tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670543499274741427.post4769880766469909467..comments2024-03-26T17:54:54.592+01:00Comments on Speculiction...: Remembering Science Fiction: Q1 of the 21st CenturyUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670543499274741427.post-49789735409842631852021-07-01T22:05:11.958+02:002021-07-01T22:05:11.958+02:00I like "fractionalization". In my foray...I like "fractionalization". In my forays into media, I sometimes wonder if a fraction = an individual... Also, thanks for the link to the Naga article. I was unaware of the Klune "controversy". Seems utterly absurd. The optimist in me takes a step back and says: if arguments over the degree to which an author has committed cultural appropriation are the greatest of western society's worries, then we generally must be in good shape, no? :)<br /><br />Regarding the continuation of polarization, I don't doubt it. Social media and capitalist media (i.e. media looking for clicks rather than objective news coverage) will likely continue to fuel those fires. I retain belief, however, at least for the moment, that there is still a majority of moderate people who see through most of that bullshit. They may not have loud voices in any kind of media, but the proof of their existence is that the Western world has not gone down in flames. When I talk with my friends or co-workers, I rarely if ever encounter people on extreme sides. Most shake their heads at situations like Klune's. I guess what I'm saying is, the polarization can perpetuate, but let's hope it doesn't eat into the core of "normal". If that's gone, we're in trouble.<br /><br />Regarding cli-fi, I would agree with your idea; it's difficult to impose social justice on a non-sentient entity like the environment or climate. To be fair though, cli-fi is a tough sell even among sf fans (I mean this from a pure sales perspective). Kim Stanley Robinson does have his followers who are with him every step of the way, but beyond KSR there are few authors who have achieved popular success writing books/stories focused on the environment. It's just not sexy. :) Despite our dependence on and existence in it, it's somehow more distant than good ol' human drama and conflict when it comes to fiction.<br /><br />Anyway, I ramble. Thanks for the comment. Stay normal. :)Jessehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07796098208589965362noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670543499274741427.post-81236595122864856632021-07-01T10:41:26.254+02:002021-07-01T10:41:26.254+02:00Great piece, echoes many of my own thoughts. Your ...Great piece, echoes many of my own thoughts. Your point about bestseller lists vs. awards and media is well worth pondering. There seems to be a big divide between the whipped up frenzy of the internet (the thing that seems to drive awards and media these days) and other parts of reality. Most people don't even have a Twitter account. That gives hope that things aren't as fully out of control as Stephenson suggested they might become in FALL, or RS Bakker on his blog. But the signs aren't good: I don't see this tribal polarization lessening for the foreseeable future. (For a good case study of how absurd/sad things have become, check https://nusantaranaga.wordpress.com/2021/06/30/the-controversial-politics-of-fantastical-wish-fulfillment-a-review-of-t-j-klunes-the-house-in-the-cerulean-sea/) Polarization isn't even the right word, as that implies only 2 sides: it's fractionalization, and it seems the left is more prone to infighting than the right. <br /><br />A form of political SF that has maybe managed to stay out of these waters might be clifi - although climate change is also part of the culture wars for some. Maybe because it is not about the representation of previously oppressed or underrepresented groups, but more about humanity as a whole? Not about identity, but about everybody's survival? <br />Bormganshttps://schicksalgemeinschaft.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.com