School’s Back In!
I start school today at noon and, well, I figured I’d give you all a heads up. Things may be a little quiet over the next few days. The reason? Well, partially because school is back in and partially because I will be putting the finishing touches on my graduate school applications. I have officially turned in my applications to the University of Rochester, the University of Florida, the University of Oregon, and Oxford University. Oxford is completely done and I only have to send my supplementary materials (CV, statement of purpose, writing samples) to the other three. Those are only the most pressing applications as far as deadlines are concerned. Don’t worry, though. I won’t be putting off all the others until the deadline like those four. The others will get finished before February and all will be well.So, wish me luck, send me money, because I’m broke, and I look forward to spending another quarter with all of you, even though you’re not here!
Website Found: Forbidden Library
I figure since it’s a new year and there are bound to be a whole slue of new book bannings and burnings across the country, this would be a most fitting website! What is it?The Forbidden Library is a website featuring only books that have been banned at one time or another, with short commentary on each of the books explaining the reasons behind any past or present banning (at least the ones known). Why is it cool?I’m not sure if this section of this post is even necessary. If you’ve even wondered why people have banned a particular book, this is probably the place to go. Books are listed by title or by author (there are also an about page, censorship quotes page, mailbag page, other sites page, and credits page). You’d be surprised what books have been banned and for what reasons, too! Books have been banned in the past even though the challengers never read whatever it was they were trying to ban! Talk about idiocy! Give it a look. It’s a cool site and might prove interesting for a reading list for your kids or just for yourself (recommended for kids, since corrupting our youth while they’re still young is much better than waiting until they are almost adults; books are “evil” after all).
Would You Rather Live in Science Fiction or Fantasy World?
Marian of Flights of Fantasy recently had an interesting post about what kind of world she would want to live in and it got me thinking about the same thing. Warning: I will be taking this whole idea very seriously even though it’s totally fiction and unreal. My initial reaction to this question is: which world would inevitably be better for me? Both fantasy and science fiction worlds have their good and bad points (for the sake of argument, I’m going to stick with the stereotypical examples of these genres).Fantasy worlds have magic, fantastic creatures, swords, talking animals, fair maidens, noble kings, and other such goodies. But fantasy worlds also have evil overlords, evil creatures, wars, bad food of the bland variety, and prophecies that always seem to put the world in chaos for a short period before some “chosen one” can come along and put things right–why it is more rare that fantasy characters don’t get ticked off about this last one doesn’t make much sense to me.Science fiction worlds have spaceships, alien races, faster-than-light travel, cool gadgets, space adventures, and damn good food. But science fiction worlds also have interstellar wars, alien invasions, evil aliens that can’t talk, but manage to wreak havoc on ship crews, moral quandaries, technology that goes bad, and sterile environments or excessively dirty environments.Which is better? Do I want magic and unicorns or spaceships and aliens with three heads?On the one hand, perhaps I could use magic to escape from all the darkness of a fantasy world, but that assumes that if I lived in such a world I would be fortunate enough to have magic. This also makes me a terrible coward. A fantasy world also means I can’t take all the things I currently enjoy with me. No computers, no Twitter, no WISB, no nothing. A science fiction world means I can keep my gadgets, but I also would have to face dystopian societies, interstellar wars, space pirates, and the like.Do you see the dilemma? In some ways, I think science fiction worlds are harsher than fantasy worlds. Sure, in science fiction worlds a lot of things are handed to the characters: they rarely have to worry about food or water or running out of laser guns or whatever. But, these same characters live in a world (or galaxy, I imagine) where governments turn into Big Brother, robots reject and kill their masters (a simple snap of the neck will suffice), interstellar wars rage for decades, decimating planet after planet, civilization after civilization.That’s not the say that fantasy worlds are a picnic. At least in science fiction worlds death is quick (usually). Laser guns tend to kill people a lot faster and less painfully than bleeding to death on a battlefield. Characters in fantasy worlds also don’t have the luxury of food processors or good storage methods (no fridges in Narnia, I’m afraid). Plenty of salted meat, moldy fruits and vegetables, and food poisoning. Plus, the “chosen one” is almost always some stupid farm boy who takes forever to fulfill prophecy, which is unfortunate if you’re impatient like me. While fantasy characters are waiting for someone to rescue them, evil warlords are turning them into slaves or outright killing them in droves (I suppose similar happens in science fiction worlds).But a fantasy world allows me to do things that can’t be done in a science fiction world, primarily because science fiction worlds should adhere to standard rules of science. I’ve always wanted to shoot fireballs out of my hands or take a trip on the back of a dragon. Having my own set of armor and an enchanted sword would be pretty cool too. Or, I could be a bard and travel the world telling amazing stories about people that lived or never lived, captivating the minds of children and adults alike! When I think about fantasy worlds that way, it certainly makes them much more appealing.How do I decide, though? Would I be willing to give up Twitter or computers or the possibility of travelling into space? Would I be willing to give up dragons or magic fireballs or enchanted swords? Which one would be the best fit?If I had to take a guess, I would say that the science fiction world would fit best, but only because I can see how difficult it would be for me to give up technology. Technology is as much a part of my everyday life as breathing and I can’t imagine being able to toss that away without thinking long and hard on it, and even then I would be apprehensive and might even regret going to a fantasy world. But I might regret going to a science fiction world too. It all depends how it turns out. Would I end up in a good fantasy/science fiction world or a bad one? Perhaps if I knew that information ahead of time it would make the decision easier. I’d be much more likely to forego science fiction for fantasy if I knew that the fantasy world would inevitably be a better place for me, one where I wasn’t going to end up enslaved by evil three-eyed squid-like aliens.I guess I’m still on the fence. What about you? For the sake of making this argument easier, let’s assume that you could choose between a perfect fantasy world or a perfect science fiction world. Which one would you choose?
