Towards An "Embodied Posthumanism“:Technology And Bodies In Never Let Me Go And Klara And The Sun

Nobel laureate Kazuo Ishiguro imagines posthuman worlds characterized by technological modifications of bodies in Never Let Me Go(2005)and Klara and the Sun(2021).In these posthuman scenarios,the wide application of human cloning,genetic engineering,and robotics threatens to eliminate the body.By encouraging readers to reconsider the relationship between the body and technological modifications,Ishiguro enters the ongoing debate on the limitations of the current model of hybrid posthuman bodies.From the perspectives of critical posthumanism and disability studies,this thesis seeks to reveal the development of Ishiguro’s understanding of the relation between bodies and technology,especially the possibility of constructing an “embodied posthumanism” revealed in the novels.This thesis consists of five chapters.Chapter One is the introduction of thesis statement,Kazuo Ishiguro and his works,literature review,and theoretical framework.Chapter Two to Chapter Four are the main body.Chapter Two discusses how the hybrid posthuman bodies produced as genetic and visual information imply the neglect of the body.Chapter Three then demonstrates how the disabling impacts of technological modifications reveal the limitations of the hybrid model.Cloning,genetic engineering,and robotics technology,by reducing the body to information,not only erase specific bodily differences but also obscure their damaging effects on different hybrid bodies.In this sense,a focus on the disabled posthuman bodies helps to expose how technological modifications affect specific bodies and even endanger them in posthuman worlds.In Chapter Four,this thesis delves into the possibility of an “embodied posthumanism”reflected in the novels.The elimination of Kathy’s disabled body as she dies warns of the threat posed to embodiment by technological modifications.Conversely,Josie’s recovery points to the conservation of embodiment as Ishiguro imposes a limit on bodily modifications.By adopting different solutions to tackle the similar crises of elimination faced by the protagonists,Ishiguro advances his understanding of body-technology relationships.He emphasizes that technological modifications should not transcend and eliminate the body,thereby highlighting the maximum extent of bodily modifications.Chapter Five concludes the thesis with a further explanation of the possibility of an “embodied posthumanism”.