Aliens made them do it

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"Aliens made them do it" is a science fiction trope or cliché in which the actions of (generally) human characters are caused by the influence of aliens, the pretext often being that the aliens are using human subjects as part of an experiment on the behaviour, reproductive functions, or psychology of another species.

The external factor of alien influence can be considered a modern form of deus ex machina, except that rather than resolving a plot, it is often used to easily generate situations that will entertain or titillate the audience, and thus begin a plot.

The responsibility and motives of the aliens in question are rarely questioned, although there are exceptions.

Sex

"Aliens made them do it" often means that the characters in question were made to have sex with each other. As such, it becomes a form of rape-by-proxy. (Cf. non-consensual aphrodisiacs.)

And, as a consequence of the link between sexual activity and reproduction, sex under the "aliens made them do it" cliché may also encompass, or be fall under the excuse of, forced breeding.

Examples the use of the "aliens made them do it" plot devices in relation to sex include:

Octavia E. Butler's Xenogenesis series is an especially thoughtful exploration of the ramifications of this trope.

Fighting

The "aliens made them do it" trope also serves as a pretext for pitting characters against each other in combat.

Examples:

  • "Arena" on Star Trek (TOS): Kirk must fight the captain of another ship.
  • The episode "Duel" on Blake's 7, in which Travis and Blake are pitted against each other in single combat.
  • etc.


The Politics of the Cliché

Blaming aliens for rape, other forms of violence, and human actions in general, diverts attention from the actual perpetrators of such actions under "normal" circumstances, and may therefore disguise and mystify human agency, and the structures of human societies which allow for exploitation and oppression.

It is also a useful tool for polarisation, dividing actions into "human" and "inhuman" categories, much the same way as racist and sexist propaganda will divide people into groups to justify discrimination against enemies or underclasses.

"Alien made them do it" resembles nothing so much as ugly old human imperialism, and what human oppressors have done enslaving other humans, and human treatment of domesticated animals.

While this resemblance is not lost on some writers, and science fiction gives some the opportunity of exploring the point of view of the oppressed by creating a more powerful faction or bogeyman (as religion does by inventing deities to surpass human power in human imagination, but wielding them for human purposes), the action itself of creating this alien in order to force its actions onto humans enacts the replication of oppression scenarios.

And the replication of oppression scenarios all too easily and all too often simply satisfies the needs of exploitation in the first place.

Because the purpose of the manipulation of the characters is to entertain the audience.

The more lavish descriptions and portrayals of "aliens made them do it" scenarios can easily be slotted into "exploitation" products.

But, beyond this superficial observation, the political relationship of the characters in an "aliens made them do it" story, to each other, to the author, and to the audience, may magnify the exploitation or problematise it.

A writer who belongs to the dominant classes of a society has a different relationship to scenarios of exploitation than a writer from one of the oppressed classes of a society, because as people they have a different stake in exploitation to begin with.

And thus the question of whom the aliens coerce within a story becomes even more salient.

  • To hold up an alien oppressor over the fate of humanity to punish humans for their misdeeds becomes a sick joke to the class of humans hurt by those misdeeds in the first place. Revoking the immunity of the powerful by punishing everyone indiscriminately in no way liberates the powerless.
  • To entertain thoughts of submission to an imaginary alien poses no real threat to a member of a dominant class.
  • To hold up an alien power as a threat to the humans who exploit you may be an empty gesture (for the people who oppress you) or a powerful dream (for your own people) of vindication.
  • To use aliens to perpetrate actions against an underclass for your own satisfaction when you do not belong to that class is a mystification of your own power.
  • To use aliens to punish yourself when you are a member of an oppressed class may be a mystification of self-loathing, and thus a consequence of oppression in itself.

It is also possible to layer such dynamics, to embed them within each other and connect them on different levels inside a narrative, and thereby create more variations.

But it would be unwise to forget the status of the author, and the political status of the audience, when trying to appreciate the value of any given "aliens made them do it" story.

See also

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