Document Type
Review
Abstract
This review discusses the tv show Pluribus as a contemporary television narrative that functions as an allegory for artificial intelligence and its implications for human meaning-making. Centering on Carol Sturka, one of thirteen individuals immune to a alien global virus that merges humanity into a cooperative “Hive Mind”, the series explores tensions between autonomy and collective well-being in a “peaceful apocalypse.” The analysis argues that the Hive Mind reflects key concerns surrounding AI, including the production of knowledge without understanding, personalization without discernment, and efficiency that bypasses the struggle through which meaning is formed. Drawing on John Searle’s distinction between symbol manipulation and comprehension and Gilles Deleuze’s concept of “becoming,” the review discusses how the series positions struggle, uncertainty, and effort as essential to human development. It also discusses the show’s pedagogical strategies like productive ambiguity and counterfactual world-building as mechanisms that invite viewers into ethical reflection rather than offering clear resolutions.
Recommended Citation
Kingsley, J. Scarlett
(2026)
"Humanity, AI, and the Pedagogy of Vince Gilligan’s Pluribus,"
Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy: Vol. 13:
Iss.
1, Article 7.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dialogue/vol13/iss1/7
Included in
American Popular Culture Commons, Community-Based Learning Commons, Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Curriculum and Social Inquiry Commons, Educational Sociology Commons, Gender and Sexuality Commons, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Commons, Social Justice Commons