The Machine Anxieties of Steampunk : Contemporary Philosophy, Victorian Aesthetics, and the Future

What is steampunk and why are people across the globe eagerly embracing its neo-Victorian aesthetic? Old-fashioned eye goggles, lace corsets, leather vests, brass gears and gadgets, mechanical clocks, the look appears across popular culture, in movies, art, fashion, and literature. But steampunk is both an aesthetic program and a way-of-life and its underlying philosophy is the key to its broad appeal. Steampunk champions a new autonomy for the individual caught up in today's technology-driven society. It expresses optimism for the future but it also delivers a note of caution about our human role in a world of ever more ubiquitous and powerful machines. Thus, despite adopting an aesthetic and lifestyle straight out of the Victorian scientific romance, steampunk addresses significant 21st-century concerns about what lies ahead for humankind. The movement recovers autonomy from prevailing trends even as it challenges us to ask what it is to be human today. "What is steampunk and why are people across the globe eagerly embracing its neo-Victorian aesthetic? Old-fashioned eye goggles, lace corsets, leather vests, brass gears and gadgets, mechanical clocks, the look appears across popular culture, in movies, art, fashion, and literature. But steampunk is both an aesthetic program and a way-of-life and its underlying philosophy is the key to its broad appeal. Steampunk champions a new autonomy for the individual caught up in today's technology-driven society. It expresses optimism for the future but it also delivers a note of caution about our human role in a world of ever more ubiquitous and powerful machines. Thus, despite adopting an aesthetic and lifestyle straight out of the Victorian scientific romance, steampunk addresses significant 21st-century concerns about what lies ahead for humankind. The movement recovers autonomy from prevailing trends even as it challenges us to ask what it is to be human today."-- Provided by publisher Cover 1 Contents 8 List of Illustrations 9 Acknowledgments 11 Introduction 12 1 The Origins of Steampunk: Science Fiction and Victoriana 24 2 The Victorian/Steampunk Connection: Upheaval, Discovery, and the Birth of Modernism 52 3 The Steampunk Aesthetic in Contemporary Visual Art 108 4 Performing Steampunk 146 5 Steampunk’s Challenge to Contemporary Philosophy 180 6 Beyond Steampunk 224 Bibliography 238 Index 244 List of Plates -- List of Figures -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- 1. The Origins of Steampunk: Science Fiction and Victoriana -- 2. The Victorian/Steampunk Connection: Upheaval, Discovery and the Birth of Modernism -- 3. The Steampunk Aesthetic in Contemporary Visual Art -- 4. Performing Steampunk -- 5. Steampunk's Challenge to Contemporary Philosophy -- 6. Beyond Steampunk -- Notes -- Bibliography