Cyborg Presence...

For Aristotle rhetoric was the art of persuasion and for Burke, identification—at the core values of cyborg rhetoric is a connection to “presence.” The cyborg is here, no, wait, the cyborg is us. It has used rhetoric to become a part of us, exist within us, and make itself known through us. The cyborg in me is speaking now, trying to make sense of itself through a language never meant for it. The cyborg has figured us out and is now trying to reveal itself in any way possible. For the cyborg, rhetoric is a tool for coming into existence. The machine in us has adopted (and is evolving) the language of the human to establish a presence, become an entity in itself—not just a technological advancement, but an advancement as a “living” being. Just as we attempt to make language our own, so too is the cyborg making rhetoric its own, utilizing it to manifest its identity. We are the cyborg whose identity is unclear to even ourselves; therefore, our only hope is to make our presence known. Through cyborg rhetoric we have a voice, a means for our evolved selves to be noticed, heard, and wondered upon. The cyborg is post-gender, post-race, post-social class, and post-human and cyborg rhetoric, in its development, is how we were introduced and presently the only way we can talk about (or attempt to make any sense of) it. Cyborg rhetoric reveals that we are no longer where we were, but at the same time, not quite where we are headed. The cyborg has acquainted itself with us through rhetoric and as abstract and unclear much of this relationship is, one thing is absolutely clear—the cyborg is here and it is a part of us.