Annotated Webliography

Question: From Frankenstein to the Visible Human Project, the body is continually reinterpreted as a limit to what it means to be human.

With the increasing capabilities of medicine which have accompanied the technological advances over time the human body is continually undergoing modification. These modifications mean that the body is physically becoming less organic and the way in which we view the human body is progressively more digitalized. Following on from these two themes is the question of what effects this process could have on both a micro and a macro level. These are effects both to the individual in terms of identity and the effects on society as a whole if this process continues. The following five sources explore these key issues concerning the way in which the digital age has impacted the extent to which we can consider ourselves human.

The article by Chuck Meyer is a useful starting point in considering the focus question.[1] Meyer draws largely on the arguments of Donna Haraway as a way to frame his article. Meyer argues along the same lines as Haraway in that he sees that we are more or less all cyborgs in that separating ourselves from computers is almost impossible in today’s culture. We are progressively thinking of ourselves less as humans and more as technologically created beings. In terms of the original question this source is helpful in considering the physical limits of being human. The fact that it draws on the work of Haraway gives the article a great deal of credibility which, when considering internet sources, is an important aspect to consider. However, even though this is a sign of credibility it tends to amount in less original ideas and more a retelling of Haraway’s own work.

The Ray Kurzweil article is an extremely beneficial source especially when read in conjunction with Meyer’s article.[2] Unlike Meyer who agrees with Haraway that we are all cyborgs Kurzweil does not believe that we are there yet. Kurzweil does however give a detailed analysis on the ways in which humans rely more and more on mechanical intervention for their existence. This is a good source as it relates directly to the topic in terms of the physical limitations on being human in an increasingly technological age. Not only does the article provide information on how humans are currently using machines for physical enhancement it also looks to the future to show how mechanical intervention in humans will progress. The fact that Kurzweil does not call on any scholars to support his argument means that it is a good companion to the Meyer article as it provides a more personal point of view. This source is therefore a good expansion of Meyer’s ideas.

Brenda E. Brasher has written an article which centers on two concepts which prove themselves important to this topic.[3] The first is how the idea of the cyborg and how we came to regard ourselves as cyborgs crossed over from being a fictional notion to being a reality. The history of the cyborg is an important aspect to consider as it shows how the idea of the cyborg has changed and developed over time. The second is the rise in how popular culture is acting as a source of religious inspiration for the increasing breed of cyborgs. Both of these concepts play a key role in analyzing how humanity is becoming more and more dependent on technology on both a physical and an emotional level. The article outlines that technology is an increasing necessity for us on a daily basis, invading almost every sphere of our existence. This is a good source to use, especially, like the previous source, in conjunction with Meyer’s.

The next article written by Victoria Vesna is a valuable source in that it deals how the human body has become a digitalized entity.[4] More so it deals with the idea of the body, in light of the visible human project, becoming more technologically objectified than ever before. Specifically the article discusses how the interior of the body has evolved from being a personal space to being one that is able to be accessed by anyone at will. Computerization is all the time more defining what it means to be human. Similar to the work of Meyer, Vesna uses Haraway, among other scholars, within her article. Vesna’s work is extremely detailed, raising many new issues instead of merely repeating those of other scholars which Meyer has a tendency to do. In addition to this the source is useful to the focus question as one of the questions it asks is how much of our bodies we can call our own in this digitalized age.

The article by Steve Mizrach differs from the previous sources in that it focuses on the ethics of technological and human assimilation.[5] This is useful because it offers not just the ways in which being human is increasingly limited but it also describes the consequences of these rising limitations. While Mizrach acknowledges that there are positive consequences to human integration with technology it is mainly the negative consequences on which Mizrach focuses. This article provides a different view to that of Haraway essentially arguing that the disintegration of society as we know it could be the result of continued decreasing levels of humanity with the rise of technological integration. This source is useful in opening up and giving a deeper outlook on the given question. It is also valuable because it covers a unique area in comparison to the other sources.

The above sources give a detailed and valuable overview of the way in which being human has indeed become limited with the increase in technology and knowledge. The sources provide insight into both the physical and the emotional limitations of human beings. However in addition to this the sources also assess the consequences which these limitations of humanity will have in both the present and the future. Furthermore aside from being valuable sources they are also credible which it extremely important when considering sources available on the internet. Most sources call on well known and respected scholars and those which do not can be used in conjunction with those that do.


[1] Meyer, Chuck (1997), Human Identity in the Age of Computers, http://fragment.nl/mirror/Meyer/CyborgIdentity.htm, (accessed 23 August 2008).
[2] Kurzweil, Ray (2002), ‘We Are Becoming Cyborgs’, http://www.kurzweilai.net/articles/art0449.html?printable=1, (accessed 23 August 2008).
[3] Brasher, Brenda. E , ‘The Cyborg: Technological Socialization and Its Link to the Religious Function of Popular Culture’, http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=404, (accessed 16 August 2008).
[4] Vesna, Victoria, Tracing Bodies of Information Overflow, http://vv.arts.ucla.edu/publications/publications/00-01/BodyCaught/data_bodiesF.htm, (accessed 16 August 2008).
[5] Mizrach, Steve, ‘Should there be a limit placed on the integration of humans and computers and electronic technology?’, http://www.fiu.edu/~mizrachs/cyborg-ethics.html, (accessed 23 August 2008).