My project is an examination of the concept of authenticity, as it is problematized in the works of Philip K. Dick; specifically, in his Hugo Award-winning The Man in the High Castle (1962) and in his best-selling novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (1968). Dick believes that authenticity is essential for human existence, but finds the concept problematized by technologies which make possible increasingly perfect reproductions and replications, as well as by the effect these technologies have on the human subject. Furthermore, these technologies are linked to the economic mode of advanced consumerism.<p>Taking my lead from Fredric Jameson and the contributors to the journal Science-Fiction Studies, I view Dick's work as a form of cultural criticism, and an engagement with postmodernism. In this light, the problem of authenticity in Dick's work is revealed as symptomatic of his criticism of mass, consumer culture. My thesis therefore becomes an examination of Dick's relationship to postmodernism, with a special focus on how that relationship affects his dealings with the idea of authenticity.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:SSU.etd-08072008-112806 |
| Date | 13 August 2008 |
| Creators | Congdon, Brad |
| Contributors | Vargo, Lisa, Hynes, Peter, Hoffman, Sarah, Bartley, William, Zichy, Francis |
| Publisher | University of Saskatchewan |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://library.usask.ca/theses/available/etd-08072008-112806/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to University of Saskatchewan or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
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