| dc.description.abstract | In contemporary Western Europe and the United States the dualistic system of thought seems
to become stronger. Polarities among identities are strengthened, thus, too, when it comes to
gendered and national identity. The aim of the thesis Challenging Dualisms through Science
Fiction is to analyse how a cyborg image in Science Fiction literature can contribute to
challenging the dualistic system of thought. After explaining how dualistic thinking and
identity are connected, the theories by feminist writers Judith Butler on performativity, Donna
Haraway on the cyborg and postcolonial theorist Homi K. Bhabha on hybridity, Third Space
and ambivalence will be explained. On basis of these texts, the author does a literary analysis
of imagery, language and the protagonist in Ann Leckie’s novel Ancillary Justice. So, it will
be argued that the cyborg image is at play on different levels throughout the novel. As such,
the author argues that the reader of the novel can become aware of the so-called Third Space,
in which dualistic constructions are challenged and where awareness for new possibilities is
created. | |
