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Reinterpretation of Snowpiercer : Posthuman, Cyborg, and the New World

  • Kim, Hye Yoon (Department of English Language and Literature, Yonsei University)
  • Received : 2019.12.20
  • Accepted : 2019.12.27
  • Published : 2020.03.31

Abstract

We aim to reinterpret Bong Joon-ho's Snowpiercer through theory of posthumanism. Posthuman is a compound word of 'post' and 'human', which means transcendent-man. However, we would like to extend the meaning of posthuman or cyborgs as not only to "new human figure, or transcendent-man" but as to "human living in a digital age of converged technology". Through the extension of the meaning of posthuman, we would be able to not only find posthuman in Science Fiction movies but also apply it to our real world. Also, through the extended meaning, we will reinterpret all the elements from the film as cyberspace and as posthuman or cyborgs. Moreover, through examination of these "cyborg figures" in Bong Joon-ho's Snowpiercer (2013), we argue that the film is criticizing posthumanism in the reality that these days, people are losing the humanity due to the combination with the machine. It seems that he claims of the collapse of the current system, suggesting new human generation as the solution.

Keywords

References

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