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The Minority Report
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Themes
Predestination Versus Free Will
One of the social experiments that Dick explores in “The Minority Report” is the conundrum of predestination versus free will. By definition, precog predictions—and the entire Precrime system—imply a preordained fate; if the precogs have prophesied a crime, it must be. As the radio broadcasts that Anderton hears note, this determinism isn’t entirely absolute; if no other future were possible, it would be impossible for law enforcement to apprehend would-be murderers. However, most convicted offenders never see the punchcard with their crime on it, and since “the crime itself is absolute metaphysics” (72), they have no way of defending themselves.
Anderton’s situation is a complication because he sees his own punchcard before anyone else does. Armed with this foreknowledge, he can therefore choose whether or not to commit the murder of which he has been accused and therefore potentially change his so-called “fate”—the definition of free will. The discovery of a minority report seems to support this endeavor; according to “the theory of multiple-futures” (85), proving that a precog predicted his innocence (and therefore a choice) will clear him of charges and he would be free to return to his previous life and position of power.
However, here the situation stops being so clear-cut. If a precog predicts not only the possibility of Anderton committing murder but also a future where he does not, perhaps both possibilities are fated. It is unclear whether the theory of multiple-futures subscribes more to free will or to predestination, at least if each future can be predicted. As Anderton puzzles over what to do next, he learns that Kaplan has also been manipulating the circumstances behind the scenes in order to seize control of his own fate and regain his former authority and power (and avoid being murdered in the process). If doing so means destroying the Precrime system (and therefore the idea of predestination), Kaplan does not seem to mind.
Anderton therefore must decide whether to support or oppose Kaplan. Undecided, Anderton views all three precog reports in the hopes that they “might give [him] some ideas” (95). In the end, he fulfills Mike’s prediction, in which Anderton is aware of all possible choices and still decides to kill Kaplan (101). Anderton explains that Mike’s prediction “was correct—since no report came after his, to invalidate him” as had occurred with Donna’s and Jerry’s reports (101). It could be argued that Anderton encountered a self-fulfilling prophecy, but as he chooses to follow the predicted future, elements of free will linger. Furthermore, Anderton makes a final choice that is unrelated to any precog report. According to the law, Anderton must be punished, and in deciding to uphold the Precrime system, Anderton must accept this. However, he requests that Witwer commute the sentence of imprisonment in favor of exile. Witwer agrees, and the story ends with Anderton and Lisa preparing for their journey to Centaurus X, a space colony (100-02). By choosing exile—a future that no precog has predicted, no antagonist has machinated, and no law has mandated—Anderton arguably finds a loophole in the Precrime predestination system, leaving it and forging a new path through free will.
Personal Values Versus the “Greater Good”
The second major theme of “The Minority Report” is the choice between one’s personal values and the “greater good” of society as a whole. In the story, Kaplan and Anderton illuminate this tension through their behavior as foils to each other.
At their initial meeting, the two men appear to have similar goals in opposing directions. Both desire to avoid the future murder but employ different strategies to do so: Kaplan wants Anderton delivered to law enforcement “[f]or my [Kaplan’s] own protection” (80), and Anderton wants to hide away until he can prove that he has no “intent to murder” (80).
However, after viewing the minority report and subsequently escaping the Precrime agency with Lisa, Anderton faces another dilemma: He has the proof to reveal the flaw in the Precrime system and clear his name, but it is less clear whether he should. Doing so could save not only himself but potentially many others who might have been similarly “falsely” accused (89). Anderton denies this possibility immediately, insisting that his case is unique because he “was in a position to see the [punch]card” (89); civilians, he suggests, remain guilty as charged because they have no insider access and therefore no way to prove their innocence under the Precrime system. This leads to the second dilemma: Even if his case is indeed unique, revealing the flaw in the system would mean discrediting both the Precrime system that he invented and Precrime law enforcement as a whole (90). From a personal perspective, Anderton makes a valid point: “If the system can survive only by imprisoning innocent people, then it deserves to be destroyed” (90); from this stance, personal safety is more important than maintaining a flawed system.
From Lisa’s and Witwer’s perspective, however, discrediting the system would be chaos. Lisa immediately grasps the consequences of proving Anderton’s innocence—and subsequently discrediting Precrime—and chooses the stability of society (i.e., the “greater good”) over her husband, even pulling a gun on him to force him to turn himself in (90). Anderton reluctantly complies—for his “personal safety”—but he does not fully agree with Lisa and Witwer until he understands Kaplan’s ulterior motives: to discredit Precrime and take back policing for the army, regaining his wartime-era power and glory (94). As his complex machinations come to light, Kaplan reveals that his trajectory has been opposite Anderton’s from the beginning: Kaplan’s goal is to discredit the Precrime system, regardless of subsequent social instability or governmental power imbalance, in order to fulfill his own personal desires (94).
