The Settings of "Neuromancer"

Neuromancer begins in Chiba, Japan, which is geographically close to Tokyo. The main character, Case, describes the city as being separated from the ocean port by another kind of underground city, called Ninsei and nick-named Night City. This place is run-down and almost grungy, setting the mood for it’s black market economy. Separated from Chiba, Night City is shut in it’s own world of drug deals and hustlers. And from this futuristic society, we see an over-kill of technology. Any out-dated models seem to be discarded randomly. When Case jumps from the window in the arcade, he lands on a pile of circuits and wires, further strengthening the idea of a city filled with tech-waste. The people of Night City are really diverse, probably because of the near-by port. There are native Japanese, but also Spanish speakers and people from the Sprawl, which I assume to be somewhere on the Western hemisphere (maybe even the United States). Night City is truly the city of the night. During the day, the place is deserted. Shops are shut down and few people are seen in the streets. But at night, the city comes alive. It’s noisy, loud and chaotic, illuminated by holograms and neon signs.

The Matrix seems to be like a digital collection of data. Almost like the World Wide Web in physical form. It could contain government secrets, technology information or bank accounts. Either way, it appears that only a select few can enter, such as Case. To Case, the Matrix is a weightless experience because the mind becomes separated from the body, free to roam this digital expanse. The Matrix has some characteristics of a drug. Case is addicted to it, and is constantly searching for it’s familiar scenery. Even his suicidal outlook can be interpreted as withdrawal symptoms.

Both of these places seem bleak and barren. Night City has imagery of a “television sky” and the Matrix is described as a “colorless void” (6, 5). However, in Night City, you are bounded to your body’s limits, as opposed to in the Matrix where you are cut from any Earthly ties. And we start to see a difference in 'class'. Night City is a place for the dregs of society, while only an elite group can enter the Matrix.