From cyborgs to the virtual that makes or breaks reality

Over the winter break I caught myself wondering what “Cyborg Rhetorics” was going to entail. Now that I’ve been in the class for a short period I find myself in a different kind of limbo. It turns out that even the scholars in the field are somewhat undecided in their positions within the realm of cyborg selves and virtual reality. From Harraway to Ryan—and the notable works of thinkers like Baudrillard and Levy—it turns out that this field of thought (and study) is full of questions and seemingly opposing views. Still, I would I would go as far to say that these views are not opposing each other at all, but actually working together to help explain something that may be too abstract to explain (for now). Without offering a concrete explanation, but rather two vastly differing ones, Ryan has made clear that the world of virtual reality is one that we are still trying to make sense of. This feeling is one that is familiar throughout Haraway’s text as well. From cyborgs to the virtual that makes or breaks reality, one cannot deny that this is part of who we are today. Whether one chooses to accept it or not, it’s here to stay, growing more a part of our lives with every day.