ABSTRACT
At the intersections of sf, critical studies of science and technology, and cultural theory, there is a complex and fascinating ongoing debate about the nature of human nature in an increasingly pervasive technoculture. This is the context for science studies such as Bruce Mazlish (1993) and N. Katherine Hayles (1999); for the cultural criticism of Neil Badmington (2000); and for cultural studies projects such as Steven Best and Douglas Kellner (2001) and Elaine L. Graham (2002). All assume some familiarity with sf literature (and, often, with sf lm and television), and some include substantial discussions of particular sf texts, such as Hayles’s readings of novels by Philip K. Dick and Graham’s chapters on Frankenstein (1818) and Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987-94). As part of this critical conversation, Thomas Foster (2005) and Sherryl Vint (2007) read post-cyberpunk sf through the lenses provided by theorists such as Hayles, as well as through poststructuralist work on subjectivity and identity.
