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Both works, Blade Runner (1982) and Neuromancer (1984), depict sprawling, dystopian cities characterized by neon lights, towering skyscrapers, and a blend of high-tech and low-life elements. We see in Blade Runner (1982) the muggy, gloomy city that’s lit up by the artificial sporadic lighting from buildings and/or vehicles. The movie is set in 2019 in the city of Los Angeles where society has turned dystopian. There are synthetic humans, better known as replicants who question the morals of humans and the definition of humanity. Everywhere you look there are towering skyscrapers that reign over the city below. Rain is a prominent type of weather here with heavy clouds and thick pollution that reinforces the dull lighting within the movie. The less fortunate people are stuck at the bottom dwelling in the compacted streets below while people in power are flourishing above. Whereas in Neuromancer (1984) the setting takes place in Chiba City, Japan. It is assumed that this book reflects a highly advanced, but decayed world during the 21st century. Neuromancer begins to describe the city as dirty, dense, and grimy. Similarly to Blade Runner (1982), there are numerous towering buildings above, but down below are impoverished communities struggling to make ends meet legally. People have turned to crime for survival but in turn makes the setting even more disastrous. Both of these works show us that even with fancy flashing lights, the city overall has not improved one bit for the general public. This adds into the illusion of a more technologically advanced society. The setting shows the power dynamic between the higher up and the rest of the population. While there is crime, corruption, and poverty it is also true that there is technology, money, and beautiful artificial landscapes. Both works can be seen as seminal examples of cyberpunk; just as the movie Blade Runner (1982) had heavy influence on the novel Neuromancer (1984).

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