Description: Transhumanists argue that science and technology will enable us to overcome our biological limitations, both mental and physical, and create a radically enhanced posthuman species and society. In this book, Jenny Huberman examines the values and visions animating the Transhumanist Movement in the United States today, whilst at the same time using the study of transhumanism as a way to introduce a new generation of students to the discipline of cultural anthropology. She explores transhumanist conceptions of revitalization, immortality, the good life, the self, the body, kinship and economy, and compares them to the belief systems of human beings living in other times and places. Providing lively ethnographic insights into a fascinating contemporary socio-cultural movement, this book will be invaluable to students and researchers in anthropology, as well as anyone interested in the phenomenon of transhumanism.
Brief description: Jenny Huberman is Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Review Quotes: 'As of late, what was once a paucity of anthropological literature on transhumanism has come to an end. There has been a relative explosion in anthropological monographs on the subject, and promising junior scholars are entering the conversation. Huberman's book is a welcome addition to this burgeoning literature. It serves not only as a solid teaching text but also as a corrective to the temptation to take transhumanism at its word and see it as a movement that would be an escape from our humanity when it arguably is just another exemplar of it.' Jon Bialecki, Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute