Cyborgization: Pros and Cons

Introduction

Modern scientists are giving their full attention to the potential benefits and risks of the ongoing convergence between human nature and advanced technology. The social and ethical aspects of potential technological transformations of the human body have spurred intense scientific debate and led to opposing conclusions. The matter of cyborg creation, the replacement of body parts with high-tech analogues (many of which are already available in today’s age of robust IT), and the development of bioengineered technologies have attracted more and more attention from researchers in scientific, humanities and cross-disciplinary fields. The relevance of research directed at problems of society’s “cyborgization” is reflected in media culture. The image of the cyborg emerged as influenced by scientific developments and the development of media culture. Contemporary media culture shows contradicting views of the cyborg. The cyberman stands in media space as both a Stranger and a Friend. Using a philosophical and anthropological analytical approach, the author presents a modern research review connected with understanding the essence of cyborgs, their role in the society of the future as well as an analysis of the social and humanitarian aspects of the societal cyborgization process. The development of cyber technologies is analyzed on the basis of their further implementation: gender transformation, demographic transition, immortalism, etc. The author pays special attention to the image of the cyborg in media culture, from cinema to computer games. The image of “cyborg” has been defined in modern culture by industrial production and its gradual legitimization in the consumer’s consciousness, which leads to a shift in the ontological boundaries of human existence and a statement of new existential issues of post-identity.