Ch+16+Cyberpunk

=What is Cyberpunk?=

toc **Cybernetics** //n. sing.// the comparative study of control and communication mechanisms in machines and living things.**punk** //n.// (a follower of) a youth movement of the late 1970s and 1980s, characterized by a violent rejection of established society.



Cyberpunk is a term created by science fictions writers, William Gibson and Bruce Sterling, which refers to a sub-genre that encompasses the age of technology and the social factors afflicted with the culture. Its evolution began in the works of science fictions novels which were based on a cyberspace or cyber age world. The fiction usually involves conflict of hackers, artificial intelligence, and the near future of a dystopian earth.

Cyberpunk is a science fiction cult focused around picturing society amongst extreme technological advancements. Cyberpunk culture became widespread in part due to William Gibson's //Neuromancer (1984).// It is a novel describing life after technology has thoroughly permeated virtually all of its facets. The body is so dependant on extentions, support systems, etc. that survival is difficult or impossible without these physical improvements- they not only improve but also sustain the life of the body.

=Cyberpunk Themes=

Cyberpunk literature often emphasizes existentialist, futuristic and postmodern themes. There is a sense of lonliness in the protagonist's world where he or she is surrounded by technology and cyborgs. The human aspect of life is often the focal point of the story which examines questions of meaning and existence.

=Cyberpunk in Media=

This culture has also been made popular by the film //Blade Runner// and similar futuristic films such as //Immortel ad Vitam// by [|Enki Bilal]. The animated film //Ghost In a Shell// is an excellent example of examining what is human within a machine-oriented world.

=Works Cited= [|?30?http://hem.passagen.se/replikant/cyberpunk.htm]

[|http://project.cyberpunk.ru/idb/subculture_past_and_present.html]

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0082094/

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