Loving the Machine: A Transition to Posthuman Intimacy in Ian McEwan’s Machines Like Me (2019)
The growing interdependence between humans and machines has been a focal point in recent posthuman studies: scholars such as Rosi Braidotti (Posthuman Knowledge, 2019) have underlined the encroachment of technology on human beings and its subsequent blurring of the boundaries between the two. This i...
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| Dans: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/ebc, |
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| Format: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Langue: | Anglais |
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Études britanniques contemporaines
2026
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| Accès en ligne: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:ebc_19607 |
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openedition |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:ebc_19607 https://doi.org/10.4000/16bj3 urn:doi:10.4000/16bj3 en https://journals.openedition.org/ebc/19607 2026-06-02T02:00:00Z info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess article info:eu-repo/semantics/article urn:handle:20.500.13089/16bj3 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ Loving the Machine: A Transition to Posthuman Intimacy in Ian McEwan’s Machines Like Me (2019) Études britanniques contemporaines Presses universitaires de la Méditerranée info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/2271-5444 info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/1168-4917 URI:https://journals.openedition.org/ebc Spiga, Adrien éthique identité hybridité émotion subjectivité intimité posthumanisme technologie réseaux érotisation ethics identity hybridity intimacy subjectivity emotions posthumanism technology networks eroticisation The growing interdependence between humans and machines has been a focal point in recent posthuman studies: scholars such as Rosi Braidotti (Posthuman Knowledge, 2019) have underlined the encroachment of technology on human beings and its subsequent blurring of the boundaries between the two. This is reflected in Machines Like Me, in which advanced forms of artificial intelligence are embodied by gendered, human-looking androids: the Adams and the Eves. the narrator’s Adam can ‘pass’ as a man thanks to its lifelike physique and behaviour—it is thus neither a human nor a machine, but a hybrid creature that can think, love, and even engage in sexual intercourse. This liminal status invites a posthuman redefinition of intimacy: what does it mean to love, and be loved by, a machine—and what does it reveal about the human self? L’interdépendance entre humains et machines est au cœur des récentes études posthumaines : certains travaux, comme ceux de Rosi Braidotti (Posthuman Knowledge, 2019), ont ainsi souligné l’interaction constante entre l’humain et la technologie, ce qui complique d’autant la distinction entre les deux entités. Ce phénomène se reflète dans Machines Like Me, où des modèles avancés d'intelligence artificielle sont incarnés par des androïdes genrés à l'apparence parfaitement humaine : les Adam et les Eve. L’androïde Adam peut ainsi se faire « passer » pour un homme grâce à son physique et à ses capacités imitationnelles : ni machine, ni tout à fait humain, Adam est une créature hybride capable de penser, d’aimer et même d’entretenir des relations sexuelles. Cet état liminal appelle, dès lors, une redéfinition posthumaine de la notion d’intimité : peut-on réellement aimer et être aimé par une machine, et comment cela affecte-t-il notre propre identité ? |
| collection |
OpenEdition Journal |
| language |
Anglais |
| format |
Article ou chapitre numérique |
| building |
0/Bibliothèque numérique/ 1/Bibliothèque numérique/OpenEdition Journals/ |
| topic |
éthique identité hybridité émotion subjectivité intimité posthumanisme technologie réseaux érotisation ethics identity hybridity intimacy subjectivity emotions posthumanism technology networks eroticisation |
| spellingShingle |
éthique identité hybridité émotion subjectivité intimité posthumanisme technologie réseaux érotisation ethics identity hybridity intimacy subjectivity emotions posthumanism technology networks eroticisation Spiga, Adrien Loving the Machine: A Transition to Posthuman Intimacy in Ian McEwan’s Machines Like Me (2019) |
| description |
The growing interdependence between humans and machines has been a focal point in recent posthuman studies: scholars such as Rosi Braidotti (Posthuman Knowledge, 2019) have underlined the encroachment of technology on human beings and its subsequent blurring of the boundaries between the two. This is reflected in Machines Like Me, in which advanced forms of artificial intelligence are embodied by gendered, human-looking androids: the Adams and the Eves. the narrator’s Adam can ‘pass’ as a man thanks to its lifelike physique and behaviour—it is thus neither a human nor a machine, but a hybrid creature that can think, love, and even engage in sexual intercourse. This liminal status invites a posthuman redefinition of intimacy: what does it mean to love, and be loved by, a machine—and what does it reveal about the human self? |
| author |
Spiga, Adrien |
| author_facet |
Spiga, Adrien |
| author_sort |
Spiga, Adrien |
| title |
Loving the Machine: A Transition to Posthuman Intimacy in Ian McEwan’s Machines Like Me (2019) |
| title_short |
Loving the Machine: A Transition to Posthuman Intimacy in Ian McEwan’s Machines Like Me (2019) |
| title_full |
Loving the Machine: A Transition to Posthuman Intimacy in Ian McEwan’s Machines Like Me (2019) |
| title_fullStr |
Loving the Machine: A Transition to Posthuman Intimacy in Ian McEwan’s Machines Like Me (2019) |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Loving the Machine: A Transition to Posthuman Intimacy in Ian McEwan’s Machines Like Me (2019) |
| title_sort |
loving the machine: a transition to posthuman intimacy in ian mcewan’s machines like me (2019) |
| publisher |
Études britanniques contemporaines |
| publishDate |
2026 |
| container_title |
URI:https://journals.openedition.org/ebc |
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https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://doi.org/10.4000/16bj3 https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://journals.openedition.org/ebc/19607 |
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