Week 7 Prompt
Prompt:
For our prompt this week, I want you to think about fake memoirs, author mills (James Patterons), and celebrity inspired book clubs. Basically write a readers' response to one of the articles you are reading for this week (see syllabus or links in this post for readings) - or talk about a time when a book or author that made headlines affected you personally or your work.
I am responding to Jo Walton's article, "SF reading protocols." I chose Walton's article because I am one of the people she describes in her article as those who have tried science fiction and could not get past the first few pages. I was recommended to read the book, "The Girl with All the Gifts" by M.R. Carey and it took me a while to get into the book and the action that takes place. It is not very action motivated except for a few moments in the middle and end of the book. I also ended up reading reviews about the book half way through so that I could connect what what happening in the book and try to understand what the author's story was. This book received a lot of attention and received a movie deal from the book. It was not my favorite book, but I am glad that I read it because it gave me a deeper understanding of the science fiction genre.
Walton talks about how many times science fiction novels do not have metaphors and their descriptions and characters that they write about should be taken literally. In public school we are taught from an early age to tear apart literature and look for the author's deeper meanings and metaphors hidden throughout the work. I think this may be why so many people have a hard time connecting to science fiction. They want to be able to find the deeper meaning in a book where it may not necessarily have a deeper meaning but is meant to be taken at face value. Now, I would say that many science fiction authors do pen novels with deeper meanings-one of them being M.R. Carey's book where there is a lot more behind the zombies and apocalyptic word. Walton states that readers will understand science fiction by reading it and learning about their world through the author's eyes.
Jo Walton's article: https://www.tor.com/2010/01/18/sf-reading-protocols/
For our prompt this week, I want you to think about fake memoirs, author mills (James Patterons), and celebrity inspired book clubs. Basically write a readers' response to one of the articles you are reading for this week (see syllabus or links in this post for readings) - or talk about a time when a book or author that made headlines affected you personally or your work.
I am responding to Jo Walton's article, "SF reading protocols." I chose Walton's article because I am one of the people she describes in her article as those who have tried science fiction and could not get past the first few pages. I was recommended to read the book, "The Girl with All the Gifts" by M.R. Carey and it took me a while to get into the book and the action that takes place. It is not very action motivated except for a few moments in the middle and end of the book. I also ended up reading reviews about the book half way through so that I could connect what what happening in the book and try to understand what the author's story was. This book received a lot of attention and received a movie deal from the book. It was not my favorite book, but I am glad that I read it because it gave me a deeper understanding of the science fiction genre.
Walton talks about how many times science fiction novels do not have metaphors and their descriptions and characters that they write about should be taken literally. In public school we are taught from an early age to tear apart literature and look for the author's deeper meanings and metaphors hidden throughout the work. I think this may be why so many people have a hard time connecting to science fiction. They want to be able to find the deeper meaning in a book where it may not necessarily have a deeper meaning but is meant to be taken at face value. Now, I would say that many science fiction authors do pen novels with deeper meanings-one of them being M.R. Carey's book where there is a lot more behind the zombies and apocalyptic word. Walton states that readers will understand science fiction by reading it and learning about their world through the author's eyes.
Jo Walton's article: https://www.tor.com/2010/01/18/sf-reading-protocols/
Chelsea,
ReplyDeleteI like that you point out scifi books tend to lack (or some of them do) more of a metaphorical undertone. I don't want to appear like I'm stereotyping, because that is the furthest from the truth, but I've noticed that some of my male friends who like to read prefer this genre. I have to wonder if it isn't refreshing, especially for those who are surrounded by women, to have a story they can turn to which is much more straightforward than some other books? And I could be completely off-base! But that is just something that I've noticed recently. And that could also explain why I, personally, am not a huge fan of the genre (when it isn't mixed with other things such as romance or mystery). I need those undertones and subtleties...they're what keep me reading sometimes :)
Right, I meant to say that sometimes (and this is true in other literature) what the author writes, in this case zombies, dragons, or elves, are just that-mythical creatures and they do not represent anything else. Other times, they do represent other ideas and themes. I think it is the same for me, I need other genres mixed in order to enjoy science fiction. I also think I just haven't read it enough to enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteIt's an interesting article. As someone who was raised on Sci-Fi, i would argue that there are definitely deep books with metaphors out there. But, I will concede that Sci-Fi is hard to get into, especially anything that blurs the line between true Sci-Fi and Fantasy. There is so much out there, and finding what you love is so hard.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad that you gave Sci-Fi a chance :) It is a deep genre with a lot of big stories that speak to our world, what it is, what it could be...fears and excitement and failure all at once.
Also, as a side note, this is one of my favorite articles on literary criticism: https://kswriterteacher.wordpress.com/2015/02/08/but-why-are-the-curtains-blue-a-rant-about-literary-criticism/
(possible language warning...I don't remember if this particular one drops the "F-bomb" but one of the articles I read does :)
Once upon a time, I had a crush on a boy who loved sci-fi, and so I was certain that I would also love sci-fi. He gave me a stack of books to read, and I pretty much only got through one of them, and barely. I felt completely out in the weeds, like I had no bearings whatsoever. It was a lot of inter-dimensional stuff, and I felt super confused. I remember returning his books and being like "So, have you ever read any Vonnegut?", hoping that he would still think I was smart even though I couldn't understand those books.
ReplyDeleteI feel about sci-fi like I feel about chess. Smart people know how to play chess, but I don't know how to play chess (it confuses me and makes me angry) and somehow this makes me less intelligent. In the same vein, I feel like sci-fi fans are this extraterrestrial brand of smart that I won't ever be able to reach. In any case, I am interested in this "literal" interpretation of books. Maybe that's it? I like to read too much into things, and so the beauty of sci-fi has been lost on me. Maybe I should try to go back and read some sci-fi without trying to think too deeply? I feel it's possible that the sci-fi folks would object to this theory, though.
I feel the same way! Every time I try to read science fiction I feel like I'm missing something and it makes me feel less intelligent. I guess I like books that are straight forward and I do not always have to think it through to be able to enjoy the story. I wish that I liked science fiction-I like sci-fi movies if that helps!
DeleteGreat response that generated some good discussion. I love that Emily shared an article too! Full points!
ReplyDelete