The Outsider

The Outsider

> Write about a theme we discussed in class

November 14, 2004


Perfection is something that the governments try to imitate through regulations. Some customs are less severe than others, but when making laws and decisions they keep in mind the idea of utopia, what’s best for their people. Social norms derive from this vision; ideas of being like perfect citizen, the model utopian. Fads controlled by the media, like Buster Friendly, and Religion, like Mercerism, are huge controls in society that are broadcasted and are the main source of influence for people to decide what they believe morally. However, there are always outsiders. It could be said true that everyone is an outsider in their own way (since it has not been proven that perfection has been entirely reached yet). In this book the theme of not belonging to the ideal human race is brought up and every character mentioned can be analyzed and related to the crisis of being included.

In this book J.R. Isadore is a chickenhead. He does not have the genetic capabilities to consider himself normal. He is below average, considered retarded. And those outcasted are indeed, left to be alone, and left to do the dirty work, “Maybe, he thought. I’ve been living here all alone too lone. I’ve become strange. They say chickenheads are like that. The thought made him feel even more glum…” (64, Dick). J.R. is a driver, not a highly viewed profession.

The androids feel outcasted as well. They are created with real organs, they have minds with the thought process of computers far advanced than the human mind, yet they remain inferior to the mass of humans that still dominate. They are not real and can be proven false. Once they are caught, the false sense of inclusion that Luba and the gang feel is then erased and they are brought to the reality that they don’t belong.

It does make sense that the drive for perfection and obligations/duties to society make the qualified human citizens like Deckard, terminate and exclude the outside parties. However, why don’t governments just accept the fact that everyone is different? That you cannot achieve complete and total happiness for everyone. They have two things in mind, to include each individual, yet they must stick with their idea of keeping everything under control, fair, regulated, and the same. Yet it is impossible to please the individual while giving them all the same thing. Each mind is different, genes are individually unique, DNA is different for every being. The idea of the outsider in this book show that it continues even in the future.