Cyberculture, Cyborgs and Science Fiction: Consciousness and the Posthuman. * William S. Haney.

Abstract

William S. Haney, in his wide-ranging overview of consciousness studies and science-fiction literature in the posthuman era, creates a compelling argument for the return of consciousness studies to the field of English studies. More convincing is his analysis of short science fiction literature, specifically cyberpunk, and the posthuman condition. Haney brings to the discussion a learned background in Eastern philosophy of consciousness, a command of contemporary literary theories, and a good overview of current theories in Western embodiment and consciousness. A synthesis of ideas between the fields of consciousness studies and English studies offers new interdisciplinary approaches to posthumanist studies. While he creates a broad and convincing argument about the potential for humanity's loss of consciousness in the posthuman era, the argument does pound at the door of contemporary materialist writings. To many academics in English studies, philosophy, and the neurosciences endorsing a purely materialist stance in regards to human consciousness, Haney's references to Eastern mysticism and transcendence will be seen as unsettling. In the end, however, those who might have seen something missing in the materialism of posthumanism may find much to like.