The Invention of Morel

Morel’s invention provokes questions about consciousness and life, particularly how to define the terms and how to determine if another being has either one. His assertions about his machines cause the narrator to re-examine his own ideas of consciousness and life.

Morel initially believed that his recording would be more like an assemblage of sensory vibrations, akin to capturing sound waves or visuals. He admits, “I was certain that my images of persons would lack consciousness of themselves (like the characters in a motion picture)” (70). He aimed to create a stepping stone above and beyond a motion picture toward a fuller, more sensory-based experience for the observer of the images, “with the sounds, tactile sensations, flavors, odors, temperatures, all synchronized perfectly” (70). It is from the observer’s perspective, however, that he grants consciousness to these reproductions, stating, “no one could distinguish them from living persons […]. If we grant consciousness, and all that distinguishes us from objects to the persons who surround us, we shall have no valid reason to deny it to the persons created by my machinery” (71). By placing the onus of ascertaining consciousness on the observer, he denies the experience (or lack thereof) of the projected subject.