A Cyborg Manifesto

Typically, a cyborg is an entity with both organic and mechanical parts. Haraway uses “cyborg” as a metaphor for a society without boundaries, while also using it to illustrate how humans can combine various components of their identity or combine organic and non-organic material in their bodies.

Epistemology is the branch of philosophy concerned with knowledge and how it is acquired and used. Haraway often refers to epistemology when she discusses political beliefs and opinions.

Ontology is the philosophical study of being and existence. A Cyborg Manifesto proposes its own ontology, in that it outlines a completely unique way of existing in a new society.

Postmodernism is a philosophical and cultural stance that rejects the idea of fixed, objective truths. It posits that much of what we perceive as reality is self- or socially-constructed. A Cyborg Manifesto is a postmodernist work in that it advocates for the breaking down of constructed boundaries and dualisms, like human and machine, or male and female. Haraway draws on some of the most prominent postmodernist thinkers, such as Michel Foucault and Jean Baudrillard.