Silence of the Idols: Appropriating the Myths of Daedalus and Sisyphus for Posthumanist Discourses

Abstract

Both current and past analyses and critiques of transhumanist and posthumanist theories have had a propensity to cite the Greek myth of Prometheus as a paradigmatic figure. Although stark differences exist amongst the token forms of posthumanist theories and transhumanism, both theoretical domains claim promethean theory as their own. By first analyzing the appropriation of the myth in both posthumanism and transhumanism I show how the myth fails to be foundational to both camps simultaneously. I then introduce the Camusian Myth of Sisyphus as a competing analogy that ultimately serves as a myth better suited to address the posthumanist position by shifting away from humanist-laden dichotomies that are characteristic of transhumanist thought. I ultimately show that Sisyphus, as the 'absurd man' that Camus claims him to be, is himself the posthuman, thus serving as a more ideal foundational myth for posthumanism and preserving the importance of narrative in posthuman discourses. To conclude I show that the concept of Sisyphus as a posthuman icon has significance that reaches beyond narrative value to current ecological debates in posthumanist