As described by Corry Doctorow in the novel Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom

By Jan Strasser

The prospect of cloning oneself or transferring consciousness offers the tantalizing idea of defying death. While the longing for immortality is common, I challenge the premise, frequently depicted in Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom and similar science fiction, that cloning or copying consciousness can truly grant eternal life.

I do not dislike the idea of transferring consciousness. If we could truly move our “souls”—the core of our identity—into another body and live on, I would consider it. The fear of nonexistence is more daunting than the prospect of boredom.

The scenario described in the book has a major drawback: who is reborn? In the story, the hero walked out of the recording office to pursue his dangerous activity, leaving the recording behind. My issue is that, at some point, there were two of the same “soul”. By definition, a “soul” is unique to an individual and cannot be duplicated or split. I am not denying that the new person is sentient and whole, but how can he be the hero? At most, he is a clone; essentially, a twin. In fact, he is a more exact copy than any human twin, since he has the hero’s experiences and brain.

A true transfer would be more complex. Suppose the “soul” moves from one body to another only at the original body’s death, akin to switching cars. Then, continuity is preserved. In Magic Kingdom, the clone is a duplicate who becomes a new person regardless of the hero’s fate. In this case, the hero does die. While intriguing, this isn’t a path to personal immortality—it’s only a continuation of some part of myself, which is less appealing.

The End

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1. https://blogs.dunyanews.tv/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/cloning.jpg

© JM Strasser March 2026 All Rights Reserved