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The Transhuman Antihero: Paradoxical Protagonists of Speculative Fiction from Mary Shelley to Richard Morgan

Michael Grantham

3.5/5 ( ratings)

Advances in science and technology no longer change how we live, they determine it. In the not-too-distant future, techno-scientific developments may make individuals stronger, smarter, healthier and more productive--but to what end? Addressing this question, speculative fiction has created an abundance of transhuman characters, protagonists with extraordinary strength, intelligence or abilities. Often they are antiheroes, openly rejecting--or rejected by--society and acting on immoral or extreme principles that challenge readers to approve, condemn, excuse or explain. This study explores the antihero of speculative fiction as a paradoxical blend of human and transhuman. These protagonists illustrate the dynamics of individual, techno-scientific and societal norms, and blur distinctions between human and machine, biology and technology, right and wrong. Fictional works covered include Mary Shelley's Frankenstein , Olaf Stapledon's Odd John , Alfred Bester's The Stars My Destination , William Gibson's Neuromancer , Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen , Richard Morgan's trilogy and Black Man .

Pages: 196

Format: Paperback

Publisher: McFarland & Company

Release: September 11, 2015

ISBN: 0786494050

ISBN 13: 9780786494057

The Transhuman Antihero: Paradoxical Protagonists of Speculative Fiction from Mary Shelley to Richard Morgan

Michael Grantham

3.5/5 ( ratings)

Advances in science and technology no longer change how we live, they determine it. In the not-too-distant future, techno-scientific developments may make individuals stronger, smarter, healthier and more productive--but to what end? Addressing this question, speculative fiction has created an abundance of transhuman characters, protagonists with extraordinary strength, intelligence or abilities. Often they are antiheroes, openly rejecting--or rejected by--society and acting on immoral or extreme principles that challenge readers to approve, condemn, excuse or explain. This study explores the antihero of speculative fiction as a paradoxical blend of human and transhuman. These protagonists illustrate the dynamics of individual, techno-scientific and societal norms, and blur distinctions between human and machine, biology and technology, right and wrong. Fictional works covered include Mary Shelley's Frankenstein , Olaf Stapledon's Odd John , Alfred Bester's The Stars My Destination , William Gibson's Neuromancer , Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen , Richard Morgan's trilogy and Black Man .

Pages: 196

Format: Paperback

Publisher: McFarland & Company

Release: September 11, 2015

ISBN: 0786494050

ISBN 13: 9780786494057

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