- This video is brought to you by Bright Cellars.
(upbeat instrumental music)
- What's up, Wisecrack?
Michael here to once again show the ultimate value
of a decade spent studying philosophy
is the ability to overanalyze TV shows
about witches and robots.
This time around I want to talk about a surprising moment
in the final episode of "WandaVision,"
the Disney Plus series that explores what happens
when trauma, advanced military weapons,
and an unhealthy obsession with television
all coalesce in a small New Jersey town.
Now, it's not every day that a scene in a Marvel TV show
gets everyone Googling philosophical paradoxes.
So, you know, the hung-over adjunct
who still lives deep inside of me
was kind of jazzed about that.
And warning, if you haven't seen the finale,
come back later.
I'm about to spoil a pivotal moment.
Anyway, the scene in question
involves two Visions duking it out
while asking some pretty intense questions about identity,
all hinging on a paradox called The Ship of Theseus.
So join me as I explore questions like,
who's the real Vision?
Are you your mind or your body?
And most importantly, who am I?
No, no, seriously. Who am I?
Because sometimes I feel like it's a "Truman Show" situation
and everyone's being nice to me,
but maybe they're actors and they're paid
and it's like, do I have friends?
Is my mom?
(cheerful instrumental music)
Anyway, let's get into
this Philosopher Reacts to "WandaVision."
And again, spoilers ahead. (sirens wailing)
But before we continue,
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Now, back to the show.
Today, I'm looking at the final episode of the first season
in which both Visions, Wanda's Vision and White Vision,
take a break from blasting the (beep) out of each other
to engage in a bit of old-school philosophical speculation.
- I request elaboration.
- In case you've been avoiding the internet for weeks,
there are two Visions: one made by Wanda
with her newly realized powers of spontaneous creation
and the other an all-white refurbished model
that's traded its Mind Stone
for the cold heart of an assassin.
So, which one is the real Vision?
Let's jump into the episode
right as the Visions are having a debate
about which of them is in fact the actual Vision,
because whichever one is the real one
is about to be brutally killed by White Vision.
- But I'm not the true Vision, only a conditional Vision.
(dramatic instrumental music)
(Mind Stone whirring)
You are familiar with the thought experiment
The Ship of Theseus and the field of identity metaphysics?
- Okay, so I honestly never thought I would hear the phrase,
"Identity metaphysics," in an MCU property,
but then again, I never thought O.J. Simpson
would post a video to Twitter
about how important it is to get a COVID vaccine.
- Take care, stay safe, get your shot.
- So hey, you never know what life is going to throw at you.
Now, identity metaphysics is a way of talking
about the relationship between an object and itself,
or in other words,
the physical object and the idea of the object.
Okay, that sounds confusing,
but there's a difference between the physical assortment
of bones, skin, and various allergies that I'm made of
and the idea of me, that is Michael Burns,
great friend, loving partner, and hot sauce enthusiast.
So, how do I know that this specific assortment
of bones and stuff is me?
And how do I keep that identity over time,
from wee little baby Michael to cranky old man Michael?
Okay, let's watch sociopath Vision explain.
- Naturally.
the ship of Theseus is an artifact in a museum.
Over time, its planks of wood rot
and are replaced with new planks.
When no original plank remains,
is it still the ship of Theseus?
- Speaking of allergies,
I think White Vision could use some Nasonex.
Okay, so The Ship of Theseus paradox helps us think
about the relationship between what a thing is made of
and what a thing is.
Lots of philosophers have written about this,
but we can start with Athens' hottest bachelor Aristotle.
For Aristotle, a thing's identity has less to do
with what it is and more to do with what it does.
And he gets at this through considering objects
in terms of four causes: what a thing is made of,
what a thing should be, what makes the thing what it is,
and the purpose of the thing, what he calls the final cause,
which is most essential in terms of identity.
For example, the final cause of a knife is cutting stuff up.
In terms of the ship, for Aristotle,
its true identity would have less to do
with the planks of wood or the building of a boat
or the person putting it together,
and more to do with its final cause,
i.e., being a vessel that floats on water
so me and the boys could get hammered at noon
while singing sea shanties.
God, I love those guys.
But there is also another part of the story.
- Secondly, if those removed planks are restored
and reassembled free of the rot,
is that the ship of Theseus?
- So, which is the original?
The one with all the original materials
or the original that's slowly been replaced?
This framing of whether or not a new vessel constructed
out of the planks from the old vessel
is still the true ship of Theseus
leads us to consider things in a more material way.
And under this framework, the identity of the ship
is defined in relation to the physical planks
that make up ship, not the purpose of that thing.
But it's not without problems.
Let's say the new and improved ship
is no longer the ship of Theseus.
Does that mean that as I get replaced atom by atom as I age
that I become a whole new person?
And if that's true, am I liable for the student loans
that a different version of my person took out?
I don't think so.
But Rene Descartes touched on this problem in human terms
with his concept of mind/body dualism.
To keep it extremely brief,
he argued that you are more defined by your thinking mind,
which he calls a soul, and less so by your physical body.
So, if I did a Freaky Friday with Lindsay Lohan,
it'd be me with gorgeous strawberry blonde locks
and a grossly unappreciated acting career.
So now we have two conflicting frameworks:
a physical definition of identity
against a more mental-based identity.
