The Self Turned Inside Out: Neural Networks in Temi Oh’s More Perfect and Justin Cronin’s The Ferryman

The essay discusses two novels, Temi Oh's More Perfect and Justin Cronin's The Ferryman, in which human brains are linked with the internet, becoming nodes in the neural network. This linkage results in the new model of "nodal" subjectivity defined by the loss of autonomy, private interiority, and the ownership of memories. The article argues that immersing an individual in multi-directional network time and non-narrative forms of memory undermines the relationship between memory and the self and triggers the dissolution of identity. Both novels ultimately demonstrate that the only way to preserve one's agency is to disconnect from the network and return to the narrative as a manner of organizing and sustaining one's identity.