Re-reading, hoping for some discussion ;-)

Adrian Robert · 15 Aug 2006, 13:23 · from 2006-August.txt.gz

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From: arobert at cogsci.ucsd.edu (Adrian Robert)
Date: Tue, 15 Aug 2006 09:23:29 -0400
Subject: (urth) Re-reading, hoping for some discussion ;-)
In-Reply-To: <BAY103-F976B38D7A4B230606E736D74F0 at phx.gbl>
References: <BAY103-F976B38D7A4B230606E736D74F0 at phx.gbl>
Message-ID: <2da11e286cdba25d8ef58c2c8d3e77cd at cogsci.ucsd.edu>

> In the past, people in here have wondered why BotNS hasn't become an
> enduring classic which penetrates the cultural consciouness at large, 
> such
> as Lord of the Rings, or Dune or Jurassic Park.  I think it is partly
> because, since the 80's and the availability of the VCR and movie 
> rentals,
> all Science Fiction/Fantasy classics are expected to be made into 
> movies.
> It would be sad to think Gene Wolfe's work would fade into obscurity 
> in the
> future.

Er, also the main character is a torturer?  ;)  Wandering around on his 
own account to boot.  Not quite as family-friendly as hobbits, dwarves, 
and elves journeying merrily together to save the world.

I don't see much reason to mention Jurassic Park and Dune / LoTR in the 
same sentence.  (Not wanting to start an argument -- they both have 
wide cultural appeal, just for very different reasons. ;)

Anyhow, it's an interesting question as to whether Wolfe's work will 
last.  To do so it will not only have to stand out from other works of 
its time, but also continuously maintain some degree of readership.  I 
think these are a lot harder these days than, say, 100 or even 50 years 
ago, if for no other reason than the sheer number of other works being 
competed against for reader's attention.

And I feel like his work kind of falls between the cracks of different 
audiences.  Most sci fi readers that I know have not heard of Gene 
Wolfe.  Same with most non-scifi readers.  He's not mainstream sci fi 
and a bit difficult going if you're just looking for spaceships, laser 
guns, and/or AI.  On the other hand people who read books for the 
characters and emotions are not necessarily going to even consider 
reading a sci fi work because they're conditioned to believe that genre 
focuses on ideas at the expense of narrative elegance and character 
development.  I suspect a lot of Wolfe fans happen to enjoy both types 
of works, they make up the exception rather than the rule among 
readers.  (I did manage to get a friend of mine to read _There are 
Doors_ once, but despite a positive reaction she balked at BotNS.)

Anyhow, I guess I'd like to think Wolfe's work will last, but have 
trouble convincing myself it can.

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