Right now, I am passing back and forth between several fictional universes:
the Terran Federation of Poul Anderson's The Star Fox and Fire Time;
the Angrezi Raj of SM Stirling's The Peshawar Lancers and "Shikari in Galveston";
Stieg Larsson's Millennium;
the Smallville, Metropolis and Arctic Fortress of the Smallville TV series.
Copyright permitting, a fictional character would also be able to travel between these and other such universes. If I were able to write fiction, I would do Jane Austen's Mr Collins en route to dine with his Patroness the Right Honorable Lady Catherine de Burgh at Rosings only to encounter a time traveling Batman who would need his help but whom he would regard as a demon.
Poul Anderson's Old Phoenix scenario easily allows for any and all such bizarre inter-cosmic encounters.
3 comments:
Hi, Paul!
Your mentioning of the Terran Federation we see in THE STAR FOX and FIRE TIME reminded me of the far more oppressive World Federation in ORBIT UNLIMITED because I mentioned the latter in a private email discussion thread. The discussion began as a debate on the likelihood of intelligent life existing on other worlds and whether or not we can find out, and whether FTL or STL travel is possible. I have argued that one motivation for emigration from Earth, even if STL has to be used, would be for political and religious malcontents, finding their gov't oppressive, to emigrate to another star having a planet capable of being colonized by humans.
ORBIT UNLIMITED, along with NEW AMERICA, contains Poul Anderson's "History of Rustum" series. It all began when Commissioner Svoboda maneuvered both the Federation and the Constitutionalists into both coming more and more to regard each other as an existential threat to their very existence. Then he had it suggested that instead of one or the other crushing its rival, the Federation would agree that emigration of the more bothersome Constitutionalists was better than a show down struggle for power.
Sean
Sean,
But an interstellar distance is an awfully long way to go for political refuge, especially STL. Inhospitable though it is, the Solar System is much more accessible with solar energy radiating in every direction.
I have WORLDS THAT WEREN'T so will comment on SM Stirling's story soon.
Paul.
Hi, Paul!
I agree! If only STL is available, people would have to get very angry and dissatisfied before choosing that alternative. But I think STL would be doable at least sometimes if a space ship can reach a reasonable percentage of the speed of light. After all, time would pass more slowly for the passengers and crew, meaning that for them it would take less time to go 15 years than it would outside the ship. Also, cryo technology might become practical. Colonists could spend the entire journey in "frozen sleep." Cutting down on the amount of supplies a ship wold need, with a few crew men taking turns rotating in and out of cryo sleep to man the ship's controls and instruments.
And I do look forward to your comments about Stirling's "Shikari in Galveston."
Sean
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