In our twentyfirst century, the distinction between the natural and the artificial has blurred, with advancements in technology and the increasing sophistication of synthetic materials and virtual environments. For instance, in recent years much has been made of the evolutionary power of artificial intelligence by media and communication scholars (amongst others), excited by the advances this technology can herald. Yet considerations of artificiality are not always willingly embraced, given that the ‘artificial’ has been perceived as unnatural, human-made, and unreal. These understandings have and do hold negative connotations, constructing artificiality as imitative, fake, and insincere. Such perceptions exist despite artificial developments bringing benefits to several fields including the environment, food technology, biology/life, and aesthetics (to name a few).
Exploring the artificial is also commonplace across popular culture, from films like The Matrix and Blade Runner to fiction novels like Klara and the Sun, to the virtual and augmented realities common in gaming. The application of the artificial, then, is far-reaching, penetrating broadly. In view of these considerations, this issue seeks to explore the broad and multifaceted concept of the artificial, examining its essence, its manifestations across different domains, and its implications for society, intelligence, culture, ethics, media, and the environment.
We invite submission for this issue of M/C Journal that investigate the multifaceted and multidisciplinary interpretations of the term ‘artificial’ in media and culture, in social, cultural, political, and representational terms.
Possible topics include, but are not limited to:
- The perceived dichotomy of ‘real vs artificial’
- Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Social media and the ‘artificial self’
- Artificial worlds and virtual/augmented realities
- Artificial identities (digital, social, and beyond)
- ‘Natural vs unnatural’ discourses
- Intersections of the biological, the medical, and the mechanical (including cybernetics)
- Artificial bodies and prosthetics
- Artificial foods and consumption experiences
- Artificial life and the environment
- Artificial life forms and dystopian futures
- The ethics of ‘artificial’
- The human and the inhuman
- Art and ‘artificial’ creations
- Representations of ‘artificial’ in film, television, games, comics, anime, manga, and beyond
Prospective contributors should email an abstract of 100-250 words and a brief biography to the issue editors. Abstracts should include the article title and should describe your research question, approach, and argument. Biographies should be about three sentences (maximum 75 words) and should include your institutional affiliation and research interests. Articles should be 3000 words (plus bibliography). All articles will be double-blind refereed and must adhere to MLA style (6th edition).
