Last week’s Flora’s Film Friday featured an episode of the British science fiction show Black Mirror, entitled “The Entire History of You”. Having seen an episode of Black Mirror prior to this event, I was prepared to embrace the show’s cynical but inventive perspective on the possible advances of technology and how our society might adapt to them. In this episode, the vast majority of people have a “grain” embedded in their head that connects to their brain and records all of their waking experiences, to be re-watched and reflected on by both the person living those experiences and anyone they choose to share these recordings with.

This episode was unsurprisingly (for anyone familiar with the show) shocking and dark, providing ample fodder for discussions on the benefits and drawbacks of this technology. Before watching the episode, I had discussed with people around me whether or not we would want to have this technology in our own lives. I was in favor of it, while the two people I was talking with were against the idea. Based on the outcome of the episode, it’s very clear that there are very real dangers to having every moment of your life available to watch in your head over and over, ready to be over-analyzed. The main character in the episode was overwhelmed with relatable emotions such as jealousy, paranoia, and anger, but these emotions were inflamed by access to technology that we don’t have.

The episode clearly fell on the side of a cautionary tale, demonstrating the downfall of technology that would store all your memories. Nevertheless, it was interesting to see how the episode portrayed the people who lived in this society and how they reacted to this technology. One character chose not to have a “grain” and she was treated with a range of reactions, from curiosity to disdain. It struck me that this can parallel our current society very easily: how would you react if you met someone who chose not to own a smartphone, or indeed any cell phone at all? Cell phones, especially those armed with cameras and social media, can do a commendable job at recording significant parts of our lives, and people often spend unhealthy amounts of time using them.

Ultimately, I think the ability to relive any past moment at the click of a button would be an incredible gift that humans are not equipped to handle well. We have too much of a proclivity to dwell on past experiences, especially negative memories, and while personally I would be interested in having this sort of technology at my disposal, I think the episode did a realistic job of portraying how it could be misused. We are defined by our memories, as much as by what remember as by what we forget, and the ability to forget is one we should be grateful for. To paraphrase Albus Dumbledore, it does not due to dwell on the past and forget to live.