The Post-Organic Body:

An Alternative Life in Kentukis

Abstract

In Kentukis (2018) by Samanta Schweblin, a new technological device spreads across diverse households, becoming a global craze. This kind of “pet robot,” called a kentuki, is equipped with Wi-Fi and cameras remotely controlled by an unknown human located somewhere in the world. This brief analysis aims to explore the ambitious aspiration of such technology to overcome the spatial limitations of the organic body through a problematic virtualization that, in reality, does not dispense with a body. Thus, it is proposed that the kentuki represents a corporeal connection that destabilizes the dualisms underlying the definition of the human person, pointing toward an alternative mode of existence at the intersection of technology and animality. To support this perspective, the discussion engages particularly with the work of philosopher Roberto Esposito, who argues that the human body neither constitutes a person nor can it be considered a mere object, instead forming a link between these two poles.