Question 3.
Donna Haraway’s figure of the cyborg has been said to have taken on a ‘life of its own’[1] in popular culture, science fiction and academic writing, but these are not the only areas where it has been of particular significance. The following sources will offer an exhaustive view of the ways in which the cyborg figure has been taken up by feminists. I will begin by examining Haraway’s work itself, to come to as clear a definition of ‘the cyborg’ as possible, and then progress through an investigation of modern feminism in the current techno culture.
Haraway’s ultimate description of a cyborg in A Cyborg Manifesto is very metaphoric, and complex. I will concern myself only with the introductory six paragraphs, and conclusion of the manifesto, as they are most relevant to my desire to define ‘cyborg’ in slightly more detailed terms. Her clearest description reads “A cyborg is a cybernetic organism, a hybrid of machine and organism, a creature of social reality as well as a creature of fiction”[2] . Haraway puts forth the idea of the cyborg as an ideal against the demonisation of technology. She stresses the lack of boundary between science fiction and social reality, and the cyborg is seen to have been born from the merging of the two. Cyborg imagery is told by Haraway as an escape from dualisms and a metaphor for feminist power in a new age.
Chapter one of Technologies of the gendered body by Anne Balsamo was found to be very relevant, as it discusses examples of the cyborg in popular culture- from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein in 1818, through Elektra Assassin, Max Headroom and Frankenhooter of the 1980s (which she denotes the “decade of the cyborg”[3]). Balsamo very neatly describes the cyborg as “the figuration of post-human identity in post modernity”,[4] and stresses that although the cyborg is prevalent in the mass mediated popular culture of American techno-science, this is not its only place of significance. Balsamo points out the way in which femininity is compatible with the concept of cyborg identity, describing the female body as “historically constructed as a hybrid case”[5] . The chapter goes on to examine the relationship between body, culture and society, and takes a close look at Michel Foucault’s theories of reading the body, and the feminist responses to his ideology. One such is the account of Susan Suleiman’s works, which puts forth her argument that the female body is not essentially unchanging, given in nature or a biological entity. Rather, it is symbolically constructed according to a multiplicity of cultural discourses, within different historical contexts. I found this conclusion a quite relevant description of Haraway’s cyborg.
To examine the ways in which Haraway’s cyborg was taken up by feminists, it is important to understand the technological changes which effected feminism. Sadie Plant’s examination of modern feminism in terms of the cyber revolution, in On the Matrix: Cyberfeminist simulations, was very helpful for this. Plant outlines the opportunities which were born out of the telecommunication revolution for women (most importantly the ability to network, and a fluidity of identity) Much emphasis is placed on women embracing the cyborg identity through escaping isolation and becoming interlinked online, where gender can be “bent and blurred”[6] . Plant’s statement that “Cyberrevolution is virtually real”[7] hits home with the topic of feminist cyborg identity. She introduces the idea of cyber-feminism as a set of complex systems and virtual worlds which can undermine the world view and material reality of 2000 years of patriarchy.
The term cyberfeminism kept reappearing in research, and Wazcman described the cyborg as cyberfeminism’s symbol of the essential female being[8] , so I felt it necessary to investigate further. This is where I stumbled across Faith Wilding’s article Where is feminism in cyberfeminism? The most interesting part of this report of the first Cyberfeminist International, is the breakdown of reasons for which cyberfeminists more often then not refuse to give a definition of their movement. Their hesitant attitude was attributed firstly to what Wilding calls a repudiation of “old style” feminism. The validity of 1970s feminism is rejected by cyberfeminists on account of it being, amongst other things, anti-technology. But Wilding notes that the complete rejection of historical feminism isn’t ideal, as it is important for cyberfeminists to understand the history of feminism- of past struggles and mistakes. Secondly, Wilding addresses one of the most prolific feminist rebellion groups on the net- Cybergrrls. I found the description of these females who are representatives of the new subjective and cultural feminists to be highly fitting to the ideal of the cyborg. Wilding does, however, critique the lack of theory based analyses put forth by Cybergrrls, noting the lack of feminist analyses of representations of women. She concludes that their “grrl energy”[9] (which ranges from ironic to humourous, passionate to angry and aggressive) needs to be combined with engaged political theory and practice. Wilding’s most valid point concerns the radical nature of inserting feminism into cyberspace, in an attempt to interrupt the flow of masculine codes. She stresses that cyberfeminism needs to be based on solidarity in order to create effective political action.
The VNS matrix are a group of four female artists/cyberfeminists who created a virus which aims to destruct the patriarchal power of cyberspace. Their piece A Cyberfeminist Manifesto for the 21st Century [10] is, I believe, clear evidence of how the figure of the cyborg has taken a life of its own in feminism. The manifesto distorts and twists classic gender stereotypes. It uses vulgar language and imagery of the female anatomy, and mixes it with technological terms to create a very powerful statement, charged with pure feminist energy. I also found the medium particularly relevant to the section in Haraway’s manifesto which claims “Writing is pre-eminently the technology of cyborgs…”[11] In my opinion, the piece blurs boundaries between the female and the computer/matrix/virus, using clever and manipulative language, resulting in embodiment of Haraway’s figure of the cyborg.
The sources I have examined move through the topic systematically, by first gaining an understanding of Haraway’s figure of the cyborg, and by then moving through a range of ways in which the concept has taken a life of its own in reality. The major example of this is seen in the accounts of cyberfeminism. It is undeniable that the figure of the cyborg has fuelled the imaginations of feminists. Whether consciously or unconsciously, cyberfeminism embodies the idea of the cyborg as a crucial female being.
NOTES
[2] Donna Haraway “A Cyborg Manifesto” in Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (New York: Routledge 1991) http://www.egs.edu/faculty/haraway/haraway-a-cyborg-manifesto.html (Accessed 28/08/2008)
[3] Anne Balsamo “Reading cyborgs, writing feminism” in Technologies of the gendered body (Duke University Press: Balsamo A. 1999) p17 http://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=lkr11mXPYKEC&oi=fnd&pg=PA1&dq=cyborg+feminism&ots=U6OckztE1h&sig=BBa6yF7KywVMUfL9cvvKUxDV0Pc#PPA17,M1 (Accessed 27/08/2008)
[9] Faith Wilding “Where is feminism in cyberfeminism?” p4
http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/user/fwild/faithwilding/wherefem.pdf
(Accessed 27/08/2008)
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