English CYBERFEMINIST REFLECTIONS IN THE “OTHER BODY”

“ÖTEKİ BEDEN”DE SİBERFEMİNİST YANSIMALAR

Abstract

Cyberfeminism, as a concept addressing the impact of digital technologies on gender, identity, and perceptions of the body, constitutes an extension of postmodern thought. Rooted in Donna Haraway’s A Cyborg Manifesto, written in the mid-1980s, cyberfeminism challenges biological boundaries by introducing the idea of technologically integrated identities and bodies. In this context, cyberfeminism redefines the body not merely as a biological entity but as a digitized, mutable, and transformative data field. Consequently, the concept of the “othered body” refers to bodies that exist outside normative biological or cultural structures, those that are marginalized or redefined. This study aims to examine the reflections of the "othered body" in contemporary art within the framework of cyberfeminism. To this end, the research analyzes the representation of the "othered body" and the role of cyberfeminism in these representations through the works of four significant artists: Heather Dewey-Hagborg’s “Xeno in Vevo”, Tabita Rezaire’s “Deep Down Tidal”, Sondra Perry’s “Graft and Ash for a Three Monitor Workstation”, and Claudia Hart’s “Body on Screen”. These works offer critical examples of how digital technologies are reflected in contemporary art and how the “othered body” is represented. Through visual analysis and a theoretical framework, this study examines cyberfeminism’s approach to the “othered body.” The primary focus of the research is to explore the impact of cyberfeminism on the concept of the “othered body” in contemporary art. By analyzing how art questions and transforms social norms and identity structures, the study highlights the potential of digital technologies to reshape social constructs. Ultimately, this research reveals how contemporary art explores the relationship between the representation of the “othered body” and digital technologies, demonstrating the critical perspective that cyberfeminism offers on body politics. The selected artworks illustrate how digital technologies and cyberfeminist approaches interrogate social norms and reconstruct the notions of gender, identity, and the body. Therefore, this study underscores the intersection of art and technology as a powerful domain for reimagining social structures while emphasizing the critical role of cyberfeminism in body politics.