Deconstruction of gender in Post-cyberpunk literature through a Poststructural feminist approach

Abstract

This study highlights the prominence of Post-cyberpunk as an emerging genre of Postmodern Literature. As technological progress has altered the ontology of humanity in the era of information technology, this study aims to critically discuss issues of identity and representation related to gender and gender roles within this genre. Although ample critical work has been done on Post-cyberpunk, this study is unique in that it is an analysis of different characters related to the subversion of gender presented in selected Post-cyberpunk (and also postmodernist) narratives: Makers, Accelerando and The Rapture of the Nerds. This study proposes to critically analyze the representation and deconstruction of gender, primarily against the backdrop of Feminist Poststructuralism. Apart from the deconstruction of gender, this study also explores Post-cyberpunk as contemporary literature that represents the many dimensions of society. There are ample representations of gender in the selected novels that subvert assigned gender roles, and also deconstruct stereotyped gender roles affiliated with masculine and feminine identities.