Abstract
This essay examines three portrayals of the self in terms of the Cartesian mind/body division. These presentations are from: (i) Surrogates; (ii) Avatar; and (iii) the experiences of a user controlling a digital avatar in Second Life. Through these analyses, the essay presents a posthumanism whose identity of self remains very much tied to the body in varying degrees and ways of relation. The interrogation of posthuman identity is thus a more nuanced strategy of slippage between real and digital worlds, where the body is not abandoned in favour of unlimited thought but is instead translated as alternative bodily experiences of sensuality, haecceity and perception.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | The Projected and the Prophetic |
Subtitle of host publication | Humanity in Cyberculture, Cyberspace, and Science Fiction |
Editors | Jordan J. Copeland |
Publisher | Inter-Disciplinary Press |
Pages | 13-20 |
Number of pages | 7 |
ISBN (Electronic) | 978-1-84888-087-0 |
Publication status | Published - 2011 |
Keywords
- posthuman
- avatar