LITERAL 19

Fiction

Poetry

Reviews

Film

Interview

LITERAL 19
Cyborg Nature
/ La reinvención de la naturaleza

In the 1960s, Manfred E. Clynes and Nathan S. Kline published an article entitled “Cyborgs and Space,” where they argued that the human species was already on a path of participant evolution (a deliberate process to redesign the human brain and body via technological means). One of the most important contributions they made, besides coining the term Cyborg, was the notion that in the midst of new technologies, humans could and should have the choice to morph into an entity that they later called the Posthuman–a concept that originated in the fields of science fiction, futurology, contemporary art and philosophy. To see the phenomenon occurring, we need look no further than the course of human history. From the most primitive prosthetic limb to the most advanced electronic gadget, we have been constantly expanding the definition of the human being as we surpass our own limitations. The time of Cyborgs is not in the future, but now. That is why Literal. Latin American Voices has dedicated the winter issue to this revolutionary idea. It brings together some of the best Cyborg writers and thinkers of the XXI Century, such as David Eagleman, Kenneth Ford, Chris Hables, Sidney Perkowiz, and Naief Yeiya. In addition, we profiled Wangechi Mutu, an artist who galvanizes beauty and race with the Cyborg concept.