"Is He Still Human? Are You?": Young Adult Science Fiction in the Posthuman Age

Abstract

Ostry analyzes science fiction texts, written for young adults, which deal with the tenets of the posthuman age: cloning, genetic engineering, prolongation of life, and neuropharmacology. She discusses how these texts use the possibilities of biotechnology as metaphors for adolescence. The texts outline the ethics of biotechnology, such as the creation of a superclass, and crossing the boundaries between human and animal, human and machine. Most of the texts place nurture above nature and promote a "safe," traditional vision of humanity despite the potential of biotechnology to change the human form.