A posthuman approach to the works of Isaac Asimov and Philip K. Dick

This thesis aims to explore trans/posthuman concepts within the context of techno-cultural discourse on the ontological dimension through the reading of selected novels, The Complete Robot by Isaac Asimov and Do Android Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick. The study will also briefly mention other works of selected authors to exemplify and strengthen the main arguments. The study will focus on the trans/posthumanist conception of being human and how this relation is reflected in science fiction. To achieve this purpose, the study will begin with brief definitions and analyses of various philosophies and concepts such as humanism, transhumanism, and the Anthropocene. Fundamentally, posthumanism investigates the complex transformations of human culture and philosophy; and tries to position the meaning of being human in the course of extensive paradigm shifts. The posthuman concept rejects the conventional nature/culture divisions, and as this paper will argue, science fiction has become a perfect genre for the posthuman thinking to manifest itself. In fact, humans have articulated their posthuman desires to reach beyond the limitations of the human body in ancient science fiction: mythologies. Therefore, the posthuman concept requires a better understanding of human's becoming over the centuries. To that end, it will be clear that the posthuman has turned into a prominent figure in the literature to express our science-fictional desires. Even before the beginning of history, our ancestors expressed their hopes and fears, dreams and nightmares in their myths and fantasies, thus, the myth of Talos, Shelley's creature, Asimov's robots, and Dick's androids, the same vision in different timelines implies that we are already posthuman.