Cyberpunk

For this week I read Johnny Mnemonic. I liked it a lot because of the voice of the narrator, as well as the Weird and interesting imagery of the character’s world. The reality explored in this story is technologically advanced, dark, and a little bit chaotic. There are quite a few niches of different groups of people that all live very different life styles which is really interesting. The different technologies referenced in the world include the information chip that Johnny has in his head that makes him a walking data cache for different people and body modifications like what Molly and the navy dolphin have, such as metal knives hidden under the skin and animal traits. The Lo Teks were very interesting to me because they get strange modifications like dog teeth, and they are a population that is anti-technology amongst a very high-tech society. They live on platforms above the city, and imagining that and the Killing Floor was so crazy and fun to me. This world is similar to a lot of sci-fi, but the Lo Teks and their domain was fresh and exciting to me. The world reminds me a bit t of Almost Human in that there are so many different ways to live, brought about by technology that has run away from human control or understanding.

This reality gave the narrative a lot of character and imagination. It is also familiar enough that the reader can look at their society and technology and imagine what it would be like if the world managed to launch itself into such a reality. This is probably the most important aspect of every good piece of literature because it asks the reader to look at themselves and their world in the context of the story’s characters and world. Johnny Mnemonic is fantastical and weird, but it could be a glimpse into our future, and it leaves a lasting impression because of this.