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Course No ELCS 509

Course Title Contemporary Fiction: Popular and Postmodern

Assignment Title Assignment on Body/PostGenderism based on the Reading of William Gibsons Neuromancer.

Submitted by Kaosher Ahmed, Batch 37th, Roll 106. Submitted to Kazi Ashraf Uddin, Lecturer, Dept. of English. Jahangirnagar University.

Date 25th September 2012 19.00hrs

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Transgressing the dichotomy of gendering is the common place between two circles in a Venn diagram which is post-genderism. What Donna Haraway defines as a cyborg and Katherine Hayles defines as post-human is the optimistic phase of post-genderism. The framework which is imposed in our traditional society, in A Cyborg Manifesto Haraway argues that it is the post-modern cyborg which enable the female to overcome this imposed patriarchy. Thus the idea of gender role reversal is so prominent in the post-modern fictions. The fusion of human and machine makes a hybridization like no other which is stronger and better than the both. Thats why females can become advanced humanoids which are better and stronger than their other half, in turn reversing the whole gender roles in general. Known as a razor girl Molly in William Gibsons Neuromancer is the manifestation of that post-gender idea what Haraway talks about. In the novel she assumes the active role that performs the most dangerous jobs and also known to have worked as a bodyguard too. Case on the other hand our console cowboy protagonist is seen to do less physical work but more of the virtual, is rendered (anti-hero) passive protagonist. Gibsons optimistic vision has rendered Molly with the more masculine role of the era. Case working as her lackey becomes the non-aggressor and a definite feminine role is usurped as he only works indoors (virtual reality) and like a devoted partner he is left to be a virtual companion through simstim while Molly is the one who bleeds. Cyborg addressing the center of social and political identity blurs the boundary between social postmodernist scenarios. The radical feminist movement which emphasizes women against nature, the nature vs. culture duality deconstructs as Haraway brings in the artificial hybrid called cyb-org. Being the radical notion of the third-wave feminism cyborg creates the common space between feminism and patriarchy as the creation of a new race called transgender/queer. Thus the shift from eco-feminism to cyber-feminism is made conspicuous and the gender role reversal

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is set in motion. The total identity formation begins to change as Molly seems to embody patriarchal masculine attributes as a post-gender being. She, (rather being a goddess of nature, as goddesses are also dead, becomes) a cyborg having advanced physical attributes like razor blades and mirror shades making her better and stronger than a fellow human (S/he). Post-gender Molly is more active, hardworking professional, less emotional (she cant cry) and sexually more commanding. She is the manifestation of third-wave feminism realized as she despises Riviera, a man from Turkey still with old Arab notions about women. The notion/theme of patricide is established in the novel through Molly and 3Jane, as they command/manipulate many men to work for them. 3Janes homophobic attitude towards Molly also contributes to the encompassing homocentric identity formation of post-gender. She manipulates and appears as a formidable foe. Now the biggest question remains, what gender/sex is Dixie flatline now that he is just a computer Rom construct? Or is it some kind of a beckoning towards immortality/harmony that is post-gender. Whatever the answers might be it is sanguine that through the maximization of the workspace feminism/women are trying to find the ultimate optimization of self like Molly who worked as a meat puppet only to pay for her augmentations. As women take on more and more of the masculine role (Molly has a fair amount of silicon in her head. Not the most feminine place for silicon to be in a womans body), does the working girl status remain forever as a stigma for them is still a fact to ponder over. William Gibson does provide optimism in creating the utopia of the post human what Haraway talks about but surely patriarchy will not admit defeat so easily. Is patriarchy going covert as like the subtexts in Disney Cartoons? Only time will suffice. For the time being post-gender is the only idea which seems to form the social gender role equilibrium, as long as we are jacking in to the Matrix. (Word Count 672 words)