Ghost in the Shell


    Ghost in the Shell was a really difficult movie for me to grasp. I think because I haven't watched a lot of anime movies and the cinematography is not what I am used to, I was not really comprehending exactly what was going on. Doing the essay definitely helped me gain a lot of insight into the deeper meanings of the film. 

    I think it was really interesting to see how Major Motoko Kusanagi came to question her own creation because of the Puppet Master. There has long been an assumption that if a thing has a brain, it is human, or at least alive. Once Kusanagi realized that the Puppet Master had retrieved enough information to develop a brain-like system but still was not human, Kusanagi started to wonder if she was truly human, or maybe just another Section 6 creation.

    My favorite quote from the movie was when Kusanagi said "If man realizes technology is within reach, he achieves it, like it's damn-near instinctive." I really enjoyed this quote because it is such an accurate statement concerning human beings and their need to have the next-best-thing. People create technology and machinery to make their lives easier and because it makes money, yet they do not truly realize the negative impact these creations can have. Like in the movie, people do not consider what could happen if technology becomes too smart. 


 Ghost in the Shell Notes:

  • Wires connecting to peoples’ brains (like the Matrix, but this came out before the Matrix); others can hear peoples’ brains

  • Camouflage technology allows people to hide into their surroundings 

  • Women in leader roles

  • Woman says the mind of the group is the mind of the individual 

  • Ghost–hacked humans forget everything about their pasts

  • People create technology because they can and they really do not think about the repercussions 

  • She says “There are countless ingredients that make up the human body and mind, like all the components that make up me as an individual with my own personality. Sure, I have a face and a voice to distinguish myself from others. But my thoughts and memories are unique only to me. And I carry a sense of my own destiny. Each of those things are just a small part of it. I collect information to use in my own way. All of that blends to create a mixture that forms me and gives rise to my conscience. I feel confined, only free to expand myself within boundaries 

  • The woman is questioning her own creation 

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