Reading "Westworld"

Reading Westworld is the first volume to explore the cultural, textual and theoretical significance of the hugely successful HBO TV series Westworld . The essays engage in a series of original enquiries into the central themes of the series including conceptions of the human and posthuman, American history, gaming, memory, surveillance, AI, feminism, imperialism, free will and contemporary capitalism. In its varied critical engagements with the genre, narratives and contexts of Westworld , this volume explores the show’s wider and deeper meanings and the questions it poses, as well considering how Westworld reflects on the ethical implications of artificial life and technological innovation for our own futurity. With critical essays that draw on the interdisciplinary strengths and productive intersections of media, cultural and literary studies, Reading Westworld seeks to respond to the show’s fundamental question; “Have you ever questioned the nature of your reality?” It will be of interest to students, academics and general readers seeking to engage with Westworld and the far-reaching questions it poses about our current engagements with technology. Reading Westworld Contents Notes on Contributors List of Figures Chapter 1 Introduction Robots, Androids and Cyborgs Westworld, Culture and the Posthuman The Scope of the Collection Looking to the Future Works Cited Chapter 2 These Violent Delights: Navigating Westworld as “Quality” Television Introduction Quality Television and HBO—A Truncated Rehearsal Westworld’s Embodiment of Quality Solving the Puzzle: What Westworld’s Human Nature Says About Quality Television Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 3 ‘That Which Is Real Is Irreplaceable’: Lies, Damned Lies, and (Dis-)simulations in Westworld Introduction AI Narratives and Narrative AIs “The Maze” of (Narrative) Self-Consciousness Verification of the Code Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 4 Factitive Maps: Manipulating Spaces and Characters in Vast Narratives Introduction A Taxonomy of Cartographic Occurrences in Westworld Entering the Maze: Factitive Maps and Typologies of Characters Unlocking the Maze: Serial Characters and Memory Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 5 Westworld and the Pursuit of Meaningful Play Introduction Westworld as Virtual World The Design Team The Design Westworld Is a Bad Game Westworld Is a Good Game Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 6 Music as a Source of Narrative Information in HBO’s Westworld Introduction The Relationship Between Music and Image in Westworld The Embedding of Music in the Production Culture of Westworld Piano Reductions Reverie Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 7 The Frontier Myth of Memory, Dreams, and Trauma in Westworld Introduction The Hegemonic Narrative of Hero on the Frontier The Masculine Utopia of Victim Blaming and War Commemorating Motherhood and Sexual Violence Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 8 Long Live the New Flesh: Race and the Posthuman in Westworld Introduction Human and Nonhuman, Reality and Imagination Liberalism, Racism, the Slave The New People Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 9 Flies in the Face: Entomology and the Mechanics of Becoming-Living in Westworld Introduction Filthy Creatures Like Flies to Honey Flies in the Ointment Flies on the Wall The Gilded Fly Dropping Like Flies Flies Everywhere Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 10 Westworld’s Archideology and the Impossibility of Freedom Introduction Žižek and False Consciousness Westworld as an Archideology The Park’s Territories of Control Perpetuating Fantastical Freedoms Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 11 A Mere Instrument of Production: Representing Domestic Labour in Westworld Introduction Journeys to Consciousness Domestic Spaces and Primal Scenes Instruments of Production Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 12 Escaping the Robot’s Loop? Power and Purpose, Myth and History in Westworld’s Manufactured Frontier Introduction The Robotic Frontier The Frontier Robot Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 13 I-n-I Re-member Now: A Rastafari Reading of HBO’s Westworld Introduction Her So-Called Life Memory as Master of Death Triumph of the Will Afro-Asian Vibrations Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 14 The Theme Park of Forking Paths: Text, Intertext and Hypertext in Westworld Introduction Forking Paths Compossibility and Posthuman Becoming Patchwork Girls and Feminist Monsters Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 15 Yul Brynner’s Hat and Time Travel in the Hyperreal Introduction The Heritage Experience of Yul Brynner Time Travel in the Hyperreality of Westworld The Hat, the Gender and the Heritage Industry of Westworld Conclusion Works Cited Chapter 16 Epilogue From Season One to Season Two Reading Westworld and Season Two Works Cited Index Reading Westworld es el primer volumen que explora el significado cultural, textual y teórico de la exitosa serie de televisión de HBO Westworld. Los ensayos se dedican a una serie de investigaciones originales sobre los temas centrales de la serie, incluyendo las concepciones de lo humano y lo posthumano, la historia americana, los juegos, la memoria, la vigilancia, la IA, el feminismo, el imperialismo, el libre albedrío y el capitalismo contemporáneo. En sus variados compromisos críticos con el género, las narrativas y los contextos de Westworld, este volumen explora los significados más amplios y profundos de la muestra y las preguntas que plantea, así como considera cómo Westworld reflexiona sobre las implicaciones éticas de la vida artificial y la innovación tecnológica para nuestro propio futuro. Con ensayos críticos que aprovechan las fortalezas interdisciplinarias y las intersecciones productivas de los medios de comunicación, los estudios culturales y literarios, Reading Westworld trata de responder a la pregunta fundamental del espectáculo: "¿Alguna vez has cuestionado la naturaleza de tu realidad? Será de interés para los estudiantes, académicos y lectores en general que buscan comprometerse con Westworld y las preguntas de gran alcance que plantea sobre nuestros compromisos actuales con la tecnología