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The Posthuman Wound

Welcome to the website of the research projects «The Posthuman Wound: Subject and Agency in the North American Literature of the 21st Century» (PID2022-137627NB-I00. 2023-2026), «Contemporary North American Fiction and the 4th Industrial Revolution: From Posthumanity to Privation and Social Change» (PID2019-106855GB-I00. 2020-2023) and «Trauma, Culture and Posthumanity: The Definition of Being in Contemporary American fiction» (FFI2015-63506-P. 2016-2020).

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Asides

Posted on June 1, 2018January 28, 2025

ExRey Conference 2018

Some of the members of our research team attended the conference ExRe(y): Exhaustion and Regeneration in Post-Millennial North-American Literature and Visual Culure.

Posted on January 15, 2017January 28, 2025

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posthuman_uz

Research group on US literature at @fyl_unizar (Universidad de Zaragoza). Posthumanism, science fiction, trauma studies.

📚✨ #PosthumanFridays — Book Recommendation Today 📚✨ #PosthumanFridays — Book Recommendation

Today we’re diving into one of the most haunting, genre-defying novels of 21st-century weird fiction: Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer. 🌿👁️‍🗨️

Set in the enigmatic Area X, this novel blends ecological mystery, posthuman transformation, and psychological horror into a hypnotic reading experience. VanderMeer invites us to question what it means to be human when the world around—and within—us begins to transform. 🧬🌱

#JeffVanderMeer #Annihilation #AreaX #WeirdFiction #EcoFiction #SpeculativeFiction #NewWeird #Posthumanism #PosthumanStudies #ClimateFiction #Bookstagram #SciFiBooks #HorrorBooks #DystopianFiction #ReadingRecommendations
📚✨ This week at the #AEDEAN48 Conference (@aedeani 📚✨ This week at the #AEDEAN48 Conference (@aedeaninfo), our team member María Ferrández San Miguel (@maria_fsm_unizar) took part with two exciting contributions!

🎙️ She delivered the paper “The Science behind Jeff VanderMeer’s Southern Reach Series: On the Performativity and Creativity of Matter,” exploring how VanderMeer’s fiction intertwines science, ecology, and posthuman theory.

📖 She also presented the recently published volume The Posthuman Condition in 21st Century Literature and Culture: Interdisciplinary Insights (Palgrave Macmillan, 2025), co-edited with Esther Muñoz González and Carmen Laguarta-Bueno.

Such a fantastic opportunity to share ideas and research with colleagues from across the field! 💬🌍

#PosthumanStudies #AEDEAN2025
🎓✨ ¿Te planteas hacer un doctorado pero no sabes p 🎓✨ ¿Te planteas hacer un doctorado pero no sabes por dónde empezar?

Te invitamos a la sesión “Doctorado 101: ¿Qué es un Doctorado?”, donde varias doctorandas del Dpto. de Filología Inglesa compartirán su experiencia y resolverán tus dudas sobre qué implica esta etapa académica.

📍 Jueves 27 de noviembre, 14:15–15:00 h
 📚 Aula B2.1, Edificio B – Facultad de Filosofía y Letras (Unizar)

Descubre qué es un doctorado, qué dedicación requiere y cómo acceder a él.

 💬 Actividad dirigida a estudiantes de Grado y Máster en Estudios Ingleses interesados en continuar su formación investigadora.

👉 Inscríbete en el enlace de la bio.
🎙️✨ Upcoming Seminar Alert! Join us for “Posthuma 🎙️✨ Upcoming Seminar Alert!

Join us for “Posthumanismo y Estética Digital del S. XXI”, a talk by our team member Miriam Fernández Santiago @miriamfernandezsantiago 🌐💫

🗓 Date: December 17, 2025
🕦 Time: 11:30 A.M.
📍 Location: Aula Ana Pardo, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras (Universidad de Granada)

In this seminar, Miriam will explore how the so-called Third Media Age or Fourth Industrial Revolution shapes a new aesthetic paradigm for the 21st century — what she terms the “Neoapolíneo.” ✨🎭

Discover how this concept connects digital aesthetics, ergodic art, and agential materialism grounded in quantum physics. ⚛️📚

Don’t miss this thought-provoking session!

