Cyber-Transcendence and Immanence as a Religio-Spiritual Phenomenon in Cyberpunk Anime
This article argues that Western cyberpunk narratives often suggest a technologically invoked transcendence, a cyber-transcendence, which represents a new ontological sphere and offers catharsis in dystopian scenarios. While Japanese cyberpunk anime also explore the idea of cyber-transcendence, the...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Karl Franzens Universität Graz
2023-11-01
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| Series: | Journal for Religion, Film and Media |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://resolver.obvsg.at/urn:nbn:at:at-ubg:4-47628 |
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| Summary: | This article argues that Western cyberpunk narratives often suggest a technologically invoked transcendence, a cyber-transcendence, which represents a new ontological sphere and offers catharsis in dystopian scenarios. While Japanese cyberpunk anime also explore the idea of cyber-transcendence, the clear distinction between immanence and transcendence often becomes blurred. Aesthetic concepts invoking transcendence can be linked to the awe-inspiring kami (deities) of Japanese Shinto, which are intertwined with the immanent sphere of reality rather than external to it. In Western cyberpunk, cyber-transcendence seems to provide the sense of depth that Paul Tillich labels the “dimension of religion”, in contrast to postmodernist meaninglessness. Cyberpunk anime provide an understanding of transcendence as a religious dimension that exists within reality. |
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| ISSN: | 2414-0201 |