Teaching contested philosophical articulations of attention through Ex Machina and Her

Given the increased use of technology in and out of schools, and that such technologies deliberately attract and arrest the attention of their users, students learning about how attention is considered philosophically becomes significant. As such, attention, as a topic of philosophical interest at secondary school level, is a worthy philosophical inquiry for contemporary students. However, given that defining attention is contested, with significantly varying perspectives, teaching these articulations simultaneously can prove difficult. I argue that using film, by capitalising on student interaction and interpretations, can address this challenge. Through this pedagogical approach, students are encouraged to reflect on what they believe is important about defining attention by exploring the common features of different articulations of attention, focusing on its moral and economic components. 

I identify two pedagogical aims: i) engaging with film to learn about different articulations of attention, and ii) to have students explore their own definition(s) of attention. Two films, Ex Machina (Garland 2014) and Her (Jonze 2013), are shown to be helpful for illuminating attention and are used to demonstrate alternative perspectives on how attending is variously conceived. Highlighting the contrasts between the two films therefore becomes significant in encouraging exploratory thought and problem-solving possible contradictions in defining attention.