"...smells, vapor cloud, color-change cells gone black..." ("The Ways of Love," p. 121) (see here)
show Voah that she is horrified - immediate olfactory and visual apprehension of his partner's emotions, almost as direct as mental apprehension by telepathy.
Can the Arvelans conceal their emotions, dissemble - or act? They watch "...choreodramas..." (p. 118)
Voah wonders how human beings express their deepest feelings to each other. (p. 119) Good question. Well, we do not do it by emitting strong smells and vapors and changing skin color - although a woman friend once instantly went deep red in the face when unexpectedly approached from behind by a guy that she liked. (Not me.)
I recognize that the Arvelans are the way they are, that we are the way we are and that the two ways are different but this is fiction. Are there any extrasolar races out there, do any of them correspond to sf writers' imaginings and will there be First Contact in our lifetimes? If and when First Contact does occur, it will initiate a new and unpredictable period of history.
Posting on James Blish Appreciation continues here and here.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
I think it is reasonable to think that some of the speculations about non-human races by SF writers such as Poul Anderson may sometimes come close to hitting the mark. Some races might show their emotions or even thoughts by means of changes in odor and color, etc.
And I ardently hope First Contact with non-humans happens in our lifetimes! Even if that happens in the humorous way given by Anderson in "Peek! I See You!"
Sean
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