A Powerful Projection from Philip K. Dick's The Golden Man

Since the dawn of civilization man has strived for total control. From the earliest manipulation of the natural elements to the latest advance in any particular field of science it is evident that this outlook on progression will forever remain dominant. However, in Philip K. Dick's "The Golden Man" it is shown that this perspective, this empowering answer to the question of our own existence, can indeed be very frightening. It is made evident that anything that we cannot control, in turn, controls us.

"The Golden Man" takes place at the dawn of a biological revolution: a post-war America forced to cope with the consequences of nuclear aftermath-mutants. Thus, the government forms the DCA, a Gestapo of sorts, to rid the world of these menacing freaks. Surely this will keep the country's mindset intact; by retaining order through violence, stability shall remain.

So begins the story: a young mutant named Cris Johnson is captured by the DCA. Although he is an obvious product of atomic evolution, he surely cannot be compared to the typical monster. No, he is something different…something the DCA has never encountered. He is an icon of beauty, perfect in each of his attributes. He is like a statue sent from the heavens above. He is the golden man.

Yet there is more to Cris than just his good looks. He has the ability to anticipate his own future through clairvoyance and, combined with his uncanny speed, the everlasting assurance of survival. His ability renders the DCA powerless and, in the end, the golden man escapes the compound to roam freely in the world that now belongs to him.

Cris, aside from embodying absolute perfection, absolute power, and total freedom, has just turned eighteen years old. Being that he has reached his sexual peak and that he can transport himself to any given location instantaneously it would not be illogical to estimate that Cris will eventually get at least one female pregnant, for it is both refreshing to copulate and imperative to procreate. The situation is not unlikely; while outrunning his captors throughout the DCA compound, Cris manages to seduce the wife of an agent. He understands that it is his destiny. However, this is only an explicit example in the story; Philip K. Dick may have been implying that this was not the golden man's first time. Sensual descriptions are prevalent throughout the story; women repeatedly remark about Cris' impeccable physique, and according to his sister, "He-ignores us. He eats here, stays with us. Sometimes he plays when we play. Or sits with us. He's gone days on end. We've never been able to find out what he's doing or where."

A sudden population boom of golden men and women, who cannot be harmed by any means, would create an overwhelming reformation of the world's population. Because there is no possibility of ordinary men communicating with golden men (golden men have no frontal lobe to their brains and, therefore, cannot 'form a semantic bridge') there would be jealousy, racism, and violence. Whether it adopts the use of violence or not, the golden race would prevail. Ordinary man would either kill himself off, die trying to kill the golden man off, or succumb to the natural ebb of the weaker species. All that would remain on earth would be a shimmering abundance of automaton hunter-gatherers among the relics of a fallen republic, ruling over the natural world.