“The mind is the effect, not the cause” –
exploring consciousness in Nikesh Shukla’s Meatspace Cover Image

“The mind is the effect, not the cause” – exploring consciousness in Nikesh Shukla’s Meatspace
“The mind is the effect, not the cause” – exploring consciousness in Nikesh Shukla’s Meatspace

Author(s): Piotr Czerwiński
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Other Language Literature, Philology
Published by: Akademia Techniczno-Humanistyczna w Bielsku-Białej
Keywords: consciousness;mind;technological unconscious;cyberspace;cyborg;

Summary/Abstract: In Meatspace, Nikesh Shukla depicts an individual totally immersed in the virtual space to the extent that the meatspace – the physical world, as opposed to the cyberspace – becomes of secondary importance. Consequently, the physical world interweaves with the virtual reality, which reflects the posthuman condition of the contemporary individuals. The posthuman view considers the material embodiment to be purely accidental, thus perceiving informational pattern rather than materiality as central to being. By discussing the concepts of the extended mind and the technological unconscious, this paper looks at how the narrative of the novel reflects the contemporary mind construed as a product of interaction between the individuals and their technological environments, exemplified by the technology of ubiquitous computing.

  • Issue Year: 1/2017
  • Issue No: 28
  • Page Range: 39-54
  • Page Count: 16
  • Language: English