9/14
“There’s something very strange and touching about humans. An android would never have done that.”
I selected this sentence because throughout the reading I have observed how androids and humans differ in the fact that androids do not share the same sense of empathy as humans. This sentence follows Rick spending his own money to purchase a reproduction of the work the android Luba was eying at the museum. Rick seems to be contemplating his job hunting androids and the reader is constantly left with the question of are the androids human in a way. On one hand, the androids such as Luba have gone out of their way to demonstrate human qualities in methods such as intimidating human life, however, those in Rick’s line of duties see the androids as incomparable to humans at least at first. This situation reminded me of Rick’s encounter with Rachel because Rachel was thoroughly convinced that she was human and mocked Rick’s test after failing. As Rick described the results of his test he stated that her delayed reaction of fractions of a second would not have occurred in human interaction. The sentence makes the statement that an android would have never done an affectionate action similar to Rick’s, but the test results were made definite by an answer that was delayed by fractions of a second which makes the reader question the authenticity of the test as well. It is also interesting to see how Rachel went from a perspective of filling the role of a human and had been convinced that she was definitely human to moving into the abandoned building and seeming more out of touch and dull mentally. She later tells John she wants to go by the name of Pris and desires to convert fully to human. It was astonishing to me how people such as Pris are looked down upon for being an android and covet human life when they share so many similarities to human life. This relates to the sentence because it walks upon the line of distinction between actions and qualities that are considered human and that are not. Rick finds himself questioning his line of work and rightfully so after his encounter with Phil Resch whom he was convinced was an android due to the words of other androids suggesting this and his feeling that Resch enjoyed “retiring” the androids. This was intriguing because it made me wonder if Rick had this belief due to trust of the words of the android or because of his confidence in determining if one is an android or human. Outside of differences in displays of empathy described by Rick, there do not appear to be noticeable differences in humans and androids which ties back to the sentence where Luba describes how Rick’s action differs from an android because they would have never shown the same gratitude. This is only a small distinction between humans and androids and Rick’s developed sympathy for the androids shows how they are not so different after all.
10/26
“I’m pushing my way through the crowd, almost past it, when I hear, “Hey Stalker!” Well, that has nothing to do with me, so I keep walking, pulling a cigarette from the pack. Someone catches up with me and grabs my sleeve. I shake his hand off, turn halfway toward him, and inquire politely, “What the hell are you grabbing my sleeve for, mister?’” (38)
I believe this sequence of events and dialogue portrays a good representation of society as a whole in the areas surrounding the zone. Stalkers have been described as people who steal and smuggle items from the zone to profit. This is a criminal act and punishable with the police and Institute finding these “Stalkers”. Redrick himself was at one point a “stalker” and has stated a few times throughout the beginning of the book that he had served his time and clearly doesn’t appreciate being described as one at this point as he sees himself as a man of higher grounds. I believe that this statement shows how society is divided up based on people in the area’s roles within the zone. It is clear that the “stalkers” are not looked upon respectfully and calling them by the term “stalker” shows that others feel as though they are above the former smugglers. I also find that people such as Captain Quarterbland approaches Redrick as if he is some sort of servant. He is in shock at Redricks new position and recent successes as he formerly looked down upon him as a person. For example, “I always figured you’d make something out of yourself. I just couldn’t imagine a guy like you” (39). This shows how despite him thinking of Redrick as a smart man he was in disbelief that he had achieved success due to his former societal role of being a “Stalker”. He also doesn’t take Redrick’s word for it and demands his identification after questioning what he was doing in the restricted area. I believe this shows how Captain QuarterBland doesn’t trust his word primarily due to a past incident in which Redrick was punished and his previous position or role in the social classes surrounding the zone. Another take I have from this quote is the fact that Redrick reacts with frustration as he states “what the hell are you grabbing my sleeve for, mister”(38). Although Redrick politely says this throughout the book he appears to react more intensely to those who view him in a sort of negative manner. I couldn’t find the page number, but earlier in the novel Redrick has a similar reaction after feeling disrespected by a security guard who had failed to address him as he pleased.
11/2
Shevek was confused and surprised by the culture of A-lo soon after he boarded the spacecraft to transport him there. In Anarres the people were always given extensive freedom of thought and actions. On the spacecraft, as he encountered people who were raised in a different fashion he was quickly struck with many shocking ideologies. For example, when he was locked in the room for his own safety due to the risk of disease he was furious with his inability to come and go as he pleased and it did not make any sense to him at first. Soon after this, he became more observant of the disposing of goods taking place on the ship. His confusion began as the doctor tossed green paper and then he was even more appalled when he discovered the clothes he was wearing were only intended to be used for sleeping and were thrown out as well because it was cheaper. For example, “Oh, those are cheap pajamas, service issues – wear ’em and throw ‘em away, it costs less than cleaning.” “It costs less,” Shevek repeated meditatively” (Le Guin 13). I thought the strongest example of culture shock was Shevek attempting to comprehend the inequality of people in A-lo. This began almost immediately after Shevek didn’t appreciate being referred to using the title Dr. likely due to its symbolism of status. Shevek showed even more shock when the discussion of female inferiority arose with Kimoe.In Anarres men and women are described to be equals while in A-lo women do not have important jobs because they are seen as physically and mentally inferior to men. Shevek goes to question this as he speaks with Poe And Oiie due to his confusion as some of his greatest mentors were women and got a sexist response of superiority. For example, “Can’t do the math; no head for abstract thought; don’t belong. You know how it is what women call thinking is done with the uterus” (Le Guin 73). The response shows the clear barrier between men and women in A-Lo and how strongly their patriarchal views are implanted. Shevek’s response that they were communicating with female scientists such as Gvarab, Odo, and Mitis was stunning to Poe and Oiie. The lack of equality and complete freedom is the biggest difference between Anarres and A-lo.
