In Search of the Cartesian Self An Examination of Disembodiment within 21st-Century Communication Garry Young and Monica T. Whitty NOTTINGHAM TRENT UNIVERSITY ABSTRACT. Cyberspacehasbeenhailedbysomeasamediumthroughwhich users can experience themselves as disembodied, freed from the corporeal trappings of the “real” world. Literature proclaiming the merits of this dis- embodied ideal has often described the user’s existential state as a form of Cartesian disembodiment, but without (in our view) giving serious consid- eration to whether this label is warranted. This paper explores the extent to which alterations to the contingency relation said to exist by Descartes, between mind and body (or physical system), result in experiences of dis- embodiment that can legitimately be described as Cartesian. After examin- ing various examples of altered contingency relations—from case study reports of pathological experiences of disembodiment to research evidence on online relating—we conclude that cyberspace does not constitute a suit- able medium for the realization of the Cartesian self, even in users who intentionally seek to become disembodied. The more we try to disengage withthebody,themoreitsimportanceisrevealedtous. KEY WORDS: Cartesian self, computer-mediated communication, contin- gency relation, cyberspace, disembodiment, embodiment WhenDescartesannouncedtotheworld“cogito, ergo sum”(Ithink,therefore I am; 1637/1997a, § 32), in that instant his essential being was transformed, reducedeven,toadisembodiedmind(Descartes,1647/1997b,§78).Critics, however,werequicktochallengethecredibilityofhisontologicalclaim.Not only in terms of the manner in which he arrived at his conclusion, but also with regard to the fundamental division this produced between immaterial mindandmaterialbody,andtheproblematicnatureoftheirinteraction. 1 The aim of this paper is not to endorse Descartes’ontological distinction, neither THEORY &PSYCHOLOGY VOL.20(2):209–229 © TheAuthor(s), 2010. Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0959354309345633 http://tap.sagepub.com