Meanwhile, I am still reading for the first time SM Stirling's Conquistador and will certainly read more novels by Stirling. For some discussion of which to read next, see the combox to this recent post. Right now, I am also reading Stieg & Me: Memories Of My Life With Stieg Larsson by Eva Gabrielsson, acquired today. This will be a quick read that will not long delay finishing Conquistador. I want to find out whether Tom remains in New Virginia or returns to FirstSide and also whether any other timelines are accessed.
10 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
Thanks for the compliment of linking this blog piece of your to some comments I made about Stirling's books. Much appreciated!
In those comments I repeatedly used "hesitate" because I'm not sure how you regard dystopian SF of the kind we see in Stirling's Draka books. What is your opinion of dystopian SF?
I can't recall Poul Anderson writing any dystopian novels--albeit some of his books could be rather bleak, in a "fin de siecle" way. But some of his short stories are definitely dystopian: "Welcome," "Murphy's Hall," "The Martyr," etc.
Sean
Sean,
Dystopianiam - not my favorite. I am an optimist and want to read about new horizons, not about confinement, regression etc.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
Yes, I have noticed that! And the interesting thing about the Draka books is that we see lots about optimism, new horizons, etc., from the bad guys POV. Or as I think Stirling put it, what if everything had gone wrong that could go wrong? However, in the fourth Draka book, DRAKON, things are a bit diffferent!
The third Draka book, THE STONE DOGS, is also interesting in that it shows both the Draka and their enemies moving DECISIVELY off Earth, to settle the Moon, Mars, the asteroid belt, etc. Which I wish so much we had actually done!
Of all Poul Anderson's short stories, "Murphy's Hall" definitely has to be called dystopian. And it was deliberately written, in a rare excursion into "advocacy writing," as a warning and plea for mankind to avoid going down certain dangerous, even fatal roads, such as a refusal to go into space.
Sean
Sean,
Among his many excellent qualities, PA was good at giving his novels inspiring endings.
The most dystopian fantasy has to be BLACK EASTER by James Blish, yet Blish managed to write a sequel that ended on a note of hope!
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
I agree with what you said about Poul Anderson. Even THE GME OF EMPIRE ends on a note of cautious hope.
With all the other stuff I have waiting for me to read I keep forgetting I should reread BLACK EASTER and its sequel!
Sean
Kaor, Paul!
I forgot to add that when I think of dystopian SF I usually have works like George Orwell's 1984 in mind, or Aldous Huxley's BRAVE NEW WORLD. Perhaps Brunner's STAND ON ZANZIBAR should be included as well (altho I thought that a VERY dated book when I read it).
Sean
Sean,
1984 is surely the ultimate dystopia, a systematically insane dictatorship. Alan Moore is able to make light even of this. In his LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN: THE BLACK DOSSIER, the Big Brother regime ends and the posters are taken down. When Moore wrote the superhero, Captain Britain, the Captain met his alternative reality counterparts, including Captain Airstrip One who said, "Cap Brit, doubleplusgood us meet!"
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
Good point, that Orwell's 1984 shows us what HAS to be a clinically insane dictatorship. The late, unlamented USSR under Stalin or Mao's China almost certainly came very close to being like that!
I would argue that Huxley's dystopian BRAVE NEW WORLD shows us a more plausible world despotism. The State uses sex and drugs to keep the masses stupefied and indifferent to how they are misruled. Which I thought more subtle and plausible than the thuggish brutality we see in 1984.
Sean
Sean,
Pleasure would keep people enslaved far longer than overt oppression. In 1984, it seems that the Party have stopped scientific research and arrogantly deny their own dependence on the environment. Their regime will collapse as soon as they use up some of their natural resources. The universal surveillance is also impossible. To watch one man for 24 hours, 3 men would have to work 8 hour shifts!
Paul.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
Good points. Altho I would say more that the collapse of the Big Brother regime becomes more likely due to economic and technological stagnation making it more and more unsustainable.
Sean
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