#Posthumanism #Neoapolíneo #DigitalAesthetics #Seminar #Research #Posthumanities
🎬✨ New #PosthumanFridays video! This week, we div 🎬✨ New #PosthumanFridays video!

This week, we dive into Francisco Collado-Rodríguez’s article “Echoes from Fight Club: Categorical Thinking, Narrative Strategies, and Political Radicalism in Chuck Palahniuk’s Adjustment Day.” 🧠📚

Discover how Palahniuk’s fiction critiques toxic masculinity, radical ideologies, and the dangers of binary thinking in contemporary America 💥

Watch the full video to explore how literature helps us unpack the complexities of identity and power in the 21st century.

#Posthumanism #FightClub #ChuckPalahniuk #CriticalTheory #AmericanLiterature
💥✨ #PosthumanFridays is back with another book rec 💥✨ #PosthumanFridays is back with another book recommendation!

This week, we’re diving into Neuromancer (1984) by William Gibson — the groundbreaking cyberpunk novel that changed the way we imagine technology, identity, and the future. 🧠💻⚡

Gibson’s vision of cyberspace anticipated the digital age, exploring themes of artificial intelligence, body modification, and corporate power long before they became part of our daily lives. It’s a must-read for anyone interested in the roots of posthuman and techno-cultural thought. 🌐🤖

📖 Whether you’re new to cyberpunk or revisiting this classic, Neuromancer is a reminder that the future is already here — just unevenly distributed.

#PosthumanFridays #BookRecommendation #Cyberpunk #WilliamGibson #Posthumanism #ScienceFiction #AI #DigitalFutures #ThePosthumanWound
🎥✨ #PosthumanFridays continues — but with a twist! 🎥✨ #PosthumanFridays continues — but with a twist!

From now on, we’ll also be sharing short video summaries of our team’s research articles 🧠📚. Each episode breaks down key ideas from our work on posthumanism, literature, and culture — in an accessible, engaging way. 🌍🤖

This week’s first video features María Abizanda-Cardona presenting her article “Beyond SF: Reading the Posthuman in Crime Fiction” (📘 European Journal of American Culture, 2024).

🔍 What happens when detective fiction meets posthumanism? How does the genre explore biocapitalism, embodiment, and justice in a technologized world?

Stay tuned and dive into the posthuman! 💫

#PosthumanFridays #ResearchInFocus #Posthumanism #CrimeFiction #SciFi #AcademicResearch
#PosthumanFridays 🤖📚 | Book Recommendation #1 We’ #PosthumanFridays 🤖📚 | Book Recommendation #1

We’re launching a new series — #PosthumanFridays — where every week we’ll recommend a novel that inspires our research on posthumanism, biopolitics, and contemporary literature. 🌍✨

These posts will highlight some of the key works we study and teach — stories that question what it means to be human in times of technological transformation, ecological crisis, and blurred boundaries between the organic and the artificial.

We’re starting strong with a gripping sci-fi noir: The Body Scout (2021) by @lincolngram ⚾🧬💀

#TheBodyScout #LincolnMichel #Posthumanism #Biocapitalism #CyberpunkNoir #SpeculativeFiction #PosthumanFridays #ScienceFiction #BookRecommendation #CriticalPosthumanism
🎸 Rock It Café Granada | October 8, 2025 🎶 We’re 🎸 Rock It Café Granada | October 8, 2025 🎶

We’re thrilled to announce that our team member ✨ @miriamfernandezsantiago ✨ will take part in the first edition of “Rock It Café” in Granada, organized by @medialabugr as part of the European Erasmus+ project Rock Your Research! 🇪🇺💡

Miriam will deliver the micro-talk 🎤 “Neo Apollonian Harmonies”, where she will explore posthuman aesthetics, relationality, and the intersections between art and research. 🌌📚

The event will take place at the Salón de Grados de la ETSA 🏛️ and will bring together music 🎵, micro-talks 💬, and creative dialogue 🤝 — celebrating how science and art can inspire each other.

Join us for an evening of rhythm, ideas, and innovation! 🌟
🔬✨ European Researchers’ Night | September 26, 202 🔬✨ European Researchers’ Night | September 26, 2025

As part of European Researchers’ Night 2025, our team brought science, curiosity, and posthumanist research to the streets, labs, and plazas of Granada and Zaragoza! 🌍🧬📚

Highlights from our activities:

Granada: Miriam Fernández-Santiago led “Metáfora Transhumanista: Estética de la Representación de la Inteligencia Artificial” for schools at Paseo del Salón 🏫🤖🎨.

Zaragoza:

María Ferrández-Sanmiguel presented her children’s story “El gran hilo que todo lo une – Una historia posthumana” at Patio Inglés 📖✨.

María Abizanda-Cardona introduced kids to the work of women scientists in the Purple Corner 👩‍🔬💜.

She also participated in Speed Dating at CaixaForum, sharing our research with the adult public 🗣️🔬.

Later, she delivered a short talk on her thesis: “Sherlocks del siglo XXI: ¿Puede la novela de misterio ayudarnos a resolver la crisis climática?” at Late Show: Investigación a escena 🕵️‍♀️🌱.

Granada: Miriam Fernández-Santiago delivered “¿Te gusta lo Neoapolíneo? ¡Bienvenido al Posthumanismo!” at the same Late Show event 🎭✨.

It was a day full of fun, learning, and inspiring conversations with the public and peers! 🌟🤩

#NIGHTSpain #ERN2025 #EuropeanResearchersNight #nocheeuropeainvestigacion
🎙️ Podcast Launch | The Posthuman Wound We’re exc 🎙️ Podcast Launch | The Posthuman Wound

We’re excited to announce The Posthuman Wound: The Podcast, a discussion series exploring subjectivity, agency, and trauma in contemporary North American literature. 📚🗣️🎧

The series is aligned with our research project “The Posthuman Wound” (PID2022-137627NB-I00, 2023–2026) and aims to foster engaging conversations on critical posthumanism in literature. ✨

You can find all episodes on our YouTube channel or in the “Our Podcasts” section on our website.

#Podcast #Posthumanism
🎙️ Podcast Launch | North American Literature | Ap 🎙️ Podcast Launch | North American Literature | April 15, 2025

We’re excited to announce a new research transfer project led by our team member Miriam Fernández-Santiago, in collaboration with the Studies in American Literature and Culture group (Universidad de Granada, Spain)! ✨

In this podcast, students discuss topics related to our research and US literature, creating a space for lively, in-depth conversation. 📚🗣️📻

You can find all new episodes on our YouTube channel or in the “Our Podcasts” section on our website.

#Podcast #AmericanLiterature
📚 New Publication | June 2025 We are thrilled to 📚 New Publication | June 2025

We are thrilled to announce the publication of The Posthuman Condition in 21st Century Literature and Culture: Interdisciplinary Insights (Palgrave Macmillan, 2025), co-edited by our team members María Ferrández-Sanmiguel, Esther Muñoz-González, and Carmen Laguarta-Bueno! ✨

The volume brings together interdisciplinary perspectives on posthumanism in literature, media, and culture. Chapters include:

Recent Cross-Disciplinary Approaches to the Posthuman: An Introduction – María Ferrández-Sanmiguel, Esther Muñoz-González & Carmen Laguarta-Bueno

“We Are the Borg. Resistance Is Futile”: Reflections, Numbness, and Transhumanism in the Star Trek Universe – Francisco Collado-Rodríguez

