Gender

Gender's role in fiction reflects this type of real-world problem. For this week, I'd like you to take a story from either this week or last week and think about it in terms of gender and the complexities that arise due to the way in which our genetic code is not necessarily the same as our behavior.

In "When it Changed" by Joanna Russ, the society on the planet Whileaway is completely made up of women. When men come back to the planet, inviting the women to come back to the newly "gender equal" earth, the women are offended and refuse. They grew up in a place where men had not been present for thirty generations, therefore they are completely sufficient without men, and partake in activities that are traditionally divided between men and women by gender roles. With regard to certain physical capabilities, women and men can do the same ordinary tasks equally. The men were baffled and disagreed with their lifestyles, simply because it was not the way they were conditioned to believe women should behave in life. The men wanted to be "manly" but so did the women, however, the women thought that the very concept of a "manly role" existing was wrong. I just think it is crazy that gender roles are so prevalent and normal in societies all over the world, to the point where we do not even notice them. It is only when I read stories like this, or a feminist article, that I realize how influenced I am by my environment. I do not tend to have any strong views on feminism or the like, but I do think individuals should be able to do whatever they want and act however they want without being discriminated against or pointed out. Unfortunately gender roles are so pressed on society and ingrained in who we are, when someone is acting out of their role it is hard to not see them as weird and/or more masculine or feminine. Not only that, but we have a tendency to think something just is not “right” with that individual. It is all very bizarre to me and makes me think about how we are all brainwashed to a certain point from birth (haha).

On a side note, really liked the way Simone de Beauvoir spoke on the subject as “the Other” in The Second Sex. It was a new point of view to me and I actually agree with a lot of it. I think most women do view themselves as “the other” without even realizing it, when in reality we are all created equal. These past few stories have been VERY interesting and mind-bending for me.

End of Robots, Computers, and Science!

"Burning Chrome" marks our last story in the "Robots, Computers, and Science" section of the class. I often like to take these section divisions to use as a time for reaction: what has this section of the course taught you? Things you may wish (but don't have to) think about:
- how has this section of the course met or thwarted your expectations of SF?
- what practical literary techniques have you learned that are valuable to you?
- What story from this section do you think best achieves/exemplifies the goals of SF? How so?

            The section of the course on Robots, Computers, and Science has definitely met my expectations for SF. Every story was SO different, and all the authors had totally different ways of telling their short stories. Some were in chronological order, some blatant and straightforward, others mysterious and scattered; it was a nice variety to read. I did not realize how broad of a genre SF was until reading all these different stories. “Liar,” “Algorithms for Love,” “Second Variety,” and “Frankenstein” all discussed artificial life, but in totally different ways. However, one thing they all had in common was that the artificial life ending up not being a good thing and the creator was usually left at the mercy of the created. The other three stories all touched on alternate realities, whether it was the supposed future in “Take Your Choice,” the new and transformed mind in “Flowers for Algernon,” or the inside of the computer systems and the different world the story took place in, in “Burning Chrome”. We have only read seven stories and already we have covered a wide variety of topics and writing techniques used in SF. The literary techniques I learned include using metaphors, different ways of describing time, the technique of leaving out certain facts so the reader must infer, and details, details, details! Also this particular array of authors all wrote in different tones, which really held the stories together, plus some authors revealed the main characters thoughts more than others. However, of all the stories in this section, I think “Algorithms for Love” best achieves the goals of SF. Not only was it my favorite story in the section, but also it tackled much larger issues than the other stories. The main character, Elena, was dealing with her own nervous breakdown and the destruction of her marriage, and all because of robots! She created them and made them so lifelike she wondered what was different about her human life and that of her robots. Eventually this all led to her demise, whether literal or symbolic is up for the reader to imagine.

Theme-#3

For this week’s blog, I’d like you to identify and discuss a theme in one of this week’s stories: either “Second Variety” or “Take Your Choice.”


Of the two stories we read this week, "Second Variety" and "Take Your Choice", I want to discuss the theme of uncertainty in "Take Your Choice". From the very start, the reader is just kind of thrown in to the story. The main character (who's name we do not know) is found wandering around looking for a "swimming equipment" store. I found myself feeling just as confused as him. Once the main character is inside the room with the three doors, he still does not know what to make of everything. He cannot get a straight answer to any of his questions from the "little man". If I were in his position I would feel incredibly irritated at the little man for not answering my questions, when I am about to give him two million five hundred thousand credits! He is there because he wants to change his future, which is a huge decision, and the "time travelers" give him such a short amount of time to choose which future. As I progressed in the story, I was more and more anxious and thinking, "What's the catch?" while the man who wanted the new future slowly convinced himself the whole show was legitimate. Overall, the reader knows that it was all a hoax in the end but the main character is completely in the dark, and actually believes he is in an alternate reality.

