"We know that other branches of humanity have their distinctive ways, and hear rumors of yet stranger ones." (p. 248)
This single sentence informs readers of "Starfog" that the narrative voice in this story is not that of the omniscient narrator of much third person prose fiction but instead is that of one particular inhabitant of:
"...that civilization in which the Commonalty operates." (ibid.)
This otherwise unknown narrator addresses his contemporaries and acknowledges the limits to their shared knowledge not only as above but also as follows:
"...we cannot even keep track of our own culture, let alone anyone else's." (ibid.)
This is a narrative point of view and we would like to know more about it. However, the earlier section of the Technic History is immeasurably richer in fictional narrators and historians.
7 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
IIRC, Daven Laure gave some passing thought wondering what happened to Old Earth, Manhome. But only en passant, there was simply too much for him and others to do in their particular civilization, the Commonalty, for going to or searching for Terra.
Ad astra! Sean
Sean,
The Commonalty is the name not of a civilization but of an interstellar service organization within the civilization.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
But "Commonalty" was the only name we know of applied to the region covered by that civilization.
Ad astra! Sean
I think Poul was smart to make the Rognaviki in WINTER OF THE WORLD a separare -species-. Their social fabric would be impossible for actual humans. Human nature sets the limits on cultural variation.
BTW, in a civilization as advanced and wealthy as the Commonality is shown to be, -someone- would have gone looking for Earth. And returned and publicized the results.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
I agree, the Rogaviki seen in THE WINTER OF THE WORLD were dangerously narrow and limited in what they seemed able to. If they were genetically hardwired to be unable to cooperate in any large scale disciplined way, as in the case of armies, all it would take for ordinary humans to break them is kill off a large part of the bison herds and methodically grind them down in battles.
I really don't see the Rogaviki surviving much longer as more and more of the world recovered from that future Ice Age and regained advanced technology.
Ad astra! Sean
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
Once you pointed it out it does make sense to think somebody from the Commonalty would have gone looking for Old Earth by Dave Laure's time.
Ad astra! Sean
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