Apparently, Sandra Miesel coined the term, "The Psychotechnic League," as a title for Poul Anderson's Psychotechnic History although her new coinage wound up as the title only of Volume I of the collected Psychotechnic History. Since there is no fictional organization called the Psychotechnic League but there is a Polesotechnic League in the Technic History and a Psychotechnic Institute in the Psychotechnic History, the phrase, "Psychotechnic League," can only cause confusion.
Vincent Carter was right to argue that an Earth devastated by nuclear war would not have been able to colonize Mars within a generation. Nevertheless, and despite Anderson's own later disillusionment with this series, I appreciate the sense that it conveys of a united effort to rebuild and progress. This future history is American in form but also Wellsian in theme:
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
To be implacably realistic, the last thing we should expect, given the Chaos of our times, is any kind of global unity! Unless matters get so bad, with great nations and powers collapsing, that someone like Napoleon or Manuel Argos conquers Earth to hammer together some kind of unity.
And I'm even more skeptical of anything like a real Psychotechnic Institute merely PERSUADING enough people in numbers sufficient to MATTER peacefully "remaking" themselves. And I don't believe that "remaking" will truly change flawed and imperfect human beings.
So I agree with the dissatisfaction Anderson came to have for the Psychotechnic stories.
Merry Christmas! Sean
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