And "WandaVision" goes all in on this distinction
asking is Wanda's Vision the real Vision
due to him having the spirit and characteristics
of the original Vision?
Or is White Vision the real Vision
because he is in the same physical body
as the original Vision?
What does our robot buddy think?
- Neither is the true ship.
Both are the true ship.
- Oh, thanks.
That cleared it up.
But really, this is why they call it a paradox
because it seems that both ships and neither ship
is the true ship.
In this case, White Vision's digital brain
is stuck in the paradox as he can't decide
who in the heck the actual Vision.
Let's get back to it for a second.
- Well then we are agreed.
- But I do not have the Mind Stone.
- Okay, there's two ways to read this comment
because the Mind Stone lore is very complicated.
In one sense, White Vision is saying he doesn't possess
a crucial physical characteristic of being Vision.
He's no more Vision
than a building without books is a library.
But also, the Mind Stone is a thinking substance
that Descartes might even say has a soul.
So in one sense, White Vision is saying,
"I don't have the soul of Vision."
But Wanda's Vision has a good comeback.
- And I do not have one single ounce of original material.
- Ooh, got him.
Now, Wanda's Vision is saying that he's not the real Vision
because he doesn't possess
any of the original material of Vision,
even though he was made from the Mind Stone.
So if we wanted to find the true Vision
by all the physical stuff that constitutes Vision,
none of us are Vision.
So stop hurting him.
But wait, things are about to get a little funky.
- Perhaps the rot is the memories,
the wear and tear of the voyages,
the wood touched by Theseus himself.
- Okay, so here to escape the paradox,
Wanda's Vision introduces
a new way of thinking about the problem,
one that just so happens to be similar
to John Locke's take on the whole situation.
We've covered some of this in our video on "Cyberpunk,"
so check that out if you want.
Vision is basically saying,
isn't identity all the awful things we experienced
along our voyage through the monstrous abyss of life?
Well, for Locke, that's basically right.
A little less grim though.
Locke's take is even if you slowly have every single atom
in your body replaced, you still remember being you.
Memory, in other words, makes identity.
And in this whole ship metaphor for Vision,
those experiences, the memory of them, the wear and tear,
that's what makes ship unique.
And White Vision is about to learn this Lockean lesson.
- I have not retained memories.
- But you do have the data.
It is merely being kept from you.
- A weapon to be more easily controlled.
(dramatic instrumental music)
But certainly you are the true Vision
for you believe yourself to be.
- And here White Vision is reminding us
that hurt people hurt people.
But this isn't so much a philosophical point,
but White Vision doesn't have access
to his memories at the moment,
which in Locke's terms would make him
definitely not the real Vision.
Also it's important to differentiate
between knowledge of a thing, that is data about something,
from, "I remember personally experiencing this thing,"
which is a memory.
- That was once the case,
but upon meeting you I have been disabused of that notion.
As a carbon-based synthezoid,
your memory storage is not so easily wiped.
May I?
- Gotta ask for consent.
(dramatic instrumental music)
- I think this is what it's like to take DMT.
(dramatic instrumental music)
- I am Vision.
- Well, that's that.
White Vision, having had his memories restored,
can now accept his identity as Vision.
It's unclear whether he's going to destroy himself
or what at this point,
but regardless, this all seems to more or less affirm
a Lockean view of identity.
Accessing Vision's memories leads him to acknowledge
that he is in fact real Vision,
rather than just a rando
inhabiting his new and improved corpse.
So, case closed?
Not so fast.
It would be remiss of me to not raise one final perspective
on the ship of Theseus stuff.
It's all bull (beep), which is not my personal stance,
but it does seem weird for a couple of AI dudes
to fall into a paradox that might just be a result
of our dumb human brains.
As linguist Noam Chomsky argues,
our brains are hard-wired to perceive
what he calls psychic continuity in the world,
even when it doesn't exist.
Like if a witch turned me into a toad,
even a small child would inherently understand
that the toad was me.
But according to Noam, it's not.
It's a (beep) toad in a baseball cap.
In other words, The Ship of Theseus or Vision paradoxes
are not about reality
but the nature of our cognitive systems,
i.e., they're less about reality
and more about our feeble attempts to make sense of reality.
- [Noam] So there's no point trying to solve
the philosophical problem.
The problem is an epistemological one.
It's something about the nature of our cognitive systems.
- It's a bit too edgy logic bro
for my more classical sensibilities,
but still an interesting take.
- Anyway, setting Chomsky's skepticism aside,
overall I think the show actually did a pretty good job
of working in an ancient philosophical paradox
in a way that both made sense
and actually created some good character conflict.
So, there you have it.
I'm either my body, my mind, my memories,
or absolutely nothing.
(upbeat instrumental music)
Don't worry, I'll be fine.
Can't breathe right now 'cause what if I'm not...
What if Chomsky's right?
But what do you guys think?
Is White Vision on a mission of self-annihilation
or at least somehow find redemption in his true identity?
Let us know what you think in the comments.
And definitely let us know if there are other shows
and movies you think are worthy of a philosophical reaction.
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And as always, thanks for watching.
Later.
(upbeat instrumental music)
That's traded its Mind Stone for the heart of a cold stone,
cold stone assassin.
That would be like ice cream.
That's not it. I'm going back.
A cold stone assassin who goes in and says,
"Give me the ice cream or I'll (beep) kill you."