Androgynous cyberspaces in the novel Sphinx of Anne Garréta

Abstract

The novel of Garréta refers to the figure of cyborg, creature emerging in collective imaginary due to unprecedented development of science. Hybrid, created from combination of men with highly developed technology, forces to define modern forms of existence and other forms of social relations. This new ontological status of human beings abolishes previously known borders, traditional divisions and the way of thinking based on binary polarities. Characters from the novel of Garréta live in an urban agglomeration where it is difficult to distinguish physical spaces from illusory artificial reality. The most striking is the indeterminacy on language’s level – in the text, there are not any grammatical determinants attributes to male or female subject; the entire text of the novel does not contain a grammatical clue to identify the character’s gender. In this way, cyborg shows as modern incarnation of the ancient myth of androgyne.