Date

12-16-2025

Department

Rawlings School of Divinity

Degree

Master of Arts in Christian Apologetics (MA)

Chair

Jonathan R. Pruitt

Keywords

AI, artificial intelligence, Hollywood, The Terminator, Battlestar Galactica

Disciplines

Christianity | Film and Media Studies

Abstract

This thesis defends the argument that depictions of artificial intelligence in Hollywood film and television point to a moral universe. Films The Terminator (1984) and Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), as well as the television series Battlestar Galactica (2004-2009) are analyzed to find clues of moral facts. This research paper submits that these stories add weight to the moral argument and provide evidence that humans implicitly recognize a moral universe. Such acknowledgment of moral structures cannot be adequately explained within a secular framework such as utilitarianism or evolutionary ethics. However, the Christian worldview frames reality around the existence of God, and this paper makes the claim that Christianity is therefore the best explanation for morality.

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