Cybermesjasze. Polski cyberpunk i romantyczne fantazmaty
Cybermessiahs: The Fetishes of Cyberpunk and the Romantic Tradition

Summary/Abstract: This article tracks Romantic tropes in Polish cyberpunk fiction of the 1990s and itssequels. The main focus is on messianic figures and the uncertainty surrounding Poland’scultural status as belonging to both West and the East. Like its American prototype,Polish cyberpunk is a literary record of social unrest caused by rapid political, social andtechnological changes. Unlike the American version, however, it does not focus on theparadoxes of global capitalism, but tries to salvage Romantic metaphysics in the faceof rapid cultural transformations. The sacrifice of the cybernetic messiah gives the lieto the new axiological system’s claims and enables a return to the safe positions of themonolith of Polish Romantic culture.

• Details
• Contents