There's No "I" in Human: Toward a Posthuman Ethics | Michael Shirzadian | TEDxOhioStateUniversity

Summary

The speaker recounts a personal story from December 2013, when he and his partner were kicked off a flight due to a misunderstanding involving his appearance and his cat. He uses this experience to explore the theory of posthumanism, which challenges traditional ideas of human identity and embodiment. By reflecting on humanism's historical impact on marginalized groups and examining how material and cultural factors shape perceptions of race and security, the speaker calls for a rethinking of how we define human identity in modern contexts and how knowledge is formed through social interactions.

Takeaways

• ✈️ The speaker was kicked off a plane while traveling with their cat due to an argument about the cat carrier not fitting perfectly under the seat.
• 😴 The speaker describes their appearance at the time as tired and unkempt, which contributed to them being seen as a threat.
• 😾 The conflict with a passenger led to an altercation that resulted in the speaker being viewed suspiciously, partially due to their physical appearance and the presence of the cat carrier.
• 🛑 The speaker uses their experience to introduce the concept of posthumanism, which explores how human identity is shaped by specific material and cultural contexts.
• 🧠 Posthumanism challenges the traditional view that human identity is fixed and inherent, emphasizing that it is constantly changing based on context.
• 📏 The speaker critiques humanism, particularly how it naturalizes human identity, using Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man as a symbol of how humanism centers white, able-bodied men.
• ⚖️ The speaker explains how humanist thinking has historically been used to justify harmful practices like slavery and forced sterilization by framing certain groups as less than human.
• 💡 Posthumanism encourages recognizing how factors like race, culture, and material surroundings influence how some people are dehumanized in specific contexts, as exemplified by the speaker's experience on the plane.
• 👁 The speaker examines the Trayvon Martin case, showing how George Zimmerman's suspicion was shaped not just by race, but also by contextual factors like rain, illustrating posthumanist thought.
• ❓ The speaker leaves the audience with open-ended questions about how adopting a posthumanist perspective could reshape various fields of study and even platforms like TED.

Q & A

What is the speaker's main reason for telling the story about traveling with their cat in December 2013?

The speaker shares the story to introduce their reflections on how posthumanism helped them make sense of their interaction during the flight, where they were perceived as a threat due to cultural and material factors.

How does the speaker describe their physical appearance during the trip in 2013?

The speaker describes themselves as a new high school teacher, appearing exhausted with longer and more unkempt hair and beard, alongside their long aquiline nose.

What role does the speaker’s cat, Auden, play in the story?

The speaker's cat, Auden, a black-and-white tuxedo cat with emerald green eyes, plays a central role in the story as the presence of the cat and its carrier led to a confrontation with a passenger and eventual removal from the flight.

Why does the speaker mention posthumanism in relation to the incident on the flight?

The speaker uses posthumanism to explain how their physical appearance and the objects around them, like the cat carrier, were interpreted in a cultural context that involved racial and security biases, leading to them being viewed as a potential terrorist threat.

What does posthumanism challenge, according to the speaker?

Posthumanism challenges traditional humanist notions of identity and embodiment, arguing that human identity is not static but shaped by cultural and material factors. It also critiques how humanism has historically been used to justify oppression and exclusion of marginalized groups.

How does the speaker relate the concept of humanism to Da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man?

The speaker uses the Vitruvian Man as a symbol of humanism, emphasizing its focus on a perfectly proportional white male at the center of the universe, which reinforces a narrow and exclusionary definition of humanity.

What criticism does the speaker offer regarding humanism?

The speaker criticizes humanism for naturalizing a fixed idea of what it means to be human, which historically has privileged white, able-bodied men while marginalizing others, such as people of color, women, and disabled individuals.

Why does the speaker reference the interaction between George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin?

The speaker uses this tragic incident to highlight how posthumanist thinking can reveal how seemingly neutral or benign elements, like rain, can be incorporated into racist narratives, showing the creativity and complexity of racist logic.

What question does the speaker raise about the mention of rain in George Zimmerman's phone call?

The speaker questions why Zimmerman mentioned the rain in his call, suggesting that posthumanism helped them understand that Zimmerman used it to imply suspicion, indicating that a young Black male walking in the rain was perceived as abnormal or threatening.

What does the speaker suggest about TED Talks and knowledge in the context of posthumanism?

The speaker critiques TED's framing of ideas as individual and isolated, arguing that knowledge is instead formed through complex social and material interactions over time, challenging the notion that ideas come solely from individual minds.