Ghost In The Shell (5 points)

 Ghost in the Shell is one of the stories that comes to mind when thinking about cyberpunk because of the defining elements in the story that range from aesthetics, to things that serve more of a purpose. Most of the unique cyberpunk elements in this story relate to the ability of technology to work with the mind. Some technology can be linked directly with the person, such as a kind of vehicle that was used for each member of the police unit to move around. It also linked the unit through the mind so that they can communicate. Technology like this appears often in the manga, adding to the 'cyberpunk' genre.

The story of Ghost in the Shell follows the character Major Motoko Kusanagi, a police member and leader of her unit. She is investigating a criminal who has committed various crimes involving the hacking of brains that are linked to cyberware. She ends up discovering the source through a kind of 'hacking' of her own experience where the being is showing up in her mind. The being is searching for a means of, almost a kind of way of evolving. 

The character herself, Motoko Kusanagi, has a cyber-augmented body so that most of her form is artificial, minus some major organs, usually the brain and the spine. The augmentation of the body in Ghost in the Shell adds customizations that can enhance the physical, and even mental attributes for a human. A person might have more strength, or the ability to leap further. This form of augmentation basically allows for someone to be transferred into a new body if their body is damaged. The downside is that if a major part, such as the human organ is damaged severely, it would be game over for them. Another downside is that depending on how augmented a person is, they could face other dangers. If a person has such augmentation that is linked to their mind, they could be 'hacked' or damaged via a network attack. 

These featured elements such as body and/or mind augmentation and the ability to connect to a network are things often that create the groundwork for what is known as cyberpunk. The use of these elements were really a fun exploration in Ghost in the Shell.

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