SOURCE: “Techgnosis: Magic, Memory, and the Angels of Information,” in South Atlantic Quarterly, Vol. 92, No. 4, Fall, 1993, pp. 585-616.

In the following essay, Davis analyzes the place of historical gnosticism and allegory in cyberpunk fiction.

One of the most compelling snares is the use of the term metaphor to describe a correspondence between what the users see on the screen and how they should think about what they are manipulating. … There are clear connotations to the stage, theatrics, magic—all of which give much stronger hints as to the direction to be followed. For example, the screen as “paper to be marked on” is a metaphor that suggests pencils, brushes, and typewriting. … Should we transfer the paper metaphor so perfectly that the screen is as hard as paper to erase and change? Clearly not. If it is to be like magical paper, then it is the magical part that...