Journal #2

Cyberpunk, as Bruce Sterling suggests, is much like punk rock; a raw form of music that has “in some sense a return to roots” (Sterling, x,xi) bringing more of the essential feelings and characteristics early science fiction had laid claim to. One of the most prominent writers, one that coined the term “cyberpunk”, was William Gibson (Leonard, 2007). Gibson was growing up in a time where a lot of things were changing and the future looked very shiny and clean and everything would work perfectly. Society at the time looked forward to the future to bring greatness and peace to America, while Gibson’s father died while he was only a child. Feeling the trauma of a lost father, he turned to science fiction. Gibson saw the awesome power technology could have, all the while having the trauma of a lost father haunting him. The cyberpunk genre had yet to be made, but the mold of high tech, low life was being formed while Gibson was growing up. (Gibson)
When reading cyberpunk, there seems to be a recurring theme of a fantastical future that mankind had strived for, and in working towards that goal, mankind destroyed the environment we had lived in for millennia. There is always a mix of the amazing lights and technological advances with the dark and gloomy presence of watching eyes and the weaker in society being taken advantage of, yet still able to use modern technology.
This theme is apparent in Johnny Mnemonic, the short story where Johnny was to collect a large sum of money for a great deal of data stored within his head in which he had not access to. “If they think you're crude, go technical; if they think you're technical, go crude” (Johnny Mnemonic). This statement shows the “high tech, low life” atmosphere all cyberpunk stories are famous for. Aside from the direct quote from the story, the setting is another example of “high tech, low life” in which someone is acting almost as a drug mule, transporting data for a large sum of money. If Johnny does not deliver, he will be killed. Interesting as to how the cyberpunk genre is to be set in the future, yet the same aspects of illegal activity that plague the modern day society are still played out. Throughout the story, the reader will see that the future can be just as scary and dirty as today’s society is, but with a sort of exaggeration. The future is an inevitable thing that we cannot stop and the technological advances mankind has made over the past century is mind-boggling. With a more technologically advanced society, there will always be problems with someone, or a group, breaking the law and trying to rule over as much of the streets, or world, as possible.
In conclusion, the future can hold many great possibilities for mankind and possibly end many diseases and illnesses. However, the same conflicts that emerge within our society today seem to still be apparent within the cyberpunk genre. Crime is always a constant; drug transportation is replaced with data transportation and the human population seems to be on a steady increase throughout the future. Money, people, and crime are the few aspects that seem to transcend time. What makes the story is how the people interact with one another with the technology.







Works Cited

Gibson, William. "William Gibson: Johnny Mnemonic." Johnny Mnemonic 01 Oct 2002 25 Sep 2008 .

Gibson, William. "Since 1948." William Gibson - Official Website. 6 Nov 2002. 25 Sep 2008 .

Leonard, Andrew. "William Gibson: The Rolling Stone 40th Anniversary Interview." Rolling Stone 27 Nov 2007 25 Sep 2008 .


Sterling, Bruce. Mirrorshades. New York: ACE, 1986.