We often label the present and the future the “age of the post-human.” But how, here, can we define this term?
Professor Shin Sang-kyu uses two huge images to explain the concept of the post-human. One is of humanity in the future, and is created in combination with science and technology; the other is a story of re-defining the meaning of human existence and re-inventing the conditions and structures that give human lives meaning. If, in the former, the post-human aims to improve upon the traditional human, in the latter, we become able to deconstruct dichotomic boundaries and view the familiar from unfamiliar perspectives. Which of these narratives do we need today?
In this lecture, Shin traces the history of the post-human as a concept, searches for a future direction for humanity, and explores the potential and importance of art in this process.
✔ Professor Shin Sang-kyu
Shin Sang-kyu is a professor at the Ewha Institute for the Humanities at Ewha Woman’s University. After majoring in management and philosophy at Sogang University, he gained his PhD in philosophy from the University of Texas at Austin. Shin is the author of numerous essays on the philosophy of mind, and currently researches issues of human enhancement, trans-humanism, and post-humanism. In addition to his academic work, Shin writes books for popular consumption and translates foreign-language works into Korean, making post-human theory more readily accessible.
■ Date & time : Saturday, November 20, 2021,
■ Venue : Auditorium, Leeum Museum of Art