Although speculative fiction in all its iterations has historically mostly been the domain of white, Western men it inherently possesses the capacity for theorizing different futures. This thesis...Show moreAlthough speculative fiction in all its iterations has historically mostly been the domain of white, Western men it inherently possesses the capacity for theorizing different futures. This thesis will explore the works of speculative fiction by three female authors of color: N.K. Jemisin’s Broken Earth trilogy, Octavia Butler’s Parable duology and Nnedi Okorafor’s Who Fears Death to examine how these novels imagine alternative futures. The theoretical framework will consist of the integration of posthumanist thought with cyborg theory and postcolonial theory, as these theoretical approaches all share the theorization of challenge to dominant power structures. Ultimately, this thesis will read these works and specifically their main characters as figures who straddle or ascend boundaries and in doing so, offer possibilities for transformation and resistance.Show less
The focus in Afrofuturist scholarship has always been on the ways in which the black experience, particularly the forcible dislocation of the Middle Passage, has been akin to sensations of...Show moreThe focus in Afrofuturist scholarship has always been on the ways in which the black experience, particularly the forcible dislocation of the Middle Passage, has been akin to sensations of alienation and “Othering” explored in science fiction and speculative fiction. While a range of technologies have been analyzed in the context of Afrofuturism, from sonic, to digital, to even aerospace technologies, I argue in this thesis that there is a gap in scholarship on the medical technologies that undergird the alienation experienced by African Americans. To fill this gap, my research focuses on two works of fiction, Ralph Ellison’s classic novel Invisible Man (1952) and Jordan Peele’s recent movie Get Out (2017), that deal with the oppressive power of medicine. I argue that in both narratives medical experiments are used to take control over black bodies and minds, and I position this political violence into a history of medical experimentation and abuse on African Americans as well as Afrofuturism. As much as the medical mistreatment that the protagonists in these texts suffer seems exclusive to the world of science fiction, it has been, and might continue to be, part of the real experience of black Americans.Show less
Artistic practice today is uniquely situated to pose critical, alternative responses to contemporary ecological problems. A compelling example from Mexico City is the 2015 performance piece Plan...Show moreArtistic practice today is uniquely situated to pose critical, alternative responses to contemporary ecological problems. A compelling example from Mexico City is the 2015 performance piece Plan Acalote by contemporary art collective Plan Acalli, which reenacted the journey of a traditional acalli boat across Mexico City, crossing highways and avenues that were once canals. This thesis examines the ecological potential of this artwork by studying the performance and its context through a framework of materialist posthumanism. I argue that Plan Acalote crucially enabled human participants to develop environmental skills and awareness and involved ritual, pilgrimage-like encounters. I propose that, in this way, the acalli boat’s journey can thus be read as a material transformation or “becoming” of paved urban roads into an acalote, or Nahua waterway: a collaborative, situated and performative strategy towards research, environmental awareness and art. Therefore, Plan Acalote ultimately demonstrated the potential of a shift in cosmovision through art as a viable approach to furthering ecological goals.Show less
This thesis explores the role and influence of artificial intelligence in our contemporary society through the inter-subjective and embodied experience of new media art. By exploring the...Show moreThis thesis explores the role and influence of artificial intelligence in our contemporary society through the inter-subjective and embodied experience of new media art. By exploring the intersecting lines between art, technology, cognition and society, it discusses the potential in artistic practices involving intelligent technologies, to reframe the way in which we engage with Artificial Intelligence. This research benefits from an interdisciplinary approach that reaches through and beyond the field of contemporary art to challenge the mainstream discussion on the future of A.I. and the ethics of its applications. In order to do so, this thesis begins by establishing an understanding of embodiment in light of postcognitive approaches that move away from the dualism of mind and matter and negate representationalist paradigms of perception. This forms the basis from which to explore the particular subjectivities and material encounters in the practice and experience of new media art that engages with intelligent technologies. This thesis uses specific case studies involving creative applications of A.I. in contemporary art to reveal our interaction and co-existence with intelligent technologies as intricate and uniquely entangled. With the support of scientific, philosophical and aesthetic theories, it ultimately argues that such applications of A.I. in artistic practice provide a unique perspective for a transformative encounter with regards to the self, to our performed reality and to our becoming in a posthumanist environment.Show less
The era of Anthropos or so called Anthropocene has been prevalent in the last decades, suggesting an overwhelming human influence upon the earth which propagates the hierarchical system such as...Show moreThe era of Anthropos or so called Anthropocene has been prevalent in the last decades, suggesting an overwhelming human influence upon the earth which propagates the hierarchical system such as dualist thinking and results in both human and animal oppression. The need for a new epistemic perception is therefore required in order to overcome the boundaries that shaped the anthropocentrism.Through the methodology of the artwork and philosophical analysis this thesis will strive to address the issues on how the traditional anthropocentric thinking has limited the ways we have established our relationship with animals, plants and nature in general. Why art is considered as an exceedingly needed aspect in overcoming the anthropocentric thinking will be explained in four consecutive chapters, each explaining and giving the reader an apprehensible understanding on how art is able to challenge the anthropocentric conundrum that has ubiquitously remained in the way we ‘other’ animals and plants.Show less
Becoming posthuman does not mean letting go of all human ethics. Rather, the posthuman turn is about a pluralisation of perspectives, which does not mean a negation of the human perspective. The...Show moreBecoming posthuman does not mean letting go of all human ethics. Rather, the posthuman turn is about a pluralisation of perspectives, which does not mean a negation of the human perspective. The cases of late Soviet science fiction (Solaris, Roadside picnic, Solyaris, and Stalker) contain elements of the posthuman turn. Although their makers were informed by different worldviews, in all four cases the concept of the human and human mastery are challenged by the unsolved and unsolvable mystery of non-human agency.Show less
Bachelor thesis | Film- en literatuurwetenschap (BA)
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Om in het huidige technologische tijdperk onderzoek te doen naar de herdefiniëring van het mens-zijn zullen in dit eindwerkstuk verschillende vormen van interactie tussen de mens en technologie...Show moreOm in het huidige technologische tijdperk onderzoek te doen naar de herdefiniëring van het mens-zijn zullen in dit eindwerkstuk verschillende vormen van interactie tussen de mens en technologie worden verkend en daarnaast geanalyseerd worden aan de hand van verschillende culturele objecten. Het onderzoek zal geleid worden door de volgende onderzoeksvraag: op welke manier bevragen de roman The Circle en de films Her en Ex Machina de relatie tussen de mens en technologie, met als effect de lezer en kijker aan te sporen om na te denken over de herdefiniëring van het mens-zijn in het posthumanistisch tijdperk?Show less
