Tag: cyborg

What do an Author and Music Artist Have in Common… Societal Revolution!

Lavell A.
Reading Time: 2 minutes

Both Donna Haraway’s essay “Cyborg Manifesto” and Janelle Monae’s album “Dirty Computer” share a similar tone in their message.  They challenge the societal norms regarding what really defines human identity.  Through their pieces, they blend aspects between humans and technology producing numerous additional possibilities on how one would view themselves.  In turn here, the goal both creators seek to achieve is to inspire people to feel comfortable with showing their true selves even if there are others that may oppose you.  Be who you really are.

            To start us off, Haraway’s cyborg is designed to blur the societal boundaries placed on human and machine and the binary gender roles of male and female.  The idea of being found in between any of these roles are uplifted instead of shot down which takes us to Monae’s album where that is the whole central idea.  Those who are termed “Dirty Computers” are the same people that defy the societal norms.  The cyborg identity is designed to be adaptable and limber (easily shaped or changed).

            The difference between the two pieces is that Monae’s album depicts the side that sees this freedom as unlawful much more than Haraway.  Haraway mainly focuses on the relationship of the cyborg resembling that of liberation.  Monae adds more worldbuilding to her story to signify that even though personal change is good and should be celebrated, everyone doesn’t think the same way.  Her character is being fully persecuted against by the authorities of her world, because she wanted to be more than what society would allow.

            Both ladies all together hope to share a hopeful tale in which no matter whomever it concerns should truly become one with themselves.  Your identity shouldn’t be restricted by other people or governmental identities and if they are in any way, you should stand up for yourself and what you believe in.  Embrace your fluidity. Celebrate it.  And live beyond the limitations set before you.

What is it to Even Be Human?

Olivia S.
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Donna Haraway’s Cyborg Manifesto and Janelle Monáe’s Dirty Computer may appear to be from vastly different worlds—an academic essay from the mid-1980s and a futuristic concept album from 2018. Yet, both works converge on shared themes of identity, resistance, and the fluidity of the human identity. Haraway’s cyborg—a fusion of machine and organism that disrupts conventional boundaries—is mirrored in Monáe’s portrayal of “dirty computers,” individuals whose non-conforming identities challenge societal norms in a dystopian world. Monáe takes Haraway’s theoretical vision and weaves it into a heartfelt narrative, exploring fluidity, rebellion, and liberation.

Haraway’s essay imagines a “post-gender” world where identity is no longer constrained by traditional binaries. Her cyborg metaphor dismantles divisions such as human/machine, nature/culture, and male/female, arguing that these boundaries perpetuate inequality. Similarly, Monáe’s album celebrates identities that resist categorization, representing her own fluid identity. Songs like “PYNK” embrace the fluidity of gender and sexuality, rejecting fixed definitions in favor of a spectrum. Monáe’s lyrics and visuals suggest that liberation lies in embracing multiplicity—an idea central to Haraway’s manifesto.

This image was created by ChatGPT on 22 November 2024. https://chatgpt.com/c/6740b8ff-9844-8009-bf63-205b500367fd

Moreover, Haraway frames the cyborg as inherently political, a symbol of resistance against oppressive systems. This is vividly echoed in Monáe’s Dirty Computer, which tells the story of Jane 57821, a rebel in a society that “cleans” non-conforming individuals to erase their identities. Tracks like “Django Jane” and “Crazy, Classic, Life” celebrate defiance and self-expression, aligning with Haraway’s vision of the cyborg as a figure that destabilizes oppressive power structures. Monáe’s dystopia critiques real-world systems of control, from surveillance to social conformity, much like Haraway’s cyborg challenges the dominance of capitalist and patriarchal ideologies. Haraway’s cyborg can be further examined in this analysis by Rebecca Pohl.

Monáe also mirrors Haraway’s exploration of technology as a double-edged sword. In Cyborg Manifesto, technology is both a tool of oppression and a means of subversion. The cyborg’s hybridity offers a way to reimagine identity beyond traditional limits. Similarly, Monáe’s album presents technology as a battleground. Songs like “Screwed” critique how power exploits technological tools, while the album’s narrative ultimately suggests that technology can also be reclaimed for liberation. The concept of being a “dirty computer” embraces the idea of imperfection as a form of resistance, much like Haraway’s cyborg rejects purity in favor of hybrid identities.

Finally, both Haraway and Monáe emphasize the importance of collective solidarity. Haraway envisions a world where the cyborg fosters new alliances that transcend race, gender, and class. Monáe’s work embodies this ethos, particularly in her collaboration with diverse artists and her calls for unity among marginalized communities. Songs like “Americans” highlight the intersections of different struggles, advocating for a future where differences are celebrated rather than erased.

