Tuesday 27 July 2021

Long Ago And Far Away

I should have included James Blish's Cities In Flight, The Seedling Stars and Haertel Scholium among the future histories with early FTL. See STL And FTL In Future Histories

In Cities In Flight, the City Fathers computers, having been switched off for a while, still think that the Okie city, New York, is in the Rift, a valley cut in the face of the galaxy, and offer to present a determination for the far Rift wall. John Amalfi is the Mayor of New York:

"Amalfi removed the headset gently.
"'The Rift wall,' he said, moving the microphone away from his mouth. 'That was long ago - and far away.'"
-James Blish, Earthman, Come Home IN Blish, Cities In Flight (London, 1981), pp. 235-465 AT CHAPTER FOUR, p. 333.

In Poul Anderson's Starfarers:

"'I'm remembering how Al Brent must have died.'
"'That was long ago and far away.' Six thousand years and light-years. Not enough to grant forgetfulness." (51, p. 484)

"Long ago and far away" is an evocative phrase, expressing time passed and distance traveled. It is especially significant in the kind of interstellar context at which both Blish and Anderson excelled.

3 comments:

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

It's nearly needless to say, but that was not six thousand years ago as EXPERIENCED by the survivors of the "Envoy's" crew.

Ad astra! Sean

paulshackley2017@gmail.com said...

Sean,

That is why it is not long enough ago to grant forgetfulness.

Paul.

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

Exactly. And I'm reading Chapter 44 of STARFARERS.

Ad astra! Sean