A machine of sorts, called the black empathy box, immerses its users in a new setting where they are all physically and mentally unified into one being, “You felt it, too, he thought. Yes, the voices answered.” (Dick 22-23). Through a “special”, named Isidore, we experience this. Of course Isidore also experiences everyone, just as everyone experiences Isidore. “He experienced them, the others” (Dick 22). In this new place Isidore, now living through a mythical man named Wilbur Mercer, must climb a seemingly endless hill. However, that impossible task alone, is not enough. There are also antagonists wishing to make his infinite journey that much worse. They pelt him with rocks, and one connects with his arm. This pain is felt by all connected to the black empathy box, and not only is it felt there, but it is there waiting for them when they return to the real world.
My question is, could something like this black empathy box teach empathy? If so, is it ethical? In the pursuit of empathy, is it morally okay to put everyone through pain?