Posthuman Cognitive Ecologies and AI Moral Agency in Ann Leckie’s Ancillary Justice – Ruxandra Teodorescu

“A Better Future Is in Your Hands”: Transhumanism and Feminism in The Power (TV Series 2023) – Rocío Carrasco-Carrasco

Indenture Rights for All: Challenging the Human Status Quo in Annalee Newitz’s Autonomous – Laura Larrodera-Arcega

“World Without End”: A Reading of Sarah Hall’s The Carhullan Army as an Eco-Feminist Postapocalyptic Dystopia – Susana Onega

Outfacing the “In” Face: The Posthuman Wound and the Defacing of Relationality in Joma West’s Face – Ana Chapman

Beyond the Human/Nonhuman Binary: Fluid Borders in A.S. Byatt’s Onto-Tales – María Jesús Martínez-Alfaro

Reassembling Skins and Bones: Indigeneity and Posthumanism in Linda Hogan’s Solar Storms – Giulia Magro

Beyond the Anthropocentric Gaze: The Nonhuman Animal as Object/Subject of Vision in Cinema – Luca Lunardi & Fabiano D’Este

Humanism as Prosthesis: Science Fiction as Ceremony – Sherryl Vint

Phenomenology and the Neo-Apollonian: New Critical Proposal and Aesthetic Trends for the Posthuman – Miriam Fernández-Santiago

Posthumanism and Grace: Pre-texts for an Improbable Relation – Ivan Callus

🔗 Full volume: Springer Link

A must-read for anyone interested in critical posthumanism, literature, and cultural studies! 🌟
💻 Posthumanities Hub Webinar | April 10, 2025 Our 💻 Posthumanities Hub Webinar | April 10, 2025

Our predoctoral researcher Laura Larrodera-Árcega participated in “The Posthumanities Hub Webinar: Embodied Symbiosis Across Time”! ✨

She presented the paper “Weaving Queer Inhuman Futures: Haptic Transfigurations of the Epistolary”, exploring posthuman perspectives on queer inhuman matter across time.

This took place as part of her research stay in Sweden, and the webinar also included discussions on posthuman autism, neurodiversity, and speculative fiction, bringing together researchers from University of Zaragoza, LEGS, and Lund University.
⚡ Lightning Talks | Center for Ideas and Society | ⚡ Lightning Talks | Center for Ideas and Society | May 21, 2025

Our predoctoral researcher María Abizanda-Cardona had the chance to present her research and listen to fascinating work by her peers at the @ucrchass during the Lightning Talks organized by the Center for Ideas and Society! ✨

It was a fun and dynamic format, fostering lively discussions and interdisciplinary exchange. 🌟

This took place during her six-month research stay at UC Riverside in the United States, funded by a Fulbright Predoctoral Scholarship.
💬 Cross-Disciplinary Conversations Conference | UC 💬 Cross-Disciplinary Conversations Conference | UCR | May 18, 2025

Our predoctoral researcher María Abizanda-Cardona had the chance to discuss her research with peers from STEM and Humanities at the “Cross-Disciplinary Conversations Conference” at @UCRiverside! ✨

She participated in a panel on change, alongside experts from different fields, making it a stimulating and inspiring experience to exchange ideas across disciplines. 🌟

This was part of her six-month research stay at UC Riverside in the United States, funded by a Fulbright Predoctoral Scholarship.
🎓 Grad Student Research Symposium | UCR | 8 April 🎓 Grad Student Research Symposium | UCR | 8 April

Our predoctoral researcher María Abizanda-Cardona presented her doctoral project at the Grad Student Research Symposium at @ucriversideofficial ! ✨

