Extensa
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 Polish edition cover | |
| Author | Jacek Dukaj |
|---|---|
| Translator | not translated |
| Cover artist | Tomasz Bagiński |
| Language | Polish |
| Genre | Science fiction novel |
| Publisher | Wydawnictwo Literackie |
Publication date | 2002 |
| Publication place | Poland |
| Media type | (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 164 pp |
| ISBN | 83-08-03286-9 |
| OCLC | 51216199 |
| LC Class | PG7163.U4 E96 2002 |
Extensa is a 2002 science fiction novel written by Jacek Dukaj, Polish science fiction writer. It is the second stand alone novels by Dukaj, and the first published by Wydawnictwo Literackie, marking the writer's growing recognition in Poland.
The novel protagonist is one of the few remaining, unaugmented human beings on Earth, and the novel's plot focuses on their life, as they consider whether to remain a traditional human being or embrace a transition to a transhumanist, singularitarian entity.
It was translated into Hungarian in 2012.[1]
The novel fits in the science fiction genre, describing a post-singularity society, where some humans have evolved further while others chose to remain behind. Like other works by Dukaj, the novel deals with highly advanced technology (like EPR paradox, related to the Einstein-Rosen-Podolsky bridge) and its implications for human society. The story depicts a world where there is a cultural conflict between those who support evolving into some posthuman form, and those who want to preserve "traditional" human form and culture. The main character, otherwise anonymous, who narrates his life, is born in the last enclave of traditional humans, the Green Country, and is constantly torn between his desire to experience the new world, and his fear of losing what makes him human.[2][3][4][5][6][7]
Analysis
The book's initial part is reminiscent of the magic realism genre, although later it moves into Dukaj's traditional science fiction.[8]
Piotr Gorliński-Kucik noted that the work combines common tropes used by Dukaj in his other works, namely gnosticism and transhumanism.[4] The book has a number of themes, such as the consequences of human evolution.[4][5] Another of its themes is the concept of otherness.[9][10][5] Related to it is the difficulty of first contact, particularly in the context where the sides have vastly different technological potential, reminiscent of Stanisław Lem's Fiasco.[6][11] Dukaj himself described the main theme of the novel as cultural conflict.[2]
The book also marked Dukaj's growing recognition by the literary mainstream in Poland, as it was his first book published by the mainstream publisher Wydawnictwo Literackie, while his earlier works were published by sci-fi-specialized publisher SuperNowa.[11][8][12]