BioShock and Philosophy

LUKE CUDDY is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Southwestern College in Chula Vista, CA. He edited The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy, World of Warcraft and Philosophy, and HALO and Philosophy. An avid guitar player as well as gamer, he continues to annoy his friends with impromptu performances of "Will the Circle Be Unbroken." WILLIAM IRWIN (series editor) is Professor of Philosophy at King's College, Wilkes-Barre, PA. He originated the philosophy and popular culture genre of books as co-editor of the bestselling The Simpsons and Philosophy, and has overseen titles including House and Philosophy, Batman and Philosophy, and Veronica Mars and Philosophy.

Hacking into This Book (Introduction) vii
Luke Cuddy

Part I Level 1 Research Bonus: Increased Wisdom Capacity 1

1 BioShock’s Meta‐Narrative: What BioShock Teaches the Gamer about Gaming 3
Collin Pointon

2 The Value of Art in BioShock: Ayn Rand, Emotion, and Choice 15
Jason Rose

3 SHODAN vs. the Many: Or, Mind vs. the Body 27
Robert M. Mentyka

4 “The cage is somber”: A Feminist Understanding of Elizabeth 38
Catlyn Origitano

Part II Tears, Time, and Reality 49

5 Rapture in a Physical World: Did Andrew Ryan Choose the Impossible? 51
James Cook

6 Would You Kindly Bring Us the Girl and Wipe Away the Debt: Free Will and Moral Responsibility in BioShock Infinite 58
Oliver Laas

7 BioShock as Plato’s Cave 69
Roger Travis

8 BioShock Infinite and Transworld Individuality: Identity across Space and Time 76
Charles Joshua Horn

9 Shockingly Limited: Escaping Columbia’s God of Necessity 86
Scott Squires and James McBain

Part III The “Union” and the Sodom Below 95

10 “The bindings are there as a safeguard”: Sovereignty and Political Decisions in BioShock Infinite 97
Rick Elmore

11 Propaganda, Lies, and Bullshit in BioShock’s Rapture 107
Rachel McKinnon

12 The Vox Populi Group, Marx, and Equal Rights for All 114
Tyler DeHaven and Chris Hendrickson

Part IV The Circus of Values 127

13 Infinite Lighthouses, Infinite Stories: BioShock and the Aesthetics of Video Game Storytelling 129
László Kajtár

14 Have You Ever Been to Rapture?: BioShock as an Introduction to Phenomenology 139
Stefan Schevelier

15 “Evolve today!”: Human Enhancement Technologies in the BioShock Universe 150
Simon Ledder

16 Vending Machine Values: Buying Beauty and Morality in BioShock 161
Michael J. Muniz

Notes on Contributors 168

Index 173