Representations of the Post/Human : Monsters, Aliens and Others in Popular Culture

List of Figures vii Preface On cathedrals, canals and computers ix Introduction Mapping the post/human On being human 1(5) Enslavement or liberation? 6(4) Representing the post/human 10(1) The promise of monsters 11(5) Science as salvation 16(4) PART I SCIENCE/FICTION Representing the post/human 20(18) Telling stories about technoscience 20(5) Representation, rhetoric and reality 25(8) Ontological hygiene 33(5) The gates of difference 38(24) Myths and monsters 38(2) The self made strange 40(7) The gates of difference 47(8) Fabulation 55(4) Post/human genealogies 59(3) PART II MONSTROSITY, GENEALOGY AND REPRESENTATION What made Victor's creature monstrous? 62(22) Born or made? 64(5) Naming the beast 69(2) Revolting monsters 71(2) Was Victor a `mad scientist'? 73(4) Whose monstrosity? Whose humanity? 77(7) Body of clay, body of glass 84(25) On the golem and its symbolism 87(5) The silence of the golem 92(3) The servant 95(6) Through the looking-glass 101(6) Body of clay, body of glass 107(2) In whose image? The politics of representation 109(23) Bio-power and parenting 111(6) The geneticization of the post/human 117(6) In whose image? 123(9) PART III POST/HUMANITIES Much ado about Data 132(22) The `good universe next door' 134(3) Almost-human: Data 137(7) Humanity under siege: the Borg 144(4) Humanity restored: Seven of Nine 148(4) Star Trek and representations of the post/human 152(2) `Nietzsche gets a modem': transhumanism and the technological sublime 154(22) Technocratic futurism 155(10) Technochantment 165(3) Technopaganism 168(5) Nietzsche's modem 173(3) The end of the `human'? 176(24) Dehumanization and dystopia 177(4) Humans as machines 181(6) Virtual post/humanities 187(6) Monsters in metropolis 193(3) `Your Aura will not be your own' 196(4) Cyborg writing 200(21) Cyborg manifestations 201(3) Cyborg writing 204(7) Cyborgs or goddesses? 211(6) The `crossed-out God' 217(4) Gods and monsters 221(14) Telling stories, building worlds 221(2) Technology and ontology 223(2) Toward a post/human ethic 225(5) Religion, culture and gender 230(1) Beyond `transcendence' 231(4) References 235(18) Index 253