Breaking the Binary: Haraway’s Cyborgs Meet Monáe’s Dirty Computers

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Donna Haraway’s Cyborg Manifesto (1985) imagines a future where traditional identity categories—like gender and race—break down, allowing for fluidity and freedom. Haraway’s cyborg transcends binaries, existing outside the confines of societal norms. Janelle Monáe’s 2018 album Dirty Computer builds on this vision, using the “dirty computer” as a metaphor for individuals who refuse to conform to strict, limiting identities. Both works challenge us to rethink what it means to be human in a world that punishes non-conformity.

In Dirty Computer, Monáe presents a dystopian world where “dirty computers” are persecuted for their difference, echoing Haraway’s cyborg—a figure that rejects being neatly categorized. Tracks like “Pynk” and “I Like That” celebrate the fluidity of identity, particularly around gender and sexuality, which resonates with Haraway’s vision of a post-gender world. In Haraway’s theory, the cyborg is free from biological and social limitations. Similarly, Monáe’s music encourages a celebration of self-definition outside of societal constraints.

Monáe’s approach, however, also explores the darker side of technology. In her world, technology is a tool of control, used to erase memories and force individuals into conformity. This duality—where technology can both liberate and oppress—is central to both Haraway’s and Monáe’s work. While Haraway’s cyborg uses technology to break free from old systems of power, Monáe shows how those same tools can be used to reinforce them.

Monáe’s album, and its accompanying “Emotion Picture,” presents a clear parallel to Haraway’s vision. The “cleaning” process in Dirty Computer is symbolic of society’s attempts to erase non-conforming identities—whether through social exclusion, legal restrictions, or outright violence. In this world, technology doesn’t just control bodies, it controls minds, erasing the very memories that make individuals unique. Monáe’s character, Jane 57821, resists this process, reflecting Haraway’s idea of the cyborg as inherently rebellious, existing outside societal boundaries and resisting erasure.

Ultimately, both Haraway and Monáe envision futures where identities are fluid, boundaries are broken, and the binaries that define us begin to dissolve. Their work invites us to consider a world where non-conformity is celebrated, and where the future is shaped by those willing to resist being boxed in. They push us to embrace the complexity of identity and challenge systems that seek to define and limit who we are.

Published by