‘Westworld’ is a curious blend of the science fiction genre with the classic western, based on the 1973 film of the same name. If you can get past the gratuitous violence, awful treatment of women, plot jumps between timelines that even an Olympic athlete would be proud of – Westworld is an intriguing, engaging media event however confusing at first. It not only deals with those eternal questions of human nature, good and evil, consciousness and the meaning of life but raises more contemporary issues about artificial intelligence and what this means for our personal and cultural identity.
Having recently binged on the first season, it is clear that Westworld’s writers and producers are in desperate need of cultural awareness training. ‘But Munya’, I hear you say, ‘it’s just entertainment, just harmless fun’. Granted, entertainment it may be but ‘harmless fun’ is questionable. Never underestimate the power of the media or the powers that be in shaping our opinions by programming us to take a certain view of people, place and issues. As the creators and programmers of Westworld (the Wild West theme amusement park) constantly ask their robots or ‘hosts’ – ‘Do you ever question your reality?’.
This article explores the mistreatment of culture in Westworld.
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Great article Munya. You hit the nail right on the head. It is in all respects a ‘white world’. In fact, I’d go one or two further and say, a ‘white supremacist man’s Disney Park’. It is a simplified world where men were men, and women and ‘natives’ knew their place. A man could wear a gun on his hip, and carve out his own existence, free from the constraints of taxes, laws and the politically correct landscape of the ever evolving real-world that so many white men seem to view as a minefield between them and their identity. The time period allows for the narrowing of these perceived roles, from a white pov of the past. The role of the white man as superior, and the hierarchy is set, where white women are below them, but above the indigenous people who are portrayed as obstacles rather than human – background noise even. And I think this is done on purpose by the writers to reflect these men’s desires rather than an ignorance or failure on the writer’s part to move past stereotypes. I.e. they stereotype the indigenous population to stereotype the ideal world of the white supremacist. As you say, the First Nation people are dehumanised and homogenised by masks, and purposefully made scary-otherworldly with the face paint, or living as ghosts. This is exactly the expectation of the paying target customer of the world. They would not want to be confronted by cognitive dissonance in their purchased experience. I think this is a very real and frightening look into the psychology of a group of people who exist NOW, who are working towards a more ‘West World’ type real-world. The series’ main premise is to explore the idea of consciousness, but I also think it is a social commentary on this more concrete problem – one that seems to be insidiously permeating Western society at present. I will be interested to see how this theme is dealt with as the show progresses.
Fantastic article. Thought provoking which is what we need more of.
I appreciate your thoughtful review Aunty Munya. I felt distinctly uncomfortable watching it so only lasted one or two episodes. Perhaps it is it’s underlying essence white privileged male that made me so uncomfortable.