Designing the Domestic Posthuman

The book Designing the Domestic Posthuman explores the impact of posthumanism on domestic spaces and practices, challenging dominant visions of a future humanity overly indebted to digital technologies. It highlights the sophisticated human-technology mediations associated with the home, practiced primarily by women, the elderly, infants, the disabled, and across cultures globally. By applying feminist theory to posthumanism, the book offers alternative, feminist readings that emphasize different standpoints from which to assess people, places, and products. It reveals the unhomely, extra-human qualities of familiar domestic objects and offers a vision of a future humanity that retains identity, integrity, and considers our relationship to others, the world, and things in it.

Format: Hardback
Length: 208 pages
Publication date: 25 January 2024
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Since TIME magazine's 1983 "Man of the Year" award was bestowed upon the Personal Computer (PC), it has been widely assumed that digital technology has colonized our domestic spaces. However, there has been a lack of attention paid to the impact of this technological colonization on the domestic spaces and inhabitants. Critical posthumanism has been largely influenced by a portrayal of humanity as overly reliant on digital technologies and their predominantly male progenitors. By applying feminist theory to posthumanism, this work aims to reclaim the rich array of sophisticated human-technology mediations associated with the home, primarily practiced by women, the elderly, infants, the disabled, and across cultures globally. It challenges dominant contemporary visions of a future humanity that foregrounds the dominance of digital technologies. Authors Dennis M. Weiss and Colbey Emmerson Reid examine various iterations of the posthuman and argue for the need for alternative, feminist readings that emphasize different perspectives from which to assess people, places, and products.

The chapters in this work address the impact of posthumanism on design theory and explore familiar domestic objects with distinct attributes from those typically associated with technology and the future. These objects, such as clothing, textiles, ceramics, furniture, and wallpaper, reveal their unhomely, extra-human qualities and offer a much-needed perspective on domestic spaces and practices. By focusing on the neglected intersection of the posthuman with the home and exploring domestic posthuman design, Designing the Domestic Posthuman offers a vision of a future humanity that retains identity, integrity, and consideration.

In conclusion, this work highlights the need to recognize and address the impact of digital technology on domestic spaces and inhabitants. By applying feminist theory to posthumanism, we can reclaim the sophisticated human-technology mediations associated with the home and explore alternative perspectives that emphasize the diversity and complexity of human experiences. This can lead to a more inclusive and equitable future where the home is recognized as a site of species transformation and where a range of critically overlooked mediated materialisms and embodiments affiliated with domestic space are highlighted.

Weight: 548g
Dimension: 162 x 241 x 17 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781350301207