She did this while completing a six-month research stay at UC Riverside in the United States, funded by a Fulbright Predoctoral Scholarship. It was a wonderful opportunity to receive feedback on her work and connect with the multidisciplinary PhD community, sharing ideas and learning from peers across fields. 🌟
📚 LIMLIT Conference 2025 | UNIZAR | April 2025 Ou 📚 LIMLIT Conference 2025 | UNIZAR | April 2025

Our team participated in the #LIMLITConference2025, organized by our UNIZAR peers at @limlit_! ✨

Here’s a roundup of our contributions:

📃 Ana Chapman – “The Narrative of ‘Murmure’ and ‘Memor’: Relationality and Evolution in Marshall’s The Migration.”
📃 Mónica Calvo-Pascual – “Body Agency and Radical Kinship in Rivers Solomon’s An Unkindness of Ghosts.”
📄 María Ferrández San Miguel – “Mourning the Human? Posthuman Death and Ontological Vulnerability in Jeff VanderMeer’s The Southern Reach Trilogy.”
📄 Miriam Fernández-Santiago – “The Posthuman Wound: Neo-Apollonian Aesthetics for Transcendental(ist) Relations in the Literary Productions by Tao Lin and Francesca Ferrando.”
📄 Aurora Rodríguez-Bermejo Fraile – “The Embodied Other: New Materialism and Critical Posthumanism in The Deep (2019).”
📄 Esther Muñoz González – “Resurrected Identities: The Posthuman and Gothic Relationality in Kelly Link’s The Book of Love.”
📄 Sonia Baelo-Allué – “Narrating Relationality: Language, AI, and the Nonhuman in Louisa Hall’s Speak.”
📄 Rubén Peinado-Abarrio – “Mise en abyme as a feminist strategy in recent US fiction.”
📄 Laura García Soria – “‘A new structure of feeling’: Social Media, Planetarity and Relationality in The Ministry for the Future.”

A week full of stimulating discussions and encounters with colleagues from Zaragoza and across Spain! 🌟

Thanks to @limlit_ for organizing such an excellent conference! 🙌
SAAS 2025 | April 8-10, 2025 Our team participate SAAS 2025 | April 8-10, 2025

Our team participated in the 17th Conference of the Spanish Association of American Studies in Alicante! ✨📚

Highlights:
💭 Panel: “Posthuman fantasies: Dreaming America along the utopian-dystopian arch”

Chair: Miriam Fernández-Santiago

Esther Muñoz González: “Disrupting Identity: Posthumanism and the Evolution of the Gothic in Catherine Lacey’s Pew (2020).”

Rubén Peinado-Abarrio: “New Materialism and the Wounded Self in Ruth Ozeki’s The Book of Form and Emptiness.”

Lucía Bennet Ortega: “‘I Only Want My Life Back’: Spectacle, Surveillance, and Mass Media in Richard Powers’ Generosity.”

Carmen Laguarta-Bueno: “Ted Chiang’s ‘It’s 2059, and the Rich Kids Are Still Winning’: Transhumanism, Cognitive Enhancement, and the American Dream.”

Ana Chapman: “Dreaming in the Digital Age: Constructing a Personal Narrative in The Sleepless.”

💻 Panel: “Technological nightmares and post humanity in contemporary US Fiction”

Chair: Mónica Calvo-Pascual

Sonia Baelo-Allué: “From Dreams to Nightmares: The Posthuman Trauma Novel in 21st century US Fiction.”

Mónica Calvo-Pascual: “American Nightmares, Trauma and Posthumanity in Rivers Solomon’s Sorrowland.”

A truly enriching week, sharing ideas and research with colleagues across American Studies in Spain. Looking forward to the next edition! 🚀
🎤 Keynote | February 7, 2025 On Friday, March 14, 🎤 Keynote | February 7, 2025

On Friday, March 14, our team member María Ferrández-San Miguel delivered the lecture “Consejos para presentar los méritos a una plaza de Asociadx o AYD” for SAAS Young Scholars. ✨📚

The session provided practical guidance for early-career researchers on presenting their academic merits effectively.
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