Abstract

Philosophy has only recently taken an interest in the phenomenon of dehumanization. Dehumanization is the act of perceiving others as less than fully human by depriving them of certain uniquely human characteristics or their human nature. Previous analyses of dehumanization have focused on events involving two or more human individuals, such as genocides, civil wars, and violence against certain ethnic and racial groups. The historical cases referenced in the reconstruction of the aberrant idea of hierarchies of humanity range from pre-Columbian times to the Enlightenment. Recent examples include the atrocities of Nazism, extreme discrimination against refugees and the disabled, and sexual violence. Despite the dramatic changes in the relational setup, new profiles of dehumanizing behavior in the specific human-machine relationship have not yet been addressed. The purpose of this article is to explore the processes of dehumanization when they are enacted in a relationship where a non-human entity is present. After introducing the concept of dehumanization, the aim is to expand, integrate, and translate it into the context of actions mediated by autonomous systems. The concept of control and its forms play a key role in these processes, particularly when it loses its characteristic of meaningful human control. This article focuses on the experience of dehumanization resulting from machines over humans, explores new ways in which dehumanization can occur in real-life interactive contexts, and provides a clearer definition of the concept of dehumanization.