Herland

Since we didn’t get to discuss it much I’m am trying to remember what we discussed in a previous class that we studied this. I remember speaking of the fact that a female only society leads to some women following what would be thought of as male roles and others of female roles. This sort of division is interesting because it really speaks to how society is what sets these rules, not any sort of natural design. Men and women have always been placed in their particular situations and some have justified it as being nature based when that is simply not true. Many women have ventured into male dominated careers to become very successful. How can it be possible that there are simply men’s worlds and women’s worlds. I like this idea because it shows the boundless possibility of both genders to venture outside of their comfort zone.

As the course is over I would like to say that I enjoy these science fiction courses. The genre is not one that I normally read but I have been looking more and more in that section of Chapters. I think the field is quite fascinating at the imagination of the authors quite amazing as they are creating something that does not exist except in their minds and portraying it so their audience can see it and believe it too. I like living in a world where science is catching up with science fiction and that writers are showing scientists the way.

The Time Machine

This story immediately reminded me of a story I once heard that apparently is true. It is that a machine has been built that is able to transport an atom of matter across a one kilometre distance to another point. When I heard this I thought that eventually it would be possible to create a true teleporting machine. This type of story is one that gets me a little excited about the potentials in science to create things that can only be thought of in science fiction. Just think that one day you ma be able to get ‘beamed up’ or travel back to a time and see your favourite writer or influential figure. I know the first person I would visit would be Shakespeare. I would love to see one of his plays as performed at the time. As I said in a previous post I was fortunate enough to go to London and I was able to see Romeo and Juliet performed in the Globe, it was amazing. But back on  point, I think that stories like this are what inspires people to go and try to create these objects. As far as I know nobody has successfully built a time machine but that doesn’t mean that it would be impossible. At least I hope that someday we advance into an age where anything is possible and we are limited only by what we can imagine. With science fiction writers at the helm there should be plenty of ideas to build from.

Flatland

Ahh Flatland, so much commentary on social structures from triangles and spheres. I really thought this was a child’s book where I first heard about it and read over the cover. I know they probably wouldn’t understand all the calculus and math involved but neither do I really. But once I read it and got a feel for the different social hierarchies that are being discussed I realized that it really is quite in-depth and speaks to the problems in the world in such a new and different way. There are 2 hierarchies that i want to talk about. Firstly I will discuss gender issues. Boiling down women to simply a line, the bottom rung of society. with no real sense of anything is basically the perfect analogy for the belief systems of the time. Women here were treated as mindless drones who are deadly without meaning too. In a social context this can be seen as a how women can be destructive towards men in society because of the power they wield over us. No man during the time will admit that but I think that is what is trying to be said. Also since their society was based off angles even the lowliest man would have greater social power than any woman. Interesting how close to true that is.

The other thing I want to discuss is social hierarchy. The people with power in Flatland are there only because they have more angles, not because they were chosen or are best for their jobs. This is exactly like the nobility of the time where their birth is why they are in their position. If someone is a horrible person but is the child of a magistrate then they too will have that power. A scary thought which we luckily do not have to worry about so much. Though we are a democracy the people with the wealth have a lot of power which is hereditary.  The angles also seem a lot like the sumptuary laws that have been in different parts of Europe. People were forced by law to wear only certain types of garments which included the colours they could wear and the fabrics they were made of. That wouldn’t be possible by today’s standards because of the mass production of clothing and its easy avalibility.

I actually really enjoyed this story and over the summer i might rent the movie that is based off it. I think it would be quite interesting to see the world of Flatland in a film.

The Coming Race

This post I want to talk about the Vril-ya and religion. I found it to be something strange that Bulwer-Lytton decided to make them have Christianity for a religion but it turned out to be an interesting idea. The fact that they simply believe that there is a God and there is no sense debating over it is a unique idea. I’m not sure if Bulwer-Lytton was trying to make a comparison or comment on the religious people of the day. If he was trying to comment on it, was he condemning those who did question the existence of God? Are we meant to look at this as an ideal religious state or is it simply a matter that when a question cannot be answered it is best not to ask it. My thoughts are it is more the second one. I don’t think that it is the religious devotion that is important but the fact that they do not waste time philosophizing over questions and ideas that there is no answer to. Since there is no proof of a God that can convince someone that there isn’t one then there is no sense debating it. It would seem that the Vril-ya are not religious but non-philosophizers. Kind of interesting considering I pictured them looking angelical because of their wings and the powers they can wield. Without putting my personal beliefs into the discussion I think that a state where a God is simply accepted is not correct because it leads to a stagnant society since no debate means no controversial issues to solve.

