Electronic Eros: Bodies and Desire in the Postindustrial Age

The dawn of the computer age has presented something of a problem for Hollywood. Sure, the quiet hum of a large computer bank has been used in movies to convey tension, as sweat breaks out on the faces of the handsome nerds in charge. But the fact is, computers are quiet; they are softly lit and gently curved, emitting a placid internal hum. In short, they are feminine. Macho action is out. In our postindustrial age the days of thrusting pistons, erupting steam, and crunching hardware are gone. In film and cyberpunk fiction, Terminator-type technological icons are in danger of being supplanted by female cyborgs more in tune with these cyberfemme times. Claudia Springer, a professor of English and film studies at Rhode Island College, examines the cultural implications of this transformation.