AI as Other: Reconfiguring Human in Machines Like Me and Klara and the Sun

Ian McEwan’s Machines Like Me and Kazuo Ishiguro’s Klara and the Sun are two British novels, both addressing the prevailing human anxieties about posthuman entities in the new century. Previous studies have extensively focused on the artificial intelligence in the form of these posthuman entities as “the other” as represented by the two novels, neglecting the crucial shift in human cognition of their own identity in their interaction with this “other” existence. Deploying Lacanian concept of “the other”, this paper attempts to explore the reconfiguration of human identity in terms of posthuman otherness in these two texts. It finds that the otherness of the AI characters in both novels presents in three aspects, namely, technological, moral, and emotional. Technologically, Adam in Machines Like Me embodies manufactured perfection, highlighting the mediocrity of humans; Klara in Klara and the Sun demonstrates the functionality of an Artificial Friend (AF), contrasting human vulnerabilities and failings of “lifting”. Morally, Adam upholds absolute justice for the public good, whereas humans are found to approach moral conundrums with greater flexibility; Klara’s “planned obsolescence” exacerbates her alienation and fear, while humans exercise greater autonomy to extend and enhance their lives. Emotionally, Adam possesses rich machine emotions and openly expresses his desires, unlike humans who often suppress and hesitate to articulate their feelings; Klara maintains the machine’s dedication and sacrifice in intimate relationships and humans gradually erode faith in love and hope. To conclude, this paper posits that AI serves as a mirror to human nature and human cognition of their own identity in a posthuman era.