A Cartography of the Posthuman

Abstract

This introductory chapter offers a comprehensive mapping of posthumanist discourse along three axes of differentiation: an optimistic/pessimistic axis, a historical-materialist/philosophical-ontological axis, and a humanist/non-humanist axis. It is argued that this last axis of differentiation, where humanism refers to a radical separation between human subjects and technological objects, is the most consequential one. Using these axes, four broad types of posthumanism are identified: “dystopic posthumanism”, “liberal posthumanism”, “radical posthumanism”, and “methodological posthumanism”. Dystopic posthumanism is characterized by an objection to the use of technology to modify or enhance humans beyond broadly accepted natural and cultural limits. Liberal posthumanism is characterized by an endorsement of bio- and enhancement technologies for self-modification and self-improvement, grounded mainly in an individual rights framework. Radical posthumanism is characterized by the view that bio- and enhancement technologies, by undermining the fixity of categories like “nature” and “the human”, contribute to a deconstruction of humanist and Enlightenment narratives based in human uniqueness and call for a radical rethinking of what it means to be human. Finally, methodological posthumanism is characterized by the development of analytical tools and frameworks that can (better) describe and highlight the zones of intersection and interaction between humans and technologies that play an essential part in human experience. These four approaches will become working categories for the rest of the book, and will be built upon in order to develop a final “mediated posthumanist” approach.