On a different note, I really liked the ending of the story when the two men that put on the time machine scam discussed what the world would be like with all these people thinking it will end in a decade. The human mind is so powerful, once something is in our heads it is hard for it to not shape and influence us. All the people that chose that reality will very possibly take the steps that lead to the destruction they chose and end up making it happen.

Conflict- Algorithms for Love

I’d like you to take a character that you’re interested in from this week’s reading and look at him/her/it in terms of our classroom definition of conflict. Questions that may be useful to you to think about as you write: What does s/he/it desire? What blocks that desire or prevents him/her/it from achieving that desire? How does that blocked desire make the plot of the story go? What’s the resolution? Why are you drawn to this conflict/character?

This week we read Frankenstein and The Algorithms for Love. Of the two stories, I liked Algorithms for Love the most. It really made me think and wonder, as well as attempt to relate it to today, what with all crazy technology coming out every year. The character from The Algorithms for Love that I want to look at in terms of our classroom definition of conflict is Elena. In the beginning Elena desired to create an amazing, intelligent doll, which she accomplished. Elena's doll, Clever Laura, was so popular the company could not keep up with the orders. As the story progresses, her doll creations become better and more advanced, she marries Brad, and her next desire is for a baby of her own, with Brad. The story never really elaborates on what was wrong with their baby, but their baby Aimee only lived for ninety-one days in intensive care. Therefore, Aimee's death prevented Elena from having what she desired most. The entire story is a result of what the loss of Aimee did to Elena. Elena completely lost it and wanted to create a robot child to help her, and mothers all over that lost their children cope. This began to destroy her marriage, and eventually her career. Her most remarkable creation, Tara, who looked like a five-year-old, was so human-like that Brad did not realize it was not a real child until Elena told him. Elena's entire mind was consumed with the idea that she was no different than robots and that there is an algorithm for everything in life, when in reality, she was just over-analyzing. One day she could not take it any longer and she destroyed Tara with a hammer. The story was not in chronological order, and began with Brad checking her out of a mental hospital. I did not really have a clear picture of everything that happened until the end of the story. Apparently Elena had attempted to commit suicide and Brad had her committed into the hospital. The story ends with Elena committing suicide again and leaves it to the reader's imagination as to whether she was successful or not. I was drawn to this conflict because I felt that it was very relevant to today. There are so many intelligent computers coming out that are more and more like a human brain. It is bizarre imagine but I think one day soon these types of conflicts will be more and more common.

As a side note, until we discussed the end of the story in class I had never thought about the possibility of Elena being dead in the last scene of the story and the doll picking up her sound waves. I thought that was really interesting and it totally changed the impression the story left on me when I thought of that possible ending. :D

Post #1 Science Fiction

January 13, 2012

1. How do you define SF?

2. What has your experience/exposure to SF been? How comfortable/familiar with SF are you? What do you like/know about this genre? What do you not know? What are your hopes and fears for this class?

Hmm, how do I define SF? When I think of SF the first thoughts that come to mind would definitely have to do with Star Wars, Star Trek, etc. I usually relate SF to space, technology and the future, as do most. It was not until we began talking about SF in class that I realized some of my favorite movies and stories are apart of the SF genre. My love for SF absolutely comes from my dad. I grew up watching Star Wars and going to the midnight show on opening nights; plus my dad watched Star Trek every night. I would definitely consider myself a dreamer, so when it comes to movies and books, I love anything that is imaginative. I love that SF/fantasy creates a whole new reality for the viewer or reader to live in for a short time, it can be a nice form of escape. I cannot count the number of times I have been reading a book and finally looked outside or looked at the clock to realize the whole day has passed. A good book makes me forget to eat (haha). I have already learned so much about SF that I did not know in just our beginning classes. I would like to learn more about the specifics of what makes something SF or not, even though I know it is a vague line. My hopes for this class include genuinely enjoying it, which I already do. It is nice when a required credit (LIT) is interesting and fun. Also it is a literature class so I know we will be doing plenty of writing, which scares me. So pretty much I would like to come out of this class being more confident of my writing skills, story analyzing, and a broad knowledge of SF.

-Thanks!
:D

Tara Caguiat