"Day Million" by Frederick Pohl was probably the most satisfying read in general for me in a while. Obviously what a lot of popular science fiction stories do is start a story and you have to figure your way around the story. This happened to me in this story as you can imagine. Like last weeks story, this takes place in the future. I do like that as I go along in the story, it explains more and more without revealing too much. It's great. Right away I see the message this story is trying to bring across. Love in this case has no race, religion, and certainly not a gender. I assume that this short love story is between a girl and a boy but I realize quickly that it isn't. To have this story written in 1966 where being "different" was an extreme taboo, this was very edgy of Pohl to write. I enjoy that he is challenging the small and narrow way we (used to) think. It is writing like tghis that provokes and challeneges boundaries created by society. I also think his use of language was very keen in this story. This wouldn't be cosidered a conventional love story soley based on the fact that it keeps you guessing on who is who. Usually we get the girl and the boy but like I said before it keeps you guessing. For this to be written at this time, to me, is sort of revolutionary because it was the 1960's. Things that where different or out of the "norm" we kept on the down low. To see him deter from the usual love story path is shocking, but the good kind of shocking.
"When It Changed" by Joanna Russ was yet another interesting read. Although it has lost me in some places, I enjoyed it! Once idea that really struck me, was the fact that when men arrived on Whileaway I noticed right away how they realized that this particular planet has not had any type of man on it for 30 generation so they go into this caveman like mentality of thinking that women on this planet must be yearning for men! But in reality they weren't and were doing just finewithout them. This story was written in 1972, which to me is a year full of the braking of all types of barriers. Since this planet (Whileaway) has figured out a way to reproduce without men I truly don't think they serve any type of purpose there. Maybe some women on that planet like men? but I highly doubt it, since it has been 30 generations without men. This planet has thrived without men and will continue to thrive without men.
I thought the men's reaction once they realized the woman of Whileaway was priceless, they immediately changed their own and wanted to rescue the poor "damsels" in distress when in reality the woman have been thriving on their own, preparing for the day men returned to Earth so they can destroy them. I agree that the purpose of men isn't needed but I can see how some of the woman may just enjoy the company of men if they're sexually attracted to them and what not.
ReplyDelete