Week Eleven: Cyberpunk and Steampunk

“Case fell into the prison of his own flesh.”

     I think it is a common feeling among those with chronic pain and physical disabilities, to feel contempt for one’s own body. At least I do. The bigger sting than the physical pain is that it prevents you from doing what you love. It is not surprising that depression is co-morbid. We see this in the main character of Neuromancer as he struggles with not being able to jump into the matrix due to damage to his nervous system. He is described as “living for the bodiless exultation of cyberspace” and when this is taken away we see him turn to drugs, trying to chase a similar high to cyberspace, to not feel his body. Without cyberspace, we see that he is reckless and mostly uncaring about himself as he is passively trying to die through his bad decisions

     There is something inherently desirable to be free from one’s own body People have always used inventions and technology to do more than what a physical form would allow. We can see this concept as far back as Icarus, who tries to do the impossible and fly as no human had before. We all know how that turned out.

    Case is also confined by the his cyberspace addictions. Even when he gets healed he is bound to the people who did it as they’ve attached dissolving mycotoxin to his arteries and if he doesn’t  complete the job he’ll be back where he started. The drive to be rid of the problems accompanying a body leaves him no choice but to do what Armitage wants. In this way addiction is a prison as much as his body.