Virtual Money & Physical Violence: Suarez's Daemon & Freedom
presented by visiting Professor Katherine Hayles, Duke University
How do we decipher reality in such a virtual world? The technological sublime may not manifest itself as monumental physical artifacts such as the Hoover Dam, nor as the grand adventures of NASA space missions, but as exponential expansions of virtual realms, virtual money, and virtual politics. At stake are notions of sovereignty unanchored by physical territory, the relation between “real” and virtual money, and the relation between virtual realms and physical violence. Daniel Suarez provides a compelling exploration of these issues in his two science fiction novels, Daemon and Freedom. The novels imply that transational global culture is on the brink of momentous changes unprecedented in modern history; a claim that will be explored in this talk.
