Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep

John Isidore lives alone in “a giant, empty, decaying building which had once housed thousands” (15) in the suburbs, like many specials. As a special, he is not permitted to leave Earth for an off-world colony. The government offers emigres the gift of an android servant if they choose to make the journey. Though specials are not permitted to leave the planet, some “regulars” choose to stay on Earth despite the incentives on offer. Isidore’s mental capacity has been reduced by the radiation poisoning, making him a “chickenhead” (16). In his diminished state and isolated apartment, he feels lonely.

While shaving, he listens to the news on the television. Growing tired of the news, he turns off the television and experiences the silence of the building. Isidore uses an empathy box, a machine that inserts him into a virtual reality where he is able to feel “mental and spiritual identification” (18) with an old man named Wilbur Mercer. Mercer is the head figure in a religion called Mercerism. During these sessions, Mercer climbs an unnamed hill while spectators throw rocks at him. The users of empathy boxes feel Mercer’s pain but also his joy, “experiencing himself as encompassing every other living thing” (19). The experience is intense enough to leave physical wounds on the users’ bodies. After putting the empathy box down, Isidore hears a television set elsewhere in the building. He realizes that someone else lives there too, and he excitedly goes to introduce himself to his new neighbor.

After stopping briefly at “one of San Francisco’s larger pet shops” (21), Deckard arrives at the Hall of Justice. His boss, Harry Bryant, informs Deckard that Dave Holden, the organization’s best bounty hunter, was shot and injured. In a discussion with Ann Marsten, the office secretary, Deckard learns that Holden may have been attacked by a new, advanced form of android. These advanced androids are fitted with Nexus-6 brain units, so Deckard studies the “collected, extant data on the Nexus-6” (22).

Deckard ponders the differences and similarities between humans and androids. The androids are almost entirely like humans except they cannot feel empathy, which is measured through the Voigt-Kampff test. Empathy is a cornerstone of the Mercerism philosophy and the reason why animals are such a sought-after commodity. This thought prompts Deckard to call the pet store for more information about a live ostrich that he might acquire. The ostrich costs $30,000, which is already $1,000 lower than the list price. After failing to haggle over the price, Deckard asks for it to be reserved under the name Frank Merriwell. Out of curiosity, Deckard calls the store that sold him the electric sheep. They have an electric ostrich for under $800. Deckard feels depressed and goes to his meeting with Bryant.

Six of the eight androids on Holden’s hitlist are still at large, mingling among the general human population. Bryant, head of the police department in San Francisco, says that Deckard must confirm that they are androids before he can kill them and collect the bounties on their heads. For research purposes, Bryant sends Deckard to the Rosen Corporation headquarters. Rosen manufactures the androids, and they will allow Deckard to run the Voigt-Kampff test on the next Nexus-6 models and some humans to ensure that it is still a functional method of detecting a rogue android. Bryant worries that a mistake will occur one day and a bounty hunter will kill a human, suspecting them to be an android due to a faulty test. Recent studies by Soviet scientists suggest that certain humans may be able to produce results that make them seem like androids. Deckard dismisses Bryant’s concerns, but he notes Bryant’s “interestingly merciless” (27) tone of voice.

At the Rosen headquarters in Seattle, Deckard meets Rachael Rosen. As they walk past priceless animals—a raccoon and an owl—she tells him that she works in the family business run by her uncle, Eldon Rosen. Deckard asks that they move ahead with the test. He plans to test humans as well as the new Nexus-6 models to ensure that the test is functional. Deckard knows that if the Voigt-Kampff test no longer functions, the Rosen corporation will be forced to “withdraw all Nexus-6 types from the market” (29). This makes him feel powerful. He explains how the test works: The machinery detects minute fluctuations in eye movements and blushing in the cheeks in response to a “morally shocking stimulus” (30). Rachael surprises Deckard by asking him to try the test on her, and Eldon hints that she may not be human.

Deckard runs the Voigt-Kampff test on Rachael. As part of the test, he shines a light in her eye while asking questions that should prompt an emotional response in humans. Rachael reads as human until the final question, when “an android response” (31) makes Deckard think that she is not human. Eldon assures him that Rachael is human, but she was raised on a spaceship rather than on Earth and this strange childhood may have affected her psychology. Deckard’s apparently faulty conclusion leads the Rosens to decry the Voigt-Kampff test as broken; Rachael suggests that, in other circumstances, the failed test might lead to Deckard killing her. Deckard explains that he will not test the other Nexus-6 models as one failed test means that the test itself is no longer functional. Likely, the production of Nexus-6 units will need to stop. The Rosens believe that they can “work something out” (34) and offer Deckard the owl as a bribe. As Deckard negotiates the bribe, he notices that Rachael refers to the owl as “it.” This lack of empathy suggests to him that she is, in fact, an android. Deckard announces his suspicion and Rachael is shocked, as she believed that she was actually human. Eldon confesses that the owl is also not real. Deckard leaves, and as he departs, he worries about the difficulty of detecting Nexus-6 models such as Rachael.