Week Twelve Diverse Position Science Fiction

Week Twelve Diverse Position Science Fiction

I wanted to write about my take on reading Bloodchild by Octavia Butler for the blog post this week. This story was really repulsive to me, but it was also too interesting to stop reading. As we talked about in class, I think the male/female role reversal makes this story difficult to digest from a male perspective. Lomas is reduced to nothing more then a birthing vassal for his Tlic. And it is hard to get through the part where he is opened up and he is being eaten from the inside.

The relationship between Tlic and Terran (humans) is complex. I think on a surface level the Tlic seem to be slave masters over the Terran using people as nothing more then containers to store their young, however these relationships are not that simplistic. On some level the Terran Tlic relationship is a symbiotic one that is beneficial to both species. Politaclly the Terran have no voice. Is there something akin to love in all of this? T’Gatoi definitely cares for Gan and his family.

It is easy to draw parallels from the dystopian setting of Bloodchild with modern western civilization. As I mentioned in class, the use of drugs as an escape or sedative from the world around us shows up in the form of properties in the eggs the Tlic feed the Terran.

While butler insists this story has nothing to do with slavery it is easy to see how people might read that from the work. The Terran Tlic relationship definitely seems to have an imbalance of power in favor of the Tlic. There is also something distinctly colonial about the setting, the Terran live on a “preserve,” and have no political power or voice they are completely reliant on T’gatoi to help them.

I don’t think there is a “correct” interpretation this story, and it should make you feel uncomfortable. It speaks about issues like dominance, inequality, physical suffering, and sacrifice. This is for sure one of the more thought provoking works we have covered this semester.

Week Eleven Cyberpunk & Steampunk

Week Eleven Cyberpunk & Steampunk

This week I read Cyberpunk in the 90’s essay and Johnny Mnemonic by William Gibson. I loved the mood and character and environment Gibson gives us. In my mind I picture a sort of darker and more technologically advanced Blade Runner landscape. The characters all seem to have modified themselves in bizzare ways, and I like the descriptions that go with the modifications, and the strange assortment of characters in general. Almost every character in the story seems to have made some major body modifications.

This story has everything from a cybernetically enhanced navy dolphin with old school plate armor to a Yakuza hit man with retractable whip thumb that can kill in an instant. This is a simple straightforward enough plot set in a world that feels complex and extremely fleshed out for a short story. Johnny Mnemonic is a precursor to Gibson’s novel Neuromancer (I really look forward to reading this work).

I found the Cyberpunk in the 90’s essay to be really insightful. It was cool to learn more about the roots of cyberpunk and understand how from Sterling’s perspective the genre never existed to “outrage the bourgeoisie” but rather to reflect the realities of mega corporations, advancing technology and shifts in social institutions. I agree with Sterling’s demands for us western reader’s to face the truths of our “manic waste” and the definite ecological issues the world will face. He also speaks of the wars and millions who we will watch die on television “while eating hamburgers.” For an essay written year ago this is pretty much right on point. One of Sterling’s best lines in the essay is when he writes, “if writers close their eyes to this, they may be entertainers, but they are not fit to call themselves science fiction writers.”

It was interesting to talk about the death of cyberpunk in class and how a large part of it’s demise may be down to the fiction becoming our commonplace reality. I am really excited by the idea of this genre making a return in film and games! One of my favorite video game cinematics of recent times is the teaser for the still unreleased game Cyberpunk 2077.

Week Ten Narratives from the Multiverse

Week Ten Narratives from the Multiverse

This week I read The Drowned Giant by J.G. Ballard. This story seems to be about decay and loss of identity and explore what it is that makes us human. The narrative style is somewhat unsettling, and there is also a profound sense of bleakness. When I started reading I immediately got hooked in but I wanted to know the giant’s origin and backstory. However, the narrator never focuses on the origin of the giant or makes an effort to speculate upon any details of his life.

Instead the decay of the giant is the central focus of the narrator.  The descriptions of the decomposition of the body and the town’s amputation of limbs and dismantling of the remains are depicted in grotesque detail. The remains of this colossal giant transition from an awe inspiring young man of epic proportions to a disgusting rooting carcass that is decapitated, mutilated and broken down into pieces to be moved around the town.

