Sex, Objectification, and Misogyny Theme Analysis

Harlan Ellison’s short story “I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream” recounts the fate of five unfortunate people who are trapped within the belly of a sadistic supercomputer. AM chooses four men—Ted, Benny, Gorrister, and Nimdok—and one woman, Ellen, for its group. This forces Ellen’s sexuality and the others’ exploitation of her to the forefront of the story: she is essentially a sex object for the men to use at their whim. The gender imbalance within AM is yet another example of the supercomputer’s wrath, as it projects its rage about its own inability to partake in human sexuality completely onto Ellen. The narrator, Ted, is deeply misogynistic, painting the narrative with his problematic view of women. The story presents a pessimistic and cynical view of humanity, and arguably a misogynistic one, as the other male characters use Ellen for sexual gratification while simultaneously vilifying her for it.

As the only woman in the story, Ellen is reduced to a sexual object—she seems to be there only for the gratification of the male characters. But by reducing the once-modest Ellen to her sexuality, AM gets to play out its own fascination with complex human sexuality and the jealousy that sometimes accompanies it. For the characters inside AM, sex is just an instinctual, physical need that must be met, rather than an intimate connection between people. Ted describes Ellen displaying her gratitude by “[taking] him twice out of turn.” Sex is cheapened, becoming a currency Ellen can spend to express her gratitude or use to get what she wants. Ted’s personal opinions about Ellen appear incredibly chauvinistic: “Oh Ellen, pedestal Ellen, pristine-pure Ellen, oh Ellen the clean! Scum filth.” Playing off the Madonna-whore complex, Ted only views Ellen in one of two ways: a saint or a prostitute. Further demonstrating the male characters’ lack of respect for Ellen, Gorrister hits Ellen and she cries. Ted immediately believes Ellen’s crying is a manipulation tactic, desensitized to any suffering besides his own after years stuck inside AM. The men are unable to show even the slightest glimmer of concern for Ellen’s pain, which further removes them from knowing human compassion.

Ted demeans Ellen, calling her a “slut” and a “dirty bitch” for enjoying sex with the other men in the group, but he has nothing critical to say about his own or his male companions’ same need for sexual gratification. Benny has gone insane long before the events of the story unfold. After removing his intelligence, “it was not merely Benny’s face the computer had made like a giant ape’s. He was big in the privates, she loved that!” Ted’s additional commentary about Ellen’s sexual satisfaction at Benny’s physical enhancement frames Ellen as a selfish and pleasure-driven character. After Benny is blinded instead of killed as punishment for attempting to escape, Ted catches “the look of relief on Ellen’s warm, concerned face.” Again, Ted portrays her as more concerned for her own pleasure than she is about Benny’s latest disfigurement. Ted’s own bias, and limited perspective as the narrator, obscures why Ellen might actually be relieved: she doesn’t have to watch another companion die a gruesome death, yet again. In addition, Ted’s narrow view of Ellen is impacted by his own feelings of inadequacy and jealousy, because while Ellen is “grateful,” she never actually climaxes sexually with him like she does with Benny.

However, even amidst Ted’s misogynistic remarks about Ellen, she is the only character to actually show sympathy and compassion toward her companions. By the end of the story, it is clear that Ted’s own misanthropic and outright misogynistic views make him an unreliable narrator. Perhaps jealousy from having to share Ellen with the other men sparked some of Ted’s spiteful words about her. Regardless of his reasons, Ted disparages Ellen for enjoying sex whereas the other men’s sexual desire is simply seen as a need they must fulfill, much like hunger or thirst. While Gorrister retells Benny the story of how AM came to be, Ellen shows true empathy when “Benny beg[ins] to shiver and […] drool,” and she goes over to him and holds him. There is nothing sexual or self-serving about this embrace, yet Ted is still convinced that her compassion is a performance. It could even be surmised that Ellen might have actively chosen to have sex with her companions not out of selfish promiscuity, but to extend human tenderness amidst their endless torment.

Even as Ted takes Ellen’s life, he forces his own interpretation of the events, unable to “read meaning into her expression” because “the pain had been too great, had contorted her face.” He supplants her anguish with his own hope, almost praying, “It might have been thank you. It’s possible. Please.” In order for Ted to live with the solitude he has doomed himself to, he has to ascribe more meaning to Ellen’s final moments. He has to believe that part of her wanted to die, because if she didn’t, then Ted’s mercy killing quickly turns into murder. Even though Ellen is abused and used like a sexual object by the others, she still extends compassion to them in ways they are incapable of reciprocating, which highlights the sexism and double standard present throughout the story.