To oppose this, Anderton concludes that he has no choice but to give up his own freedom and personal desires in order to maintain the Precrime system for the “greater good” of the public. After all, “Precrime has cut down felonies by ninety-nine and decimal point eight percent,” and law enforcement “seldom get[s] actual murder or treason” (74). By these statistics alone, Anderton concludes that Precrime, however flawed, benefits society more than the “good old AFWA days” during the war (94). Therefore, Anderton decides to fulfill the precog prophecy and kill Kaplan (96), giving up clearing his name and accepting his punishment of exile. In the end, the Precrime system survives, but Anderton’s criminal status takes on a more positive light; he killed not out of any vicious intent but to protect the people, though the general populace might not ever know. To the characters that matter, however, Anderton’s actions imply a sacrifice, and by choosing society over himself, he becomes a hero.
Passage of Power to Future Leaders
Age is a significant motif in “The Minority Report.” While guns denote power in a given situation (see “Guns as Power” below), age represents power as it relates to time and change. Specifically, Witwer (the youngest), Anderton (middle-aged at least), and Kaplan (the eldest) constitute a triad of foils who display very different attitudes toward the shift and balance of power.
Initially, Witwer—neophyte, “over-confident,” eager, “too-friendly,” and “young” (71)—appears an enthusiastic new assistant who supports Precrime unhesitatingly (he feels that the system is run “quite well”) (71). Anderton, insecure about his age and looming retirement (71-72), distrusts Witwer immediately and tries to assert dominance. In fact, after Anderton receives his punchcard accusing him of murdering Kaplan, he immediately suspects Witwer is involved in framing him (77). Anderton senses Witwer’s ambition and fears being replaced by a younger man. As the plot progresses, Witwer indeed proves to be quick and decisive, replacing Anderton as acting-commissioner within the first 24 hours of Anderton’s discovery of the incriminating punchcard (80). However, his loyalty remains to Precrime and Precrime alone, and his quick actions also reveal his inexperience: His many radio broadcasts influence both the plot and Anderton. Witwer’s transparency with the public could ostensibly garner support for his future position as police commissioner. However, had he been a bit more cautious, the situation with Kaplan might have been less complicated; Witwer even admits that perhaps he “do[esn’t] have this job down as neatly as [he] imagined” (95). By the end of the story, Witwer gains enough self-awareness to admit that he does actually desire Anderton’s position as police commissioner and enough humility to ask for advice from Anderton when he officially takes on the role.
Anderton’s character trajectory takes a slightly different direction. His initial distrust of Witwer only fades when Anderton realizes the extent of Kaplan’s deception and when Lisa staunchly defends Witwer’s support of Precrime (90, 92). Anderton gradually comes to accept Witwer’s presence as his successor, to the point that Anderton is able to take Witwer’s ambition in stride, brushing it off with the offhand comment, “Everybody is guilty of that sort of thing” (94). As Anderton comes to accept his decision to fulfill the precog prophecies and kill Kaplan, he also comes to terms with the idea of transition and change, accepting Witwer as his replacement. By the story’s conclusion, he completely flips from insecure to satisfied, and he has enough sardonic humor to “deriv[e] no inconsiderable comfort from Witwer’s strained expression” as the younger man considers the looming specter of his own possible false accusation (101-02).
Kaplan, however, remains fixated on the past. Described as “elderly, perhaps seventy or older, [...] his attitude curiously rigid” (79), he is unsurprised that Anderton never heard of him before the appearance of the punchcard; after all, he has been “[r]etired, since the end of the Anglo-Chinese War, and the abolishment of AFWA” (79). Kaplan’s motives are initially unclear, but over time they slowly emerge: Kaplan desires to discredit Precrime (with or without Anderton’s assistance) and thereby seize the power he lost after the war ended (94). Unlike Witwer and Anderton, Kaplan cannot accept the loss of power and pride. Even at the expense of public stability, he is determined to prevent his own murder and regain his former status. Kaplan remains power-hungry to the death, as Anderton fulfills the prophecy and kills him before he can reveal the contents of Anderton’s minority report (99). The elderly, static general is unable to accept society’s transition to a new era. Anderton, meanwhile, as the man in between life stages, gradually comes to accept his replacement and maintains a cordial relationship with Witwer. Witwer, who first appears with all the idealism of youth, eventually gains experience and humility and matures enough to take on the burden of being Anderton’s successor in a peaceful transfer of power.
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By Philip K. Dick
