@dang, Do you know why was the title changed from "The strange, secretive world of North Korean science fiction" to "North Korean science fiction"?
They frequently change titles to reduce sensationalism and fluff.
North Korean science fiction
141–150 of 168 posts
Re: North Korean science fiction
#142Earlier quoted context omitted.
It means the future elements in scifi (when it is about the future at all; some scifi doesn't even pretend to be futuristic) are an extrapolation of the current time and used to explore an idea about today . An author's scifi "gimmick" (it can be a technology, a societal norm, an alien encounter, etc) is often the way in which the author develops and extrapolates a preoccupation about the real world, be it war, or in…
Blade Runner and the entire Cyberpunk genre* extrapolate Reagan’s America where corporations are completely unfettered, dominating the landscape and people’s everyday life in nearly every way. * Or at least it used to. Most of today’s Cyberpunk media seems to have lost sight of that motif and really just ape the aesthetic (e.g. neon lights everywhere) - a hollow shell really.
Agreed with your whole comment. Especially this:
> Most of today’s Cyberpunk media seems to have lost sight of that motif and really just ape the aesthetic
Re: North Korean science fiction
#143Earlier quoted context omitted.
Is it even worth reading? Genuine question. I thought it was campty sort of satirical old-timey stuff, but I never read it.
I find it hard to understand how anyone could possibly be this dismissive about something they have no experience of, in public? OK, so some of it is campy adventure pulp, but fortunately someone's collated the best and most long-lived works into the SF Masterworks series for people to pick from. Phillip K Dick would probably get the same kind of praise as Joyce if he hadn't been ghettoized as "SF".
I meant to comment on "Stirlitz, the Russian James Bond" specifically, not all of Sci Fi (you can see me recommending Russian Sci Fi" in another response here from yesterday. Pretty big mistake on my part and people have been pretty understanding given the misconception!
Re: North Korean science fiction
#144Earlier quoted context omitted.
One example would be "The Invincible" by Stanisław Lem [1]. Worth noting that a video game [2] based on the novel (which looks very well produced) is releasing in November. 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Invincible 2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yo7Ca6kXz08
Lem's Invincible, Solaris and Eden form a trilogy of "what if we meet a civilization so alien to humans that we can't establish a contact with them"
Also „Fiasco“, which is depressing and great.
For a more recent take on a similar theme, see also „Blindsight“ by Peter Watts.
Re: North Korean science fiction
#145Earlier quoted context omitted.
Is it even worth reading? Genuine question. I thought it was campty sort of satirical old-timey stuff, but I never read it.
What do you read? I pretty much only read science fiction. Are you thinking it's all like Star Trek or something? It's not.
See above, public apology to everyone. Meant to reply to "Stirlitz, the Russian James Bond" specifically. I read most "good" sci fi I can get my heads on. To me it goes something like Stephenson, Vernor Vinge, Gibson, Harry Harrison for the "campy" stuff, Asimov very much in that order, though I know I will be crucified for putting Asimov last. Then there are good one-offs like The Forever War, Ender's Game, the Oumuamua book (whatever the actual title is). I specifically dislike The Three Body problem and the fact that modern Nebula awards can no longer be trusted. Out of historical fantasy, the Merlin Trilogy by Mary Stewart is absolutely amazing, at least as a teenager. Which reminds me that "The Nine Princes in Amber" is horrible. Hopefully someone recommends something.
Re: North Korean science fiction
#146Earlier quoted context omitted.
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky were pretty prolific during this time (often writing in secret, and reciting their works only to trusted friends). "The Doomed City" is one of the best pieces of philosophical scifi I've ever read: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Doomed_City
The Doomed City is a bad example since it was specifically released in a post-soviet era. It had very direct criticisms of communism which lead to the authors deciding to not release it during the soviet era they wrote it. "Hard to be a God", mentioned below, is a better example. Soviet era Sci-Fi where Star Trek esque space communists try to uplift a medieval society into modern political belief before establishing…
It had direct criticisms of capitalism too, if I recall. There were characters that thrived and drowned under many of the different social orders presented there. The main character tried to adapt to all and ultimately lost himself and everyone he knew in pursuit of his constantly changing ideals.
Re: North Korean science fiction
#147Earlier quoted context omitted.
Reality: Americans have not been ruled by the superhero-like ultra rich for decades, and are starting to notice that little is improving and much is getting worse.
I think a lot improved for the countless people who got medicaid. When you assert something hasn't improved, it tells me it hasnt improved according to your personal criteria. I suspect those dont cover the wellfare and health of your society.
How many people would be willing to trade medicaid for something as simple as inflation reduction, I wonder?
Re: North Korean science fiction
#148I feel like Andy Weir did a phenomenal job with his handful of books. The Martian, Project Hailmary. Both of these felt more like team effort emphasis, which I liked.
He is a fastidious and interesting writer. I nonetheless found both these novels disappointing. They seem to be porn for engineers. Like all porn, the lead character is a cardboard cutout with monomaniacal motivation. (It seems revealing that both books place the protagonist in a position of complete social isolation.)
This was a more serious flaw in Project Hailmary, in which first contact - a profound event - is treated as a lone man’s engineering puzzle. The book is a good argument for sending poets, or at least properly thoughtful scientists, to meet our first aliens.
Re: North Korean science fiction
#149Earlier quoted context omitted.
While Elon is the only one with the intuition to bail out a company as large as Twitter, there probably are a few dozen Rockefeller CEOs of various SV/tech-adjacent companies that can and do use their power to command acquisitions of medium size startups that have promising tech but suffer from issues of cash flow or business strategy.
> While Elon is the only one with the intuition to bail out a company as large as Twitter What intuition? Wasn’t he forced to buy Twitter by the SEC? He bought it at 4x the valuation - Twitter’s ex-shareholders made it out like bandits. Now he is losing money hand over fist thanks to Twitter - as Twitter’s ad revenue has dropped due to his changes (and big mouth) and he is paying to the tune of 1 billion USD a year i…
Intuition was italicized for a reason - it was sarcasm.
Re: North Korean science fiction
#150Earlier quoted context omitted.
What do you read? I pretty much only read science fiction. Are you thinking it's all like Star Trek or something? It's not.
See above, public apology to everyone. Meant to reply to "Stirlitz, the Russian James Bond" specifically. I read most "good" sci fi I can get my heads on. To me it goes something like Stephenson, Vernor Vinge, Gibson, Harry Harrison for the "campy" stuff, Asimov very much in that order, though I know I will be crucified for putting Asimov last. Then there are good one-offs like The Forever War, Ender's Game, the Oumu…
That's a shame about The Three Body Problem. I have it on my list to read. There's a chance I might like it, of course, but because you said you like The Forever War I think perhaps not.
Where would you start with Neal Stephenson? Have you read Iain M. Banks?