Morrell - Technology and What it Means to be Human

In Tim Burton's Planet of the Apes it is clear that Burton aims to convey that power and sense of superiority are at the core of our values as human beings through challenging this exact idea by shifting humans' role in the world. As he does this, several dualities are displayed throughout. I found the duality between science and primitivism most intriguing and telling in exploring the essential question "What does it really mean to be human?". In the world we live in today, it is rare that you will find someone unattached to a smartphone, tablet, or computer at any given time. Technology has become increasingly relevant and crucial to how our society functions and, more specifically, exhibits power over others. Burton shows this in Planet of the Apes as he introduces the film in a futuristic, technologically advanced society that utilizes monkeys for space travel trials and missions. Main character and protagonist Captain Leo Davidson even jumps in his own personal spacecraft after test monkey Pericles is no longer on the main ship's radar. As the film progresses, Leo finds himself in a world where he is the inferior species, and apes hold all power in society. Ironically, these apes manage to assume humans' position on earth as the superior species and maintain this power without the use of technology as it is their only true weakness against the humans. The apes possess all attributes that humans do, prompting the question I mentioned before: What does it really mean to be human? In this case, we see the apes assuming a human position although we sympathize and essentially root for Leo and the other enslaved humans. This alone is extremely telling. Burton wants us to see that we, as humans, are incredibly reliant on the external, the visually obvious, in order to make judgments and decisions. The duality between technology and primitivism also brings to surface the idea of "ignorance is bliss." Leo seems to be the human struggling most with coming to terms with the dystopian society he has been thrust into. A major factor that contributes to this is his dependency and immense hope that he has vested in technology. Towards the ending of the film Leo gets in his spacecraft and flies away to what he thinks is home as he left it. After a nasty crash landing in Washington DC he soon realizes that home is centuries behind him. He stares up to find an Aperaham Lincoln monument and flashing lights with apes behind the wheels of emergency vehicles. This striking image ends the film on an eery note. In the wrong hands, technology can be devastating. But if the apes are really not too different from us, we cannot necessarily be considered creatures with the most responsible grasp.