20.1-2 | Dismantling the Anthropocene: Beyond Binary Categorizations | Monika Michałowska

Does ‘human’ denote a unique and distinctive feature of certain beings? Is it a noun that conveys the defining core of an entity or rather an adjective that describes some faculties of certain beings? Is being human a closed and fixed state of existence, or is it rather a transitional stage between something happening now and something yet to come? Is it a biological or an engineered condition? (Michałowska, 2022)

#inhuman #nonhuman #cyborg #virus #being-with #togetherness #being-one-and-many

Editorial

3-9

What does it mean to be human? The faces of the human in the twenty-first century

MONIKA MICHAŁOWSKA

What does it mean to be human? This question has made a meteoric career for itself, becoming a focal point of almost every thread of the transhumanist debate. Significant as it is, the question eludes any definitive answer, since it directly engenders an array of related queries. This Special Issue questions our notions of the human being, human subjectivity, superiority and uniqueness, which tend to be underpinned by simplistic and simplifying dichotomies entrenched in western philosophy, science and art. Eclipsed by the hierarchical vision of the world and dualistic metaphysics, the concept of the nonhuman (regardless of its biological form or ontological status) has always been dependent on its paring element (the human) losing its own significance and independent status. By articulating the problems we face in understanding and defining the human and the nonhuman, this Special Issue offers an insight into the current transhumanist discourse. Crossing the boundaries of disciplines and definitions, the contributors propose an assemblage of methodological and conceptual scaffoldings to build on in this project. They seek new ways and analytical strategies to advance the notions of ‘being one and many’ and ‘being-with’, and in doing so, they envision a new world where forging relations and co-existence with nonhuman agents lie at the core of human experience. The editorial gives some insight into the studies and concepts of this issue.

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||| Founding Editor: Roy Ascott Guest Editors for issue 21.1-2: Monika Michałowska Editorial Organism: Tom Ascott, John Bardakos, Dalila Honorato, Hu Yong, Claudia Jacques, Claudia Westermann Production Manager: Faith Newcombe