Interstitial Spaces and Multiple Histories in William Gibson's 'Virtual Light', 'Idoru' and 'All Tomorrow's Parties'

Abstract

In William Gibson’s post-cyberpunk Interstitial trilogy – 'Virtual Light' (1993), 'Idoru' (1996) and 'All Tomorrow’s Parties' (1999) – he maps an oppressive, urban and globalised American monoculture. However, the most provocative spaces in these novels are those liminal spaces ‘in between’ the rigid corporate, military and governmental structures. Utilising a theoretical framework derived from Fredric Jameson, David Harvey and Vivian Sobchack, among others, this paper argues that Gibson’s novels both reflect the increasing domination of categories of space over categories of time as well as examining and to a certain extent championing the interstitial spaces — those new spaces of resistance populated by those people that cannot or will not easily fit into the bland urbanised world surrounding them. The two interstices focused on are the bridge – an amorphic collection of society’s most unwanted in a near-future San Francisco – and the Walled City, an eclectic digital recreation of Hong Kong’s demolished Kowloon City. Modes of resistance as well as new and changing approaches to personal and collective histories in these spaces are also examined.

Keywords

• american culture, cyberpunk, distopian fiction, community, liminal spaces