C.S. Lewis and Madeleine L’Engle Meme
Discovered this interesting, but short, meme here while perusing Google. Anyone who wants to do it for their blog is welcome to (I’m too lazy right now to tag people individually). Here goes: Have you read any of Madeleine L’Engle’s books?Yes, but unfortunately not a lot. Which is your favorite?A Wrinkle in Time happens to be the only book I’ve read of hers. This is probably the case for a lot of people. Have you read any of C.S. Lewis’ books?Quite a few, actually, though not as many as I would like. Which is your favorite?I’m quite partial to The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. It’s a classic and a good opener to an entertaining series. Do you like fantasy fiction?Actually, while I babble a lot more about science fiction on this blog than I do about fantasy (which is a fault of mine, unfortunately) I do enjoy fantasy fiction about as much. I simply don’t allow myself to become delusional about the genre–I accept that cliches exist and pay more attention to the story and how the author presents everything. Are you a science fiction fan?Goodness no. Why would I blog about something unless I hated it? And yes, that is sarcasm. What is your favorite genre of book?Edit: Apparently I’m an idiot today!Favorite genre? Science fiction, obviously, although I love fantasy as well. If I had to pick a favorite subgenre of science fiction it would likely be dystopian or space opera.
Living Science Fiction
…or the good, the bad, and the ugly of the advancing, technologically and politically charged world. I feel like I’m living in one of those science fiction dystopias right now. If you had told me that I would live to see a new civil rights movement as politically charged as the African American movement rise from the ashes of ignorance, I would have told you that you didn’t know what you were talking about. Yet here we are with millions of people across the country protesting the assault on homosexuals. I’m living in a time I never thought would exist; it never occurred to me that there could be such a vicious battle between religion and the other or such a divide between our peoples–a divide that has relegated one group of people into the position of “second class citizen” because a majority says it’s right.In some respects, I don’t know how to take all of this. I grew up making fun of homosexual men while sharing the common masculine mentality that allows homosexual women to be reduced to sexual objects. It was never really brought up that saying “that’s gay” or “you’re such an f*g” were actually derogatory phrases that shouldn’t be said. Yet here I am, looking into the face of hatred and finding myself almost unable to cope. How do you fight hate?Then only a week or so ago we saw violence spring up yet again between Israel and Hamas. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised and forgive me for being naive, but I don’t understand the necessity for violence from either end–I understand that hatred exists, but it seems utterly illogical and pointless to me (couldn’t they just spend the time ignoring one another?).But not all is bad, right? Sure, there are those dystopic moments where things really look down, but there are good moments too. We elected the first African American President, Barack Hussein Obama, in the United States, for one. And what about all those fantastic scientific discoveries/inventions in the last year or so? The Australians discovered a genetic link for transsexuality, the Large Hadron Collider went online (and then broke, for now), cell phone use has increased at a massive rate, eBook readers have started to take hold in the market, and Space X, a privately run space company, had a successful launch of its Falcon rocket (which, I imagine, helped earn it a launch contract with NASA). It seems like we’re inching closer and closer to that point where we can send non-astronaut folks into space–hopefully for pleasure.With our global society grasping so readily at technology, it’s no wonder why it feels like we’re living in a science fiction story. I said at the beginning of this post that it feels like a dystopia with all the darkness surrounding us. Maybe that’s because I’ve paid too much attention to the dark and not enough to the light.So, despite all the bad, at least things are looking up in some departments, right? The economy might have taken a dive, but other things are rising up from the ashes. Ten years ago I never would have thought that I would have the opportunity to see space with my own eyes; now it looks like it might actually happen within my lifetime. Should I be happy for our successes or concerned over our failures? Can you be both?
The Bloggies: Nominate Me
I’ve never been nominated for the Bloggies (haven’t won either, obviously), but figure I’d let you folks know that nominations are open for the 2009 Bloggies and if you wanted to nominate WISB, well, there you go. Anywho!