Spotlight on Cyberpunk
This is a post I’ve been contemplating for a very long time, but felt unequal to because cyberpunk is not a genre I feel I know a lot about. A lot of the recommendations on where to start, I will have to admit to never reading or seeing.
So, why did I want to write this post? Because cyberpunk is essentially the first of the aesthetic genres, the ones that are based as much, if not more, on how they feel or look as what they are about. Many of these genres also have ‘punk’ in the name, showing the relation. And while I may not know much about cyberpunk, I do know a bit more about steampunk, dieselpunk, and clockpunk, all of which may become their own articles.
I might have put this off longer, but a comment on my last post mentioned cyberpunk, and I decided it was time.
What is cyberpunk?
Cyberpunk is a division of Science Fiction (though Fantasy elements are possible, if uncommon), generally set in the near future, with a large urban setting, advanced technology, and a cynical or dystopian view of life. Protagonists are usually anti-heroic at best, with those attempting to be ‘good’, whatever that may be in this society, crushed and destroyed by that very society. Antagonists on an individual level are frequently part of a very large corporation or government organization. Or maybe the antagonists are rarely seen on the individual level, and all we see is the large corporation or government organization. Or perhaps they are one and the same. Anarchy is another possibility, but not as common. If used, it puts an emphasis on an ‘every man for himself’ philosophy.
The punk part of cyberpunk refers to the fact that these individuals, predominantly male, are usually rebels, outsiders, and ‘riff-raff’. The term ‘high tech lowlife’ comes up frequently when researching cyberpunk. Artificial humans, and how human they may be, comes up frequently in the genre. The main character discovering that they themselves are not actually human but have been constructed has been used often enough that it shouldn’t be used as a gimmick to surprise readers, because readers will not be surprised.
The computer part is a little more tricky. Many cyberpunk stories are set in the near future with an extrapolation of current technology. Unfortunately, that technology changes very rapidly. My phone, the cheapest smartphone in Walmart a couple years ago, is more powerful than the computers used to launch the first space shuttle. So are most scientific calculators, for that matter. Okay, we’re talking about sixty years ago, but think about how much computers have changed in that time compared to other technologies. Cars have definitely upgraded their features, but the basics haven’t changed. A sixty-year-old house is probably pretty similar to a hundred-year-old house or a five-year-old house. But trying to extrapolate what a powerful computer looks like in ten years? Who knows?
Where can I start?
Because this is a writing blog, I’m going to suggest literature, not that there aren’t some great movies out there. Some of these may be considered proto-cyberpunk or post-cyberpunk but that can also get to splitting hairs. Also, I cannot claim to have read all of these, but some are definitely on my list.
Philip K. Dick: Before cyberpunk had a name and codified tropes, he was writing many stories that used those tropes. Some famous cyberpunk movies were based on his works. For example, his novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep became the basis of the movie Blade Runner, which inspired its own franchise. Many of his successors in cyberpunk also won the Philip K. Dick Award for their work, making him definitely one of the best places to start.
Bruce Sterling: Considered one of the founders of cyberpunk, he is not only the writer of several novels, but very much involved in promoting the genre, aiding writers, and futurism. His interest in the future seems rooted in a love of history and what has gone before. He has wone Hugo Awards for two novelettes. His promotion of the subgenre has given him the nickname ‘Chairman Bruce’. He also originated the term ‘slipstream’.
William Gibson: Another founder of cyberpunk, he is best known for his novel, Neuromancer, which codified many of the tropes in cyberpunk. Like Philip K. Dick, many of his stories have been adapted to movies. Unlike him, these movies have largely flopped. Neuromancer won, among other awards, the Philip K. Dick award.
Bruce Bethke: His short story ‘cyberpunk’ was where the word originated. He also wrote the novel Headcrash which is a satirical take on the genre, and won a Philip K. Dick award.
Neal Stephenson: He straddles the line between cyberpunk and post-cyberpunk (if the story is optimistic, it’s post-cyberpunk). His novels include Snowcrash, a satirical work that also plays most elements of cyberpunk straight (I’m currently reading it), and Cryptonomicon.
What is the aesthetic of cyberpunk?
Since this is a genre marked by aesthetic, it’s worth noting what that aesthetic is. Cyberpunk near universally takes place in large cities and/or virtual reality. It’s almost always night or gray and overcast, if the sun had stopped existing, no one would ever know. Expect almost everyone to wear black, or at least dark colors. Trench coats, mirrored shades, and fancy, if perhaps impractical, weapons are par for the course. A heavy noir basis is expected.
Expect many locales to be either grimy or sterile, with very little in between. Except for the sweeping cityscape shots of skyscrapers full of lights, neon colors, and possibly wall-to-wall advertising. The world is heavily and strictly divided into haves and have-nots, with the protagonists being have-nots.
Technology is advanced and not bad in and of itself, but humans definitely manage to make it work for evil anyway. Anti-capitalism messages are not uncommon, as much of the evils of the world spring from greed.
An Asian element is common and possibly expected in any cyberpunk from the 80’s and beyond. The genre is also popular in Asia, especially Japan, leading to many stories of lone ronin or samurai in cyberpunk futures.
It has been remarked that despite the blending of East meets West, cyberpunk is often not a very diverse genre, with little emphasis on women or non-Asian minorities. Perhaps that is something to play with in your own writing.
What are common themes?
I really can’t put it better than TV tropes did (see below), but here’s a short list to get you started.
Man against society. Gray vs. Gray morality. What makes a human? The benefits and dangers of artificial intelligence. Capitalism (or at least greed) is bad.
As cyberpunk follows the noir tradition, which itself borrows from Western and Samurai based stories, any themes from those can follow well. The story typically has one lone hero, occasionally a small team, but if so, someone is probably going to turn traitor, against the world. Cyberpunk being a dystopia genre, endings tend to be bittersweet at best. If there is any organized good, especially one that can stand up to the societal evil, you are probably in post-cyberpunk.
What can I do with cyberpunk?
That depends on you and your imagination. As noted, ‘true’ cyberpunk has certain expectations, but if you notice, it’s also been a springboard for a whole host of other genres. And there is no rule that you have to go full in to cyberpunk conventions. You can borrow an element or two in another genre, or try to tweak common elements.
Cyberpunk predominately takes place in the United States, Japan, or some analogue of those countries. China is making some in roads lately, and no reason Great Britain can’t be used instead. But what about a cyberpunk story in the Southern Hemisphere? Maybe in Africa or South America?
When your protagonists fights as much, if not more, with electrons as they do physical weapons, then what does the physical fitness of the hero matter? Children, elderly, women, the disabled, etc. No reason they have to be healthy teen or adult men. Come on, the eighty-year-old granny who can disable the system because she left a back door in the project when she worked as an engineer, before she was fired without her pension, would be an excellent story. Did you know the first computer programmers were predominantly female? They were, and they were called computers at the time.
Further Resources:
What is cyberpunk– a blog post written by someone who knows the genre better than I do, who is also able to explain it concisely.
Tv Tropes (Website frequently uses strong language):
Cyberpunk– an overview of the genre and lists of various cyberpunk examples in media. I, personally, feel they spread the term too wide, as they seem to consider any dystopian story with fancy technology as cyberpunk. But as said, I am not an expert.
Cyberpunk tropes– includes common themes, common settings, common character types, and more. Make sure you have a decent amount of free time before you go wiki walking here.
Write a cyberpunk story– Advice for those who want to write in the genre including what is common and what to avoid.
What is your favorite element of cyberpunk? What would you like to see more of?