Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

What is artificial intelligence (AI)? What moral, ethical, or even political concerns have you encountered related to the topic? Should humans continue to develop and advance AI? When, if ever, should they stop?  

Teaching Suggestion: These questions can activate prior knowledge before reading the following articles or may be used as the basis for debate after reading them. Students may benefit from a brief explanation of how current questions around AI relate to questions raised in the novel.

• This article from Science explores the difficulties of identifying sentience in AI.
• This article from Rolling Stone explores how creator and user biases replicate and grow within AI programs.

Short Activity

Read the article from The Onion, then write about or discuss whether someone might mistake it for a real report. Where does it closely resemble a real news report? What clues indicate that it is not? Then, using the elements of satire as a guide, create a checklist, question set, or another diagnostic that someone could use to determine whether or not a piece is satirical.

Teaching Suggestion: This Short Activity can be used as an individual, pair, or group activity. Consider posting tools for identifying the techniques writers use to satirize topics either in the classroom or online for students to use as they read the novel.

• This article from The Onion parodies a real fluff piece about the Sussexes.
• The Elements of Satire on SuperSummary offers a succinct overview of literary devices and traits to look for in satire.

Personal Connection Prompt

This prompt can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before reading the text.

Watch the video, then write a reflection on how you view and define personhood. Who or what is included or excluded in this definition, and why? What does morality, human DNA, and cognitive or social criteria have to do with whether or not someone or something is considered a person? How has watching the video helped clarify or change your thoughts about the meaning of personhood?

Teaching Suggestion: This prompt can be approached in writing after the video, though it may serve well as the foundation for an in-depth class discussion or debate. Alternatively, students may appreciate the option to share their views with a partner instead of the entire class after writing.

• This Crash Course video explores the concept of personhood and why it is so difficult to define.