Rather then being about the drowned giants origin the story is about the giant’s impact on the town. This story feels almost like an anti fairytale. It’s as if the joy of discovery and wonder at such a magnificent discovery give way to the banal reality of decay. I think that this story speaks to spectacle, and how even the most wondrous discoveries quickly join the realm of the mundane.

Week Nine The Final Frontier

Week Nine The Final Frontier

My reading for this week was The Star by Arthur C. Clarke. This is a really short story about a space scientist explorer on a voyage that has seen the last remnants of an advanced society that has gone extinct. This distant societies sun has exploded and become a white dwarf star, wiping out the entire people of this civilization. Before their extinction they managed to preserve records of their culture on their solar systems equivalent of Pluto. The protagonist of the story is a Jesuit priest scientist who’s faith has been shaken to the core by the voyage.

The narrator is confronted with the difficult problem of faith and religion vs. science and technology. At the start of the story Clarke writes about a crucifix hanging on the wall above the Mark VI computer. The cross vs the computer symbolizes the Jesuit priests struggle to reconcile his science with his faith.

The reveal of what has shaken the priests faith to the core is delivered in the very last paragraph. It is a new understanding of the star of Bethlehem story. That the supernova that has caused this entire culture to go extinct should be the star of Bethlehem seems to be a cruel choice even for the most malevolent god.

Week Seven Harry Potter

Week Seven The Novel of Spiritual Education

I started re-listening to Harry Potter the Deathly Hallows on audio book. I had read all the Harry Potter books when I was younger; I think it was a really good way to get into reading as a young adult. I remember getting really engrossed in the stories and I would just keep reading, it was hard to put the book down.

Going back to The Deathly Hallows now, I am really interested in how the story was crafted and what Rowling built the plot around. With this book, and I think throughout the Harry Potter books, it essentially all comes down to the conflict between good and evil. Voldemort is the ultimate contrast to Harry.

Voldemort is bigoted, narcissistic, and has never know love, where as Harry is the exact opposite. He is well liked by almost everyone; while not talented he is a great friend. Loyal, caring, and patient; the contrast in these characters is very clear.

Rowling takes it upon herself to deliver these underlying moral values in the work. While it is simplistic and maybe a little preachy in its simplicity, I think this is a great place for young adult readers to start developing a love for reading.

Week 6 The Heroic Journey

Week Five Witches

I watched Suspiria Directed by Dario Argento.

The film is really creepy and it’s not just the creepy that makes you jump. The movie really just builds a strong sense of unease and suspense throughout. There are several extremely grotesque murder scenes, in one instance a woman’s entire face is cut in half by a piece of glass, and the scene with the maggots on the ceilings was creepy on a visceral level. The colors are very saturated in this film and it feels almost like a live action version of a Disney movie. The compositions are similar to stylized illustrations, and sometimes the light sources make absolutely no sense. The blues and reds often overlap to create purple and everything is just super saturated inside the school. The colors and style have a strong fairytale quality and inspite of being so adult in content, overall the film has a lack of nudity or blatant sexuality. I feel that the palate and lighting create a nightmarish atmosphere for the witch’s drama to play out in.

I can see why Argento has been labeled the "Italian Hitchcock." The design of the film is on point; everything is meticulously designed down to the last detail. The film has an almost completely female cast and there are only a few male charters. In a 2009 interview Argento said of the male roles in the film: “One is blind, one can’t speak, and the other is gay. It’s the women who have all the power.”

I’m not familiar with any Of Argento’s other films but while researching him after watching Suspiria I came across several different blogs and articles accusing him of misogyny. There was a lively debate in the comments section of people defending or condemning his works. It definitely seems to be a horror genre trend to really draw out female deaths. However Suspiria has such a strong cast of female characters that I don’t think there is anything especially misogynistic about this particular film. Some of the death/horror scenes are drawn out and graphic but that would probably lead more to a debate about depictions of death in cinema then anything specifically to do with women. Most of the comments about Argento’s work being misogynistic related to other works in his filmography.