Reconceptualising the Human Exploring Critical Posthumanism in Select Novels of A. E. Van Vogt, Don Delillo and Olaf Stapledon

In 21st-century fiction, digitalization and globalization shatter the once-united front of Humanism. Haraway's cyborg resonates across narratives that question human ontology under biopolitics, genetic engineering and machine learning. Here, the line between fact and fiction collapses; the proud pillars of instrumentalism, exceptionalism and exclusivism topple. We see instead a human as a porous, hybrid node-constantly fusing, merging, metamorphosing with nonhuman others: cyborgs, interstellar travelers, superhuman intelligences. Critical Posthumanism does not merely dethrone man from his anthropocentric throne; it redefines him. By deconstructing the self and rewriting the definition of 'human,' it forces us to stare into the abyss of our own becoming-no longer isolated sovereigns, but ever evolving composites of flesh, metal and code, marching toward futures we can scarcely imagine. This journey into Critical Posthumanism is not merely an academic pursuit-it is a meditation on the transformation of human existence in an increasingly interconnected, technologically saturated world. By engaging with the thinkers and narratives that shape this discourse, we step into the unknown, where humanity dissolves and reforms in ways we are only beginning to comprehend.