Pred

[coalescent]

At Salon:

Of course, in a cheap sci-fi book, the main character's name would have to be something that sounds like a new brand of antidepressant medication -- and the story would be trite, gimmicky and shallow. Instead, "The Confessions of Max Tivoli" is a serious work of literature, written with a precision of language and a depth of feeling that doesn't simply belie the book's quirky premise, it transforms it, elevates it from what could have been just another clever idea to a profound meditation on life, love and the inevitability of growing old.

Whatever.

Only marginally more interestingly, at Spiked:

The criticism traditionally heaped upon science fiction and fantasy - that they are infantile and escapist genres - has always been fairly risible. There is no reason why science fiction, fantasy, and yes, even comic books, cannot be used in an ambitious way to explore the human condition, just as all fiction can. Science fiction and fantasy often provide a fascinating insight into the concerns of the times in which they are produced
[...]
But the criticism of science fiction and fantasy fans - that we are infantile and escapist people, and socially inept to boot - sadly has a little more truth to it.
[...]
As long as science fiction and fantasy fandom remained a fairly marginal subculture, then while certain fans may have pursued their passion to an unhealthy degree, the existence of the subculture was harmless. But when society as a whole starts to become obsessed with the otherworldly, then society as a whole threatens to go hikikomori - to become more interested in whiling away its time dreaming, than in addressing the real problems that confront it.

...So not 'SF will destroy the world,' since SF is actually a valid form of fiction, but 'fandom will destroy the world,' because if SF becomes more popular we will all become inward-looking, socially inept nerds. Um, or not.

(Both via Locus)

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

'fandom will destroy the world,' because if SF becomes more popular we will all become inward-looking, socially inept nerds.

There's only one solution: upgrade. Fandom 2.0 saves the world!

-- Tom