In blending the theoretical with the personal, Haraway and Monáe challenge us to envision futures where identity is not a source of division but a wellspring of creativity and strength. While Haraway provides the framework, Monáe breathes life into it, creating a vivid, emotionally resonant exploration of what it means to resist conformity in a world that demands uniformity. Together, they remind us that the boundaries we draw—between human and machine, male and female, self and other—are not fixed but fluid, and in that fluidity lies the potential for radical transformation. To get a more in depth review of Monae’s album Dirty Computer, check out this link.

From Manifesto to Music

Sydney V.
Reading Time: 2 minutes
Donna Haraway (September 6, 1944 – present) By jonatkins
https://www.timetoast.com/timelines/donna-haraway-september-6-1944-to-present

In Donna Haraway’s Cyborg Manifesto, she discusses a world where gender is not limited to binaries but instead is fluid. Her work rejects the rigid gender roles and societal roles in general of our world, such as man versus woman and human versus machine. She calls for us to make the world a place where fluid identity is accepted.

Janelle Monae utilizes similar themes in her album Dirty Computer. Monae challenges traditional ideas of gender and sexuality in many songs in her album. For example. in the song “Make Me Feel,” she explores fluid romantic attraction and rejects the binaries we typically see in society. Her characters in the album also express a variety of gender and sexual identities. In the song “Screwed,” she explains how freedom is found in the true expression of one’s identity.

Monae also criticizes societal boxes that are typically implemented. In her album, she uses the term “dirty computers” to represent groups that are marginalized for being different than the majority. This can be translated to groups such as racial, ethnic, and LGTBQ+ communities in our society today. She uses her album to resist these social constructs and promote non-conformity. Monae also discusses the complex relationship between technology and humanity. Technology is used to dehumanize and deindividualize the individuals in the album; however, technology is also used by the non-conforming people to channel their individuality and fight back against the majority. This highlights the complexity of the widespread implementation of technology in our society. Technology can create both positive and negative effects on society.

Scene from “Dirty Computer” https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8343642/

In conclusion, both Cyborg Manifesto and Dirty Computer emphasize the fluidity of identity and technology’s role in helping and hurting society. Monae uses Haraway’s ideas to comment on the lives of marginalized people in today’s society, including racial and gender minority groups, which is extremely relevant to us today.

Challenging Binaries In The Contemporary World: The Haraway-Monae Manifesto

Rudy W.
Reading Time: 2 minutes

In her Cyborg Manifesto, Donna Haraway explores a world in which the concept of traditional or societal binaries, oppression within technology, feminism, and identity are challenged. In her writings, Haraway uses the half-human half machine- cyberog as a metaphor for liberation. The idea of the cyborg represents fluidity being that it is composed of different elements to make up one whole being. Haraway argues that social constructs that are embedded into our society such as gender, sexuality, and identity are not meant to define us, rather they are fluid and constantly evolving.  

Dirty Computer by Janelle Monae explored the Manifesto that Haraway discussed by highlighting themes of liberation, feminism, and queerness. Throughout the album, Monae uses songs such as “PYNK” to highlight the complexities that exist within ones’ identity; directly correlating to Haraway and her idea of a fluid rather than a fixed identity. Monae also incorporates the intersectionality of queernesss within her identity as a black individual by describing how to break away from heterosexual norms which are opressive.Within her identity, Janelle Monae describes herself as a non-binary individual. While she goes by she/her and they/them pronouns, Monae does not believe in the binaries of gender identiy which is a theme that is consistent within Haraway’s Manifesto. 

The most identical themes that are present within Haraway’s and Monae’s works are the technology cyborg elements. As previously mentioned, Haraway uses the cyborg as a metaphor in her Manifesto to represent liberation through technology. The cyborg does not have a fixed identity due to its robotic and human components; it is a fluid entity. Monae uses technological imagery to centralize the idea of their album. In the visual elements of the album, they often portray themselves living in a world that is enhanced by technology while also incorporating afrocentric elements. This is very important when discussing the theme of cyberpunk; a genre in which diversity in the form of Afrofuturism for example, is not very prominent. Janelle Monae uplifted, liberated, and empowered the various communities of which she belongs to: woman, non-binary, queer, African-American. This is the main idea of the Cyber Manifesto. Haraway conceptualized the idea of a non-binary world that allowed identities to be fluid; Monae gave life to this concept.