Open Access

Reimagining Humanity in the Age of Artificial Intelligence: A Posthumanist Reading of Gareth Edwards's The Creator (2023)

https://doi.org/10.55640/ijaair-v03i09-01

PDF

Gulshan Akram ¹ ,

⁴ Riphah Institute of Language & Literature (RILL), Riphah International University, Lahore, Pakistan

Abstract

Gareth Edwards's 2023 science fiction film The Creator presents a compelling vision of a near-future society where artificial intelligence has evolved into emotionally intelligent and self-aware beings. This article examines the film through the lens of posthumanist theory, drawing on the foundational works of Rosi Braidotti, N. Katherine Hayles, and Donna Haraway. The analysis demonstrates how The Creator transcends traditional humanist storytelling by presenting AI characters not as machines or threats, but as beings capable of love, sacrifice, ethical decision-making, and even spiritual longing. Through close examination of the film's narrative structure, character development, world-building, and cinematic techniques including cinematography, lighting, mise-en-scène, and sound design this article argues that The Creator actively contributes to contemporary philosophical conversations about identity, consciousness, morality, and what it truly means to be human in an age increasingly shaped by intelligent machines. The film challenges rigid boundaries between human and non-human, natural and artificial, creator and created, urging audiences to expand their moral imagination and embrace a more inclusive, relational understanding of personhood.

Keywords

Posthumanism, Artificial Intelligence, The Creator, Gareth Edwards

References

Braidotti, Rosi. The Posthuman. Polity Press, 2013.

Hayles, N. Katherine. How We Became Posthuman: Virtual Bodies in Cybernetics, Literature, and Informatics. University of Chicago Press, 1999.

Haraway, Donna. “A Cyborg Manifesto.” Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature, Routledge, 1991, pp. 149-181.

Wolfe, Cary. What Is Posthumanism? University of Minnesota Press, 2010.

Graham, Elaine L. Representations of the Post/Human: Monsters, Aliens and Others in Popular Culture. Rutgers University Press, 2002.

Zylinska, Joanna. The Ethics of Cultural Studies. Continuum, 2005.

Ferrando, Francesca. Philosophical Posthumanism. Bloomsbury, 2019.

Herbrechter, Stefan. Posthumanism: A Critical Analysis. Bloomsbury, 2013.

Nayar, Pramod K. Posthumanism. Polity Press, 2014.

Pepperell, Robert. The Posthuman Condition: Consciousness Beyond the Brain. Intellect Books, 2003.

Turkle, Sherry. Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other. Basic Books, 2011.

Turkle, Sherry. The Second Self: Computers and the Human Spirit. MIT Press, 2005.

Singer, Peter. Animal Liberation. HarperCollins, 1975.

Bostrom, Nick. Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies. Oxford University Press, 2014.

Deleuze, Gilles, and Félix Guattari. A Thousand Plateaus. University of Minnesota Press, 1987.

Butler, Judith. Precarious Life: The Powers of Mourning and Violence. Verso, 2004.

Schaefer, Donovan O. The Evolution of Affect Theory. Cambridge University Press, 2019.

Parisi, Luciana. Abstract Sex: Philosophy, Biotechnology and the Mutations of Desire. Continuum, 2004.

Thacker, Eugene. In the Dust of This Planet: Horror of Philosophy. Zero Books, 2011.

Colebrook, Claire. Death of the PostHuman: Essays on Extinction. Open Humanities Press, 2014.

Al-Omari, Omaia, and Tariq Al-Omari. “Artificial Intelligence and Posthumanism: A Philosophical Inquiry into Consciousness, Ethics, and Human Identity.” Journal of Posthumanism, vol. 5, no. 2, 2025, pp. 458-469.

Dedeoğlu, Çağdaş, and Nikoleta Zampaki. “Posthumanism for Sustainability: A Scoping Review.” Journal of Posthumanism, vol. 3, no. 1, 2023, pp. 33-57.

Nath, Rajakishore, and Riya Manna. “From Posthumanism to Ethics of Artificial Intelligence.” AI & Society, vol. 38, no. 1, 2023, pp. 185-196.

Yang, Qi, and Xiaoxiao Yao. “Philosophy of the Future and the Posthuman: Implications and Philosophical Analysis.” Futurity Philosophy, vol. 4, no. 1, 2025, pp. 36-51.

Smith, James. “Subverting AI Tropes: Narrative Strategies in The Creator.” Science Fiction Narrative, vol. 10, no. 1, 2024, pp. 40-55.

Johnson, Emily. “Identity and Hybridity in The Creator.” Journal of Science Fiction Studies, vol. 45, no. 2, 2024, pp. 75-90.

Lee, Michael. “Ethical Engagements with the Non-Human in The Creator.” Ethics and Film Quarterly, vol. 12, no. 3, 2024, pp. 100-115.

Martinez, Sofia. “Expanding the Moral Community: Artificial Beings in The Creator.” Journal of Posthuman Ethics, vol. 8, no. 1, 2025, pp. 50-65.

Nguyen, Linh. “Emotional Resonance and the Humanization of the ‘Other’ in The Creator.” Cinema and Society, vol. 19, no. 4, 2024, pp. 60-75.

Thompson, Rachel. “Consciousness and Ethics in Science Fiction Cinema: A Comparative Study.” Film and Philosophy, vol. 30, no. 2, 2024, pp. 85-100.

Most read articles by the same author(s)

<< < 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 > >>

International Journal of Advanced Artificial Intelligence Research

Reimagining Humanity in the Age of Artificial Intelligence: A Posthumanist Reading of Gareth Edwards's The Creator (2023)

Abstract

Keywords

References

Most read articles by the same author(s)

Similar Articles