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea

First and foremost I feel I must say that I really enjoyed the video presentation that was done for this book. It was informative while being quite funny.

As for the story itself I would like to comment on a couple pieces of the technology that I found to be quite interesting. The idea of sodium powered batteries sounds like an idea that could generate some potential to further the development of submarines in a new direction. As far as I know right now submarines are limited to nuclear technology in order to drive their life support systems and propel them through the water. These subs would have a limited duration in which they can survive underwater without the need to some sort of refueling. These sodium batteries sound like the potential cure for that. They use resources that are readily available under the ocean’s surface and are actually environmentally friendly if I understand them correctly. I have no idea how realistic this sort of technology would be and at what cost to performance but it would be interesting to imagine in war time being able to hide in the deepest depths of the ocean to attack your enemies where they could not find you.

The name the Nautilus brings about an interesting comparison with the first true submarine ever developed. This submarine, if it were real, would also be a first of its kind and carrying with it a crew for a new society of equals. Another first of its kind. The story of sea exploration and social structure within an environment such as a submarine is quite good and I really enjoyed it.

On a personal note I was fortunate enough to travel the London last year with the Spring Intersession group and as part of our British Naval history we got to walk through a decommissioned submarine. I didn’t know I was actually claustrophobic until I couldn’t fully stand up of easily turn around. I didn’t panic but I could certainly feel my heart beat a little quicker. I can’t imagine living for months and months in such a confining space where a leak could spell death. Something I would have to be knocked out and shoved into.

Edgar Allan Poe

I have been a fan of Poe’s for many years, ever since I read the “Tell Tale Heart” way back in elementary school though I didn’t know much about him. That is why I took the opportunity I had to do my presentation on him to learn a little bit about the man behind the pen. Here it is as best as it will translate from powerpoint.

Edgar Allan Poe

Home Life

- Born: 19 Jan 1809 as Edgar Poe

-Died: 7 OCt 1849 (various sources tell various stories of how he died ranging from alcohol poisoning to suicide)

- Siblings: William and Rosalie

- Orphaned at a young age and unofficially adopted by John and Frances Allan

- Married his 13 year old cousin who died 2 years later of Consumption (Tuberculosis)

Writing Career

- Poe started by writing poetry but found little success

- After poetry he turned towards commentary of various literary works for various publications

- His famous work, “The Raven”, made him a household name. He sold the publication rights to this story for $10.

- With this success he began his career as the Gothic writer we now know him to be.

The American Gothic

- Sometimes referred to as Dark Romanticism

- Coined American Gothic because of a painting by that name that exemplifies the ideas of the movement.

- Poe’s works are filled with murder, vengeance and horror but are extremely detailed setting himself apart from other writers in the same genre.

Poe’s Influence

- His detective novels

—”Each [of Poe's detective stories] is a root from which a whole literature has developed… Where was the detective story until Poe breathed the breath of life into it?” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, writer of the Sherlock Homes series

- Cosmology

—Eureka: A Prose Poem, predated the Big Bang Theory by 80 years giving an explanation to the origins of the Earth outside of religion.

- Cryptography

—While working at a Philadelphian newspaper, Poe challenged his readers to send him ciphers which he would solve and popularized their development in newspapers and magazines. Poe was no extraordinary codebreaker and could only solve ciphers that followed a sort of simple substitution, somehow I doubt he published the ones he couldn’t solve.

Little Fun

-This is the link to the little multiple choice quiz on the “Tell Tale Heart” that I did at the end of my presentation. Enjoy.

www.funtrivia.com/flashquiz/index.cfm?qid=94158

I unfortunately have no idea how to get the pictures to upload but I hope this is good enough for you to remember it.

The Last Man

In this post I want to talk a bit about the apocalypse genre. I find these genres quite a good analysis of the problems with today’s necessity for technology and the lack of survival skills that many people have. Now I’m not a man who hunts for his food, builds my house out of trees and finds a nice discreet hole or anything but I think I could hold my own for a few days. The problem I find is that people have become far too attached to their gadgets. I have a few myself (cell phone, laptop, ps3…) that I would have a hard time living without but I still know how to start a fire with a little luck and how to pitch a tent. Why is it that everything is being made easier for people at the sacrifice of basic survival instincts. Even tents can be popped up by tossing them in the air. I know we all love our facebook, youtube and twitter (though I don’t have it) but why do we as a society spend so much time in front of the screen. It’s not very stimulating. Farmville doesn’t make you a better farmer and I hope Mafia Wars doesn’t make anyone a better mob boss.

