POSTHUMAN IDENTITY AND MULTIVERSE TECHNOLOGY: EXPLORING THE FRAGMENTATION OF SELF IN MICAIAH JOHNSON’S THE SPACE BETWEEN WORLDS

Abstract

This research looks at the effects of traveling between multiple realities and its impacts on person’s sense of identity in the novel of Micaiah Johnson’s Space Between Worlds.  This connects well with the ideas in how we became posthuman by N. Katherine Hayles, which examines how technology affects what it means to be human. The main character Cara, can travel between different worlds where other versions of herself have dies, making her useful but easily replaceable. This idea reflects Hayles’ thoughts on how technology blurs the line between human and non-human, and how identities are no longer fixed in a digital age. The importance of this issue is that The Space Between Worlds touches on key themes of posthumanism such as separating the mind from the body, which Hayles believes is central to understanding the future of humanity and technology. While past research on posthumanism has looked at how digital and virtual worlds change our identity, it hasn’t fully explored how the idea of multiple realities affects who we are. Johnson’s novel adds to this by bringing in the concept of the multiverse. This study will be useful to scholars in fields like posthumanism, cybernetics and science fiction, as well as people interested in the ethical questions around new technologies and human identity. Looking at The Space Between Worlds through Hayles’ ideas can help us better understand how stories about the future reflect our changing relationships with technology and identity.