What is Cyberpunk?

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Cyberpunk

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What is Cyberpunk?
• Cyberpunk is a combination of “cybernetics” and “punk”,
coined by Bruce Bethke in 1980 for his story of the same title
(published in 1983).
• Cyberpunk is a sub-genre of science fiction which became
popular in America in the late 1970’s and early 80’s and was
noted for its focus on "high tech and low life“.
• The formation of cyberpunk was greatly influenced by the
rapid development of science and technologies, especially
computer technologies.

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Prominent Writers
William Gibson
Neal Stephenson
Bruce Sterling
Pat Cadigan
Rudy Rucker
John Shirley
Lewis Shiner

4.

Characteristics
1. Dystopian
Earth

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• Cyberpunk typically portrays dystopic worlds where civilisation
has been shattered by environmental or political catastrophes.
• The environment is often unstable or hostile, nation-states tend
to be extinct.
• Cyberpunk is usually based on a near-future Earth, rather than
some far-flung, futuristic alien world.
• Technology has become deeply enmeshed in everyday human
existence.

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2. High Tech, Low Life

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• The people have artificial limbs, eyes and other senses, they
may have additional memory storage, or direct ‘wi-fi’
connection to various systems via a link in their brain.
• The cities have become 'sprawls' where only the strong
survive.
• There is bleakness and dread.
• Characters spend most of the day plugged into the digital
world, even neglecting their physical bodies for days at a
time.

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3. Cyberworld
People have the only freedom in cyberspace.

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4. Mega
corporations
• vast organisations which control Earth’s planetary
resources, services and industries.

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5. Artificial intelligence

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• Protagonists in cyberpunk tend to be outsiders, hackers, antiheroes, outcasts, criminals who try to make something good
in a world where there is no justice and nobody is on their
side. The underlying aspect that applies to all of these groups
is their subversive nature.

12.

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Main theme
• a conflict among hackers, artificial intelligences, and mega
corporations, tending to be set within a near-future Earth.

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William Gibson

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• an American-Canadian speculative fiction writer widely credited
with pioneering the science fiction subgenre known as cyberpunk.
• Gibson popularised the idea of cyberspace: a "consensual
hallucination" created by millions of connected computers.
• Gibson's early writings are generally near-future stories about the
influences of cybernetics and cyberspace (computer-simulated
reality) technology on the human race.
• The first novel, Neuromancer 1984.
• “Sprawl trilogy”, "Bridge trilogy "

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• Neuromancer is a complex story that deals with the future
computer technology and the impact on the lives of the world
citizens;
• matrix, cyberspace;
• technological advancement is not paralleled by social progress;
• crime, violence, corruption;
• human relations and interactions are mostly represented as part of
transactions;

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The Themes:
• The influence of computer technology on
people.
• High tec, low social life.
• Transformation.
• Manipulation.
• Freedom.
• Identity.
• Isolation.
• Drugs and alcohol.
• Violance.