Transhumanism’s relationship with postmodern philosophy and critical theory is a strange one. For example, Nick Bostrom’s influential “A History of Transhumanist Thought” spans centuries, covering the gamut from Utnapishtim to the President’s Council on Bioethics, but makes little mention of those who radically challenge the core Enlightenment narrative upon which he builds his history. Figures like Nietzsche, Marx, and Donna Haraway do all receive a nod in Bostrom’s essay, including Haraway’s cyberfeminist motto, “I’d rather be a cyborg than a goddess,” but their ideas go unanalyzed. Of course, the context for these thinkers is often ignored and their works simply mined for epigraphs and potent, argument-punctuating lines such as Haraway’s.
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Posted by
TransAlchemy on 07/25 at 01:56 AM
Wow talk about timing!
Our counter piece on this subject!
http://www.transalchemy.com/2009/07/postgenderism-gender-singularity-video.html
Lets tango
Posted by
Cathryn Platine on 07/27 at 12:06 PM
Woah…......yet another colonization of my life is what I am reading here. I was born that rarest of rare, a “true hermaphrodite” (tetragametic chimera) and was surgically assigned male as an infant. I had to correct that as an adult as my “identity” is completely female. Born intersexed, I was forced to “transsex” my own body to correct the “techo” “improvements” some arrogant SOB of a doctor imposed on it because he could.
Transgenders do not pursue surgery. Transgender’s trans their gender, not their sex. Transsexuals are the ones who transform their bodies to conform with the internal sense of gender and their gender is consistent by definition, from the earliest self-knowledge. That’s the first of my objections. Do not presume to colonize the lives of others
According to the jargon you are using, I’m an eco-feminist but suppose you could also say I am a trans-humanist except from a religious/spiritual focus rather than a techno one. I’m also a historian and theologian of the Pagan variety.
I do find those who appropriate my life experiences to support their own agendas offensive and feel that is exactly what you have done here. Despite the claims of transgender activists, transgender is NOT an “inclusive” term but a forced categorization on a class that has no desire to be part of that group. As someone actually born intersexed, I object to being dehumanized by your scholarly ramblings as well. If you are actually studying identity politics, add some bio-ethics and a dash of respect of individuals rights to self identify and self determination before engaging in flights of intellectual fancy next time.
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