Gene Wolfe is for Socialists

Pedro Pereira · 19 Dec 2010, 14:31 · from 2010-December.txt.gz

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From: domus_artemis at hotmail.com (Pedro Pereira)
Date: Sun, 19 Dec 2010 16:31:38 +0200
Subject: (urth) Gene Wolfe is for Socialists
In-Reply-To: <000501cb9f58$21bb1bc0$65315340$@net.au>
References: <4D0A90E8.7010006 at gmail.com>,
	<000501cb9f58$21bb1bc0$65315340$@net.au>
Message-ID: <COL105-W18A266C8E7DB54A9969E7885180 at phx.gbl>


I don't see why is it wishful thinking on the part of the blog author (it's not even the author, this is a list by Mielville for the blog site). Mielville didn't claim Wolfe was Socialist or that his work was socialist bent. What he says is this:
 
Refering to the Fiht Head of Cerberus:
Wolfe is a religious Republican, but his tragico-Catholic perspective leads to a deeply unglamorized and unsanitized awareness of social reality. This book is a very sad and extremely dense, complex meditation on colonialism, identity and oppression.
 
Now, everyone interprets Wolfe's work according to his own views, and that is pretty clear in this Urth List too. Mielville may certainly see the work as emphasizing a speculation on colonialism, identy and oppression (since those are possibly the things that most ring a bell to him and touch him) but nowhere do I see any hint that Mielville sees this work as "Socialist", as you seem to imply. 
 
Pedro
 
 
> From: francisj at iinet.net.au
> To: urth at lists.urth.net
> Date: Sun, 19 Dec 2010 16:38:37 +0800
> Subject: Re: (urth) Gene Wolfe is for Socialists
> 
> Wishful thinking on behalf of the blog author, I think. Fifth Head is a
> good post-colonial text but, given how vague and variable (depending on your
> interpretation) the identity between the colonial powers and the natives is,
> attributing any socialist purpose is pretty difficult. Further, if you buy
> Borski's interpretation of the character VRT as being a fairly despicable
> sort (I do), the issue becomes even more confused. The writer might not
> pick up on the identity questions as being as difficult as they are, though,
> which doesn't necessarily fault him (God, if not for this list I wouldn't
> pick up half of what goes on in Wolfe's books).
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: urth-bounces at lists.urth.net [mailto:urth-bounces at lists.urth.net] On
> Behalf Of James Wynn
> Sent: Friday, 17 December 2010 6:21 AM
> To: The Urth Mailing List
> Subject: (urth) Gene Wolfe is for Socialists
> 
> Blog recommends The Fifth Head of Cerberus as a science fiction work 
> that socialists should read...and not as a "know thy enemy" 
> recommendation either.
> 
> http://kasamaproject.org/2010/12/15/50-works-of-fantasy-science-fiction-for-
> socialists/
> 
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