Posthumanism in Digital Culture: Cyborgs, Gods and Fandom (Digital Activism and Society: Politics, Economy and Culture in Network Communication)

This book explores the theories of transhumanism and posthumanism, two philosophies that deal with radically changing bodies, minds, and even the nature of humanity itself. These fields are rapidly growing and gaining more exposure both in today's media, especially in video games and science fiction screen media, and the minds of their fans - the so called 'geek fandom' that follows this media with a passion. The book covers the early days of humanist thought and the birth of 'anthropocentrism', and the history of trans/posthumanist thought from ancient times through to the modern day. It looks at the way in which video game and science fiction research has developed and presents case studies from video games and science fiction film ( Xenoblade Chronicles , Xenoblade Chronicles X and EX_MACHINA ). The author provides a unique insight into trans/posthuman theory, one of the most interesting theories the future of humanity, and demonstrates how the media - especially in the realm of science-fiction and video games - has been fixated on it. Table of Contents 8 List of Tables 12 Abstract 14 Preface 16 Acknowledgements 18 Introduction 20 1 Literature Review: From Human to Posthuman 28 2 Methodology 76 3 Body 92 4 Identity 114 5 Power 132 Conclusion: A Future Transhumanism 148 Appendix: Consent Form Sample 160 References 164 Index 172