so many medical robots present. Within their culture, they seem to be bridging these gaps in order to have humans be more comfortable around robots.
But I believe maybe the fear within the American culture is slowly getting addressed. Recent movies like Wall-E and Big Hero 6 have portrayals of medical robots. Movies like these may be a sign of the willingness of the American population to bridge the gap between humans and robots.
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| Depiction of Robots Taking Over Humans |
American Movies portrayal of robots, such as Ex Machina, often showcase them as evil. The underlying motive of these robots often stems back to the possibility of the robots taking over the human race. This is understandable considering where the Americans were coming from. Considering that the industrial revolution took thousands of American's jobs, it is evident that the negative view of robots came from that incident.
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| Geisha Doll |
This sentiment is also depicted within the medical field. There seems to be no medical robot in the US. The medical machines are just created as machines. No faces. No sense of human inside it. Instead of being a choice to not depicting these machines as humans, I feel like that choice just didn't even cross our minds. This may also be due to the subconscious fear instill in the American society of the possibility of machines taking over the world, causing us to not even portray machines as "living." By not putting a face onto these machines, it distances humans with the machines, clearly showing who the "Boss" is in the relationship.
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| Medical Machine in the US |
On the other hand, in Japan where these fears are not present, there are so many medical robots present. Within their culture, they seem to be bridging these gaps in order to have humans be more comfortable around robots.
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| Medical Machine/Robot in Japan |
But I believe maybe the fear within the American culture is slowly getting addressed. Recent movies like Wall-E and Big Hero 6 have portrayals of medical robots. Movies like these may be a sign of the willingness of the American population to bridge the gap between humans and robots.
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| Medical Robot in an American Movie |
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| Friendly Robot in an American Movie |
- Ex Machina. Digital image. Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 18 Apr. 2017. Web. 21 Apr. 2017.
- Gandy, Ellis. Atom Boy. Digital image. Frontiers*nova. N.p., 06 Apr. 2013. Web. 21 Apr. 2017.
- Geisha Doll. Digital image. Ruby Lane. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2017.
- Muoio, Danielle. Japanese Robot. Digital image. Business Insider. Business Insider, 20 Nov. 2015. Web. 21 Apr. 2017.
- Geisha Doll. Digital image. Ruby Lane. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2017.
- Muoio, Danielle. Japanese Robot. Digital image. Business Insider. Business Insider, 20 Nov. 2015. Web. 21 Apr. 2017.
- Radish, Christina. Big Hero 6. Digital image. Collider. N.p., 09 Feb. 2015. Web. 21 Apr. 2017.
- Robotics MachikoKusahara 1. Dir. Uconlineprogram. YouTube. YouTube, 14 Apr. 2012. Web. 21 Apr. 2017.
- Wall-E. Digital image. New Media Rockstars. N.p., 04 Nov. 2015. Web. 21 Apr. 2017.
Hi Jennifer. Nice work. I was also touched by how Japan has prepared itself for the advanced world. The medical robots example you brought up is a prime instance that Japan is planning for the future better any other country is - at least on the topic of robots in real life. I think the way American film industry depicts robots usually has something to do with the goal of the movie and also sales. I don't think a movie that robots walk beside humans would sell in the states. On the other hand, planning for the advance future takes an incredible amount of wisdom.
ReplyDeleteI have watched Bicentennial Man and something very rare happened in the end. The protagonist robot was admitted into humanity in the end and died as a mortal!
Hi Jennifer, I really liked the points you made about how the way robots are portrayed can strongly affect society's opinion of them. New movies like the ones you mentioned, WallE and Big Hero 6 definitely affected my view on robots and made me less afraid of them. You also mentioned that robots are beginning to be used in the medical field and are trying to be designed to look more friendly. This made me think of how possibly some day, robots may be performing all types of medical procedures. But what's weird is that even though a robot could be more precise, I'd prefer a human doctor if I were to have a medical procedure. What do you think? I feel like my trust towards robots has gotten better, but I still trust humans more.
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