Enough ranting about technology because I am guilty of having a little love for the glow of the screen when my ps3 is starting up. Onto the apocalypse. Whether or not the world ends in 2012 awaits to be seen but for arguments sake let’s suppose it does. There are certain things that must be done fairly quickly if anyone wishes to survive in a world where everything we rely on heavily in our daily lives (electricity, running water, McDonalds) were to sudden be unavailable. These sort of novels and stories allow the writer to analyze what is really important when it comes right down to it. I find that sort of writing to be very interesting because you begin to realize how trivial a lot of the stuff we have now really is. I believe that with a little luck, a lot of knowledge and a sharp knife someone could survive quite well in a post-apocalyptic world.

A quick note on the story, I did some reading on it and apparently it was very negatively received at the time (according to wikipedia). I can understand that the critics at the time wouldn’t like to hear of such a world and see humanity stripped down to its bare essentials because they probably would be upper class gentlemen with servants and everything they need available. It is a quite good look at what humanity essentially is and I think that as far as apocalyptic novels it is probably the best I have read though I admittedly have read only a few.

Frankenstein

This is the first time I actually read this story though I knew the idea of it, and not just from the movies. The issue I would really like to talk about is the predicament that Frankenstein is placed in when his creation comes to him asking for a mate. Understandably Frankenstein doesn’t want to do this because of the chaos and destruction that his creation reaps but as his “god” is it his responsibility to his creation to cater to its needs. In the book of Genesis Adam asks God for a partner and He creates Eve and this scene is meant to hearken back to this story of the Bible. Frankenstein is placed in the shoes of God for a moment and has to decide, knowing the potential for destruction and the death that has already been brought about, whether or not to allow this “species” to continue. God in that moment knows the terrible potential of humanity but creates Eve anyways. Frankenstein chooses to go a different route which is for the best. Shelley, I believe, hopes that her audience would be able to pick up on this allusion and gain more sympathy for the creature otherwise the story loses much of its power. For us to not sympathize with the creature it becomes a killing machine that we want to fail, like the zombies we discusses in class. So the real question that can be raised from that ramble is ‘Are humans merely Frankenstein’s creation that were allowed to procreate?’ We have the same characteristics and look at the death and destruction we have been able to inflict on the planet, the animals and each other.

Also just a side note, I saw Avatar a couple weeks ago and thought it was amazing. I know most people are saying that it is merely a Disney story set on another planet but for those of us that are not familiar with that story it is fascinating. I thought that even with the 3D experience it would have been a moving film and that is merely the icing on the cake. Cameron should be applauded for the hard work that went into the making of this movie and more so for waiting until the technology caught up to his vision, even after years.

Man in the Moone

Apparently I have forgotten to blog for a week or so and fell behind so let’s catch up shall we? This book was quite interesting and had a lot of resonance with Gulliver’s Travels. The discovery of a new race allows for the examination of ones own race in comparison. The people that live on the moon speak in a sing song way that is very much contrasted with the guttural English language which is one minor thing to look at. The part that really sticks in my mind is the notion that seems to come up often in these sort of travel log stories and that is the utopia that other races have been able to achieve while we continue to war and suffering continues. I’m not sure if it’s fair to same that these stories are trying to show a way of reaching this state but just an ending without the means.

This leads me to question at what cost would it take a society to reach that level of perfection. Assuming that this colony on the moon was like us at one point with fighting and crime and general degradation that happens in certain aspects of society, what kind of tactics would need to be employed to reach that. I have a hard time believing that perfect peace can be obtained by diplomatic means but does that then mean that might is right? I don’t really know the answer but it does beg that question.

Gulliver’s Travels

This is just a little brainstorm I had about the third book of Gulliver’s Travels. When you consider the science of the day that this book was written and how absurd some of the theories about different scientific techniques that were circulating it is reasonable to believe that science could have advanced so far as to make new discoveries much less reasonable. What I am trying to say is that in order to discover something new a crazy idea usually must develop first and from that it can be worked out to something that is more or less reasonable. For instance, space travel before the 20th century would be a ludicrous idea meant for fiction as we have seen. But now we are reaching further and further into the depths of space and manned missions to Mars are not that crazy of an idea.

I read the first 2 books of the story as well since I got the book for Christmas and I found them quite interesting. Gulliver first meets a group of tiny people then a group of giants and the perspectives of each towards him are quite interesting. It made me think of new civilizations that were discovered and how alien they would be to each other like the Spanish and the Aztecs. Neither would have any real experience with the other culture and both want to get what they can from the other. Just an interesting thought that although he met people of different size that were relatively similar to himself they treated him much differently. It is the history of colonization all over again.