Donna Haraway.

A Cyborg Manifesto.

1984.

Essay.

Reflecting on the situation that humans (women in particular) find themselves in towards the end on the 20th century, Haraway argues for the cyborg as a model under which to understand ourselves. As we’ve been profoundly re-shaped and continue to be impacted by bio-tech, computers, pop-culture and more – the dream of a ‘human’ life, lived in it’s natural unmediated state has all but vanished. As she points out – “The cyborg would not recognise the Garden of Eden; it is not made of mud and cannot dream of returning to dust.” (p. 9)

A major theme running through the text is that the emergence of this said cyborg not only now changes everything, it forces us to realise that nothing ever was truly as it seemed. The cyborg not only destroys the garden, but shows us that the garden was never anything more than a shabby assemblage of cultural artefacts to begin with. While for some this might form of a crises, Haraway argues that by confronting the situation head on, it provides a escape route, an avenue for profound cultural change. After all, cyborgs can be rewired, reprogrammed – their codes can be hacked and altered in useful ways.

Haraway. D. (1984). A Cyborg Manifesto. Minnesota, USA: University of Minnesota Press.

Categories: Post-Human / Making Worlds