Technoculture

Wary, on the one hand, of the disempowering habit of viewing technology as a satanic mill of domination, and weary, on the other, of postmodernist celebrations of the technologically sublime, Constance Penley and Andrew Ross have compiled a group of provocative case studies by contributors whose critical knowledge provides a realistic assessment of the politics currently at stake in those cultural practices touched by advanced technology. The groups examined here range from high-tech office workers, "Star Trek" fans, and Japanese technoporn producers, to teenage hackers, AIDS activists, rap groups, and rock stars. Each has something to tell us about both the production and the management of repressive technocultures and about the politics of creative appropriation. But above all, "Technoculture" suggests some new and timely possibilities for the encouragement of technoliteracy - a crucial requirement not just for postmodern survival but also for the decolonization, demonopolization and democratization of social communication. Constance Penley teaches English and Film Studies at the University of Rochester. Andrew Ross teaches English at Princeton University.