Posthumanism Through the Lense of Cinema Main Menu Posthumanism Through the Lense of Cinema

Conclusions

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To conclude, the three films I have analyzed, I, Robot, Wall-E and Her, all imagine futures for humanity in which technology is essential and is measured against the human race. In all three films, subjectivity gave importance to the different forms of technology. In a future nearer than we think, we will have to open ourselves to the possibility that other beings will have subjectivity and emotional intelligence. Human beings are no longer as unique as we think as we move into a future of posthumanism.

On the other hand, we have to be careful because when the speeches of posthumanism surface, they are often followed by the idea of technological solutionism, in which we hope that technology will solve all our problems as if technology were the door to utopia. It is important to remember that for a long time, we have depended on technology so much that now we don't even feel it anymore. Moreover, technology cannot erase social issues and injustices. In these movies, we can see that they don't disappear. Keeping the film in mind, it raises questions such as why and how social injustices and the environment are related in a post-anthropocentric world which Braidotti explains in a posthuman future "Environmental theory stresses the link between the humanistic emphasis on Man as the measure of all things and the domination and exploitation of nature and condemns the abuses of science and technology. Both involve epistemic and physical violence over the structural 'others' and are related to the European Enlightenment ideal of 'reason.'" (Braidotti 48). Therefore, as men feel they have agency over technology, they can overuse it to the detriment of others, which means the environment or other groups in the minority. Then, the environment is always linked to social injustices, as depending on the place, the environment can further oppress minorities, as seen with the recent theory of ecofeminism. It is difficult to determine how these injustices will be carried through a posthuman future? One thing is certain: some issues will be addressed, and others will surface. Unfortunately, it is impossible to eliminate them all, as the utopia stories have shown us that it will end up in a dystopia. 

Therefore, I believe that living with technology is going to be inevitable. Still, it does not have to be as frightening as we think if we, as humans, allow ourselves to imagine other alternatives.

 

This page has paths:

  1. Her (2013) Scene analysis Diliana Proulx-Castro
  2. WALL-E (2008) Scene analysis Diliana Proulx-Castro
  3. I, Robot (2004) Scene analysis Diliana Proulx-Castro
  4. Posthumanism and Cinema Diliana Proulx-Castro

Contents of this path:

  1. Biblography

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