1. Ghost in the
Shell
[Technology and Protest]
By Hannah Peterson

2. The Inspiration
●
Based on the manga
Kōkaku Kidōtai by
Masamune Shirow
●
Published with 8
separate issues in
1989
●
Full of footnotes and
annotations by the
author about
technology

3. The Movie
●
Ghost in the Shell
was released in
1995 and directed
by Mamoru Oshii
●
Animation is in the
Japanese Anime
style
●
One of the
inspirations behind
The Matrix

4. Plot Summary
Ghost in the Shell is a futuristic sci-fi where cyborgs
live amongst humans. Each cyborg has a shell which is
the outer body and mechanical construction of their
body. Inside the shell contains what they term as their
ghost, basically the essence of a soul. The ghost
contains emotions, memories and all other elements
that make us human.
Motoko Kusanagi (Major) is a member of an elite police
task force fighting to find a hacker by the title 'Puppet
Master' who is hacking into people's ghosts to
manipulate memories and personalities. Uncovering
government cover-ups and a whole scheme of lies,
Motoko discoveries a way to change reality as anyone

6. Main Characters
●
Major Motoko Kusanagi – Cyborg Squad Leader of Public
Security Section 9 and the main character.
●
Batou – Major's second in command, he is extremely well
trained in fighting and combat.
●
Ishikawa – Major's third in command. He is the least cyber-
netically augmented of the crew and more human-like than
the rest.
●
Chief Aramaki – Chief of Section 9.
●
Kubota – Army Intelligence Officer and colleague of
Aramaki, he tends to put a lot of grief on Section 9.
●
Puppet Master – Also known as Project 2501, Puppet
Master is an artificial intelligence unit once controlled by

7. Theme
Technology is advancing at an extremely fast pace which
has helped society move forward but it is also limiting the
privacy each individual can hold.
Ghost in the Shell is a perfect example of this. In the future,
humans are intertwined with technology that makes
civilization superior than the past. However, the Puppet
Master has hacked into what makes us human; emotions,
memories, all feelings of ourselves.
Power isn't based purely around money or manipulation but
intelligence with technology. All reality can change if hacked
into the correct ghost and all power can be achieved

8. Questions
●
If Major had been a man instead of a woman, how would
that have changed the feeling of the story?
●
With the choice of being either almost completely cyber-
netically altered or minimally altered, which would you
choose? Staying as human as possible or not?
●
Would we still be human if we had no control over
memories or emotions? Why or why not.
●
If technology continues to advance at the rate it is, what
will happen to society? Will it be positive or negative?

9. Works Cited
●
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113568/
●
Google Images
●
http://solidstatesociety.manga.com/index.php
●
http://www.explore-science-fiction-movies.com/ghost-in-the-shell.html#axzz22uZwXRa4
●
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=465
●
http://movies.nytimes.com/2004/09/17/movies/17GHOS.html
Thank You