Humanity has registered a tremendous surge in technological development during the last centuries. This kind of technological advance drastically changes people’s lifestyles and ways of thinking, permeating all areas of life. For example, it became strong enough to push religion from the leading position in determining the vision of the world. Many people nowadays believe that God does not exist (atheism) or think it is impossible to prove either his existence or non-existence (religious agnosticism) (Manzocco, 31). The philosophy also did not manage to escape the changes. Scientific progress uncovered possibilities that were previously deemed as purely fictional, such as radio or voyage to space. Consequently, questions about pushing the existing human boundaries even further became a matter of time. In this context, the philosophy of transhumanism stands on a bulk of modern thought. Its ideas are popular enough to start reflecting on the contemporary culture – the Plague Doctor song by Essenger serves as a perfect example. It manages to not only convey a message about transhumanism and its advantages but also to showcase its possible intimidating consequences.
For people unfamiliar with transhumanistic ideas, the song might resemble another curious product of science fiction. However, the definition of transhumanism proves it holds a plethora of rhetorical questions. Manzocco defines transhumanism as the idea of human beings freely designing their biological evolution through technology (4). It can be interpreted as enhancing human physical and mental conditions to reach the post-human stage, with the final goal being to defeat death itself. The idea of achieving immortality can not be called new, considering all the tales and myths created during premodern. However, the evolution of thought resulted in the variability of possible means – for example, the transhumanistic concept of digital immortality. At its core, it implies that a person is definable as a collection of data; thus, copying it to the computer can be considered a form of immortality (Manzocco, 197). The concept was further strengthened by the invention of a medium that can connect every computer on the planet – the internet.
After the internet creation, the comparison of the human brain to storage devices brought the question about the direct connection of the brain to it or even the complete transfer to the digital network space. Manzocco explains mind-uploading as the “transfer of the individual conscious mind from the brain that hosts it into a substratum of a different, artificial type – but still capable of supporting all of its functions” (195-196). Essenger described this concept in his song, as is seen in the first verse: “Let’s play a game: a circuit to your brain. Your soul online will turn back time and take away the pain.” The words describe the advantages of such connection right away in the promise of immortality and the absence of biological issues. Further, in the song, Essenger mentions the absence of fear, pain, and nightmares as well as loneliness since “your friends will be right there.” Combined with the atmosphere, which is achieved by the voice modulation and electronic approach to music writing, the song produces a substantial futuristic effect on its listeners.
Nevertheless, the overall effect can not be called comforting – the song makes its listeners thoughtful rather than motivated. With the words “We’ll save your soul, and all we need is your mind,” the author saws the seeds of anxiety into the listeners’ minds (Essenger). The text also highlights the difference between “we,” the offering side, and “you,” the side accepting the offer. The latter, and humanity as a whole, is considered a disease, while the digital transcendence is called a cure (Essenger). Moreover, the offering side sees everything happening as a game, which indicates its inhuman attitude. The finale features a screaming vocal technique at the words “Let’s play a game,” which is generally used at emotional peaks, with the consequent shift to the modulated voice mentioning “humanity in chains” (Essenger). In the end, the author poses a contradiction between freedom and its cost. While not providing any direct evidence, Essenger implies unclear intentions of these “doctors” trying to cure the human “plague.” Their attitude and mockery in their offer present ambiguity that people have to face and ultimately make a decision.
Transhumanism does provide certain advantages; however, its solution has a dire price. Based on humanity’s desire to overcome death, it proposes to use the technology for human nature modification. As one of the possible means of becoming immortal, transhumanism offers digital immortality. It assumes the human consciousness is a set of data that can be successfully copied to hardware. Essenger further develops this concept on the example of connecting the human mind to the internet. With the promises of freedom from physiological issues, he pictures a vision of life “online” as a panacea. However, the author portrays it in a way that leaves listeners with a dilemma about the choice of transcendence. The so-called doctors resemble a frighteningly inhuman attitude, making the final choice tricky and challenging.
Works Cited
“Essenger – Plague Doctor.” YouTube, uploaded by Essenger, 2021.
Manzocco, Roberto. “Transhumanism. Engineering the Human Condition.” Springer, 2019.