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<p>Contributors: Hosts and Guests viii</p> <p>Acknowledgments: “Figuring out how it all works” xv</p> <p>Introduction: Taking Sides in Westworld 1</p> <p><b>Part I “You Said This Place Was a Game” 3</b></p> <p>1 On Playing Cowboys and Indians 5<br /><i>Don Fallis</i></p> <p>2 A Special Kind of Game 15<br /><i>Nicholas Moll</i></p> <p>3 Humans and Hosts in Westworld 26<br /><i>Marcus Arvan</i></p> <p><b>Part II “You’re Only Human, After All” 39</b></p> <p>4 Crossing the Uncanny Valley 41<br /><i>Siobhan Lyons</i></p> <p>5 Revealing Your Deepest Self 50<br /><i>Jason T. Eberl</i></p> <p>6 Westworld 61<br /><i>Onni Hirvonen</i></p> <p><b>Part III “We Can’t Define Consciousness Because</b></p> <p>Consciousness Does Not Exist” 71</p> <p>7 Turing’s Dream and Searle’s Nightmare in Westworld 73<br /><i>Lucia Carrillo González</i></p> <p>8 What Is it like to Be a Host? 79<br /><i>Bradley Richards</i></p> <p>9 Does the Piano Play Itself? 90<br /><i>Michael Versteeg and Adam Barkman</i></p> <p><b>Part IV “Choices Hanging in the Air Like Ghosts” 103</b></p> <p>10 Maeve’s Dilemma: What Does it Mean to be Free? 105<br /><i>Marco Antonio Azevedo and Ana Azevedo</i></p> <p>11 “A Place to Be Free” 114<br /><i>Joshua D. Crabill</i></p> <p>12 From William to the Man in Black 125<br /><i>Kimberly S. Engels</i></p> <p><b>Part V “I’ve Always Loved a Great Story…Lies That Told a Deeper Truth” 137</b></p> <p>13 Hideous Fictions and Horrific Fates 139<br /><i>Madeline Muntersbjorn</i></p> <p>14 Narrating Gender, Gendering Narrative, and Engendering</p> <p>Wittgenstein’s “Rough Ground” in Westworld 150<br /><i>Lizzie Finnegan</i></p> <p>15 The Observer(s) System and the Semiotics of Virtuality in Westworld’s Characters 162<br /><i>Patricia Trapero?]Llobera</i></p> <p>16 What Does Bernard Dream About When He Dreams About His Son? 173<br /><i>Oliver Lean</i></p> <p><b>Part VI “I Choose to See the Beauty” 183</b></p> <p>17 The Dueling Productions of Westworld: Self?]Referential Art or Meta?]Kitsch? 185<br /><i>Michael Forest and Thomas Beckley?]Forest</i></p> <p>18 Beauty, Dominance, Humanity: Three Takes on Nudity in Westworld 196<br /><i>Matthew Meyer</i></p> <p>19 Sci?]Fi Western or Ancient Greek Tragedy? 206<br /><i>Caterina Ludovica Baldini</i></p> <p><b>Part VII “You Can’t play God Without Being Acquainted With the Devil” 217</b></p> <p>20 Of Hosts and Men 219<br /><i>François Jaquet and Florian Cova</i></p> <p>21 Violent Births 229<br /><i>Anthony Petros Spanakos</i></p> <p>22 The Wretched of Westworld 239<br /><i>Dan Dinello</i></p> <p>Index</p>

<p> <strong>JAMES B. SOUTH </strong>is Professor of Philosophy and Associate Dean for Faculty in the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences at Marquette University. <p> <strong>KIMBERLY S. ENGELS</strong> is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Molloy College in Rockville Centre, New York where she teaches courses in ethics, biomedical ethics, and contemporary philosophy.

<p> <strong>PHILOSOPHY/POP CULTURE</strong> <p> "We can't define consciousness because consciousness does not exist. Humans fancy that there's something special about the way we perceive the world, and yet we live in loops as tight and as closed as the hosts do, seldom questioning our choices, content, for the most part, to be told what to do next." <p> <strong>—Dr. Robert Ford,</strong> <em>Westworld</em> <p> Have you ever questioned the nature of your reality? HBO's <em>Westworld,</em> a high-concept cerebral television series which explores the emergence of artificial consciousness at a futuristic amusement park, raises numerous questions about the nature of consciousness and its bearing on the divide between authentic and artificial life. Are our choices our own? What is the relationship between the mind and the body? Why do violent delights have violent ends? Could machines ever have the moral edge over man? Does consciousness create humanity, or humanity consciousness? <p> In <em>Westworld and Philosophy,</em> philosophers, filmmakers, scientists, activists, and ethicists ask the questions you're not supposed to ask and suggest the answers you're not supposed to know. There's a deeper level to this game, and this book charts a course through the maze of the mind, examining how we think about humans, hosts, and the world around us on a journey toward self-actualization. Essays explore different facets of the show's philosophical puzzles, including the nature of autonomy as well as the pursuit of liberation and free thought, while levying a critical eye at the human example as Westworld's hosts ascend to their apotheosis in a world scarred and defined by violent acts. <p> The perfect companion for <em>Westworld</em> fans who want to exit the park and bend their minds around the philosophy behind the scenes, <em>Westworld and Philosophy</em> will enrich the experience of the show for its viewers and shed new light on its enigmatic twists and turns.

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