I'm
currently reading Sherry Turkle's Alone Together and she said something that made
me somewhat angry. She was discussing a robotic dog named AIBO and how children
interacted with it. Most kids said it was "alive enough" and
preferred AIBO over their other pets. Turkle said that, "AIBO excites
children to reach out to it as a companion, but it cannot be a friend."
(62). I understand that she means that AIBO is a robot, and has no emotions and
therefore cannot be a friend. However, dolls and stuffed animals also have no
emotions, yet they are still considered 'friends'. Why is that? A toy dog is no
more alive than a robotic one. I'm starting to think that Turkle considers
herself better than robots because she has feelings and emotions while robots
do not and are therefore lower than her. Maybe I'm over-analyzing this, but I wanted to share and see if anyone else feels the same.
I think the difference between AIBO and stuffed animals is that AIBO allows the children to interact with it without having to use their full imaginations. Interacting with a robotic dog is easier than talking to a stuffed one because it can actually respond back. A robotic response is better than none at all. Interacting with a stuffed animal requires the use of your full imagination because you have to come up with its reply as well. Thinking of everything to say by yourself isn't as much fun as having a toy to do half the work for you. So in a way, AIBO is affecting the children negatively because now they aren't able to use their imaginations to the fullest, but being completely honest, having a big imagination is one of the best parts of childhood.
ReplyDeleteWell are you saying that robots should be considered our equals? Is our capacity to feel love and attachment not enough to put us above a man-made peice of machinery whose emotions are simply the work of programming? It seems to me that you are sympathizing with the robots, I would like to know why you feel that Turkle is being unfair by asserting herself above them.
ReplyDeleteI do not sympathize with the robots, I found it strange that she seemed to feel that she was better than a piece of metal. I don't think robots should be considered our equals, they should be considered what they are, robots. I don't think Turkle was being unfair by asserting herself above robots, I just found it silly.
DeleteI don't really think she is saying the robotic pet is better than the stuffed one. What I think Turkle means by this is that anything that isn't alive and have emotions cannot be considered a "friend". What I think is that Turkle understands that it can be a companion and keep you company, but it can't truly be considered a friend because it's not alive. Whereas on the other hand you can have a real pet as a friend because they have emotions, you know when your pet is sick, angry, happy, hungry, and sad. But with a robot or stuffed animal someone else puts those emotions into them they can't feel those emotions all by themselves. Personally I wouldn't have a problem with Turkle if she considered herself better than robots. I don't think that humans and robots should even be compared on which one is better than the other because we are so different. Robots are inanimate objects that feel nothing, they have no emotions unless someone were to program them how to feel. Then on the other hand humans are live creatures that feel emotions without the help of anyone.
ReplyDeleteI don't think children consider their toys and dolls as "friends". They consider them playthings, a source of entertainment, an outlet for imagination and even emotions. However, the reason a robotic dog is so much more detrimental than plush toys and plastic dolls, is because it mimics human behavior and emotion, and gives the impression that it is more than just mechanical wiring. It makes young, vulnerable, and highly impressionable children believe that it can be living, that it can feel, that it has needs and wants, that it can connect, and that what occurs between the child and the robot is in fact, a true relationship of sorts. They are left with the impression that all relationships should be made simply or not at all. I don't believe Turkle feels herself better than robots, but then again, robots are not alive, so what does it matter how she feels? Essentially, to say Turkle feels herself better than robots is to imply that robots and humans are equals, and that would be equivalent to saying that humans are equal to all the forms of technology that we create: computers, televisions, cellphones, and iPods. Furthermore, this is part of the reason why Turkle is against sociable robots, because they give the impression that they are like us, that they have stories and thoughts to tell and they long to be heard, and by doing this, they belittle what it means to be human.
ReplyDelete