11/30
Bron’s experience on Earth varies significantly from life on Triton. In Triton, it was apparent that there was a strong sense of freedom and acceptance in terms of relationships both personally and intimately. However, on the other hand, the values on Earth seemed to vary greatly with a strong distinction between man and women and Earth was clearly a far less accepting society. One major difference Bron becomes aware of is the difference in governmental structure between Earth and Triton. In Triton there doesn’t appear to be any form of taxation, freedom of sexual orientation is clear, food and living situations are provided for and welfare is readily available. In Triton, Bron was given different amounts of freedom that existed in a much more prominent manner than on Earth. For example, Bron was able to choose his living situation as in Triton people are separated into communes with those who often have similar views, personalities, and sexual orientations. People in Triton even have the option of whether or not to wear clothes with nudity being acceptable in their society. However, one immediate difference Bron observes on Earth is the clear separation of gender and sexual orientations. Men and women are described to wear bland clothes that create a clear separation between man and woman. I feel as though the difference in clothing is solid symbolism of the differences between life on Earth and life in Triton as a whole as it represents the more conservative aspects of life on Earth and the more free life in Triton with a different sense of individuality. Along with this as Bron is held captive and tortured he faces discrimination due to his culture and foreign origins as he is referred to as “moonsie” which seems to be intended as some sort of derogatory term. Words like these used by people on Earth are a clear and obvious method of creating a separation between them and the people of triton, mars, and the other satellite moons. Simply due to a lack of common values and ideologies the people of foreign planets are facing obvious obstacles and discrimination simply due to their native land.
9/21
When I entered this class, I had little knowledge of the Cold War outside of main events taught from the perspective of United States history in high school. The lack of depth in my knowledge surrounding the Cold War made Rana’s ideas shocking to me. I was amazed to see the lasting impact the Cold War had on the United States political system virtually up until the previous election. The United States is clearly extremely divided politically currently which Rana pushed me to believe is a result of transitioning away from Cold War political influences. Steele’s reading left a significant impression on me as well because it was deeply informative and outlined the reasoning behind why Americans defend the nation’s involvement in the Cold War. However, Steele described how the Soviet Union may not have instigated the Cold War from the start at all. He referenced the Soviet Union being aware the United States was a nation afar with a stronger militaristic presence as the United States had the atomic bomb. Steele stated, “US global ambitions led inevitably to a confrontation with the Soviet Union and local nationalists around the world. The initiative for exacerbating the rivalry thus came from Washington” (Steele 3). This interested me so greatly because I had no prior knowledge of concepts suggesting the United States began containing communism and ultimately igniting the flame to the cold war to push their capitalist agenda along with a desire for complex trade advantages. Whitfield also helped deepen my understanding of life in the United States during the Cold War. Before this reading, I was aware of McCarthyism and the anti-communist extremes of the United States. Despite this prior knowledge, I was astonished by the extent anti-communist values had on life in the United States as a whole. The most prevalent example was the description of the professors, who had tenured jobs, finding themselves unemployed due to a mere suspicion or any sort of tie to communist beliefs. Although I understand the American people had been pushed into seeing communism as a threat, I could not believe how much citizens gave up to comply with political agendas and to fit into society. I was unaware of how much power the United States government was given as a result of waves of anti-communist hysteria. Government organizations were monitoring cultural figures and their works which ended up leading to the success of artists, musicians, and actors being influenced by the government. I was amazed by this and it really helped me get a grasp on the level of influence the government had over society and culture as a whole during the Cold War.
10/5
After reading SF and the Thaw by Istvan Csicsery-Ronay I gained a far greater understanding of the time period in which Thaw took place and learned about the thaw in post-Stalin literature that I was previously unfamiliar with. Thaw references the period following Stalin’s rule of extreme censorship of literature and science in which creative minds were given an extension of freedom. Stalin was known for placing strict restrictions on what was allowed to be studied and published during his rule his successor, Khrushchev, took a different approach. Nikita Khrushchev led the Soviet Union following Stalin and allowed the creative minds in literature and science to open up more during his rule. For example, “He encouraged science education, decentralized industrial and educational institutions, and opened the country to Western scientific ideas” (Csicsery-Ronay 339). Khrushchev’s contrasting ideologies stemmed from the Soviet Union falling behind from the West in terms of the nuclear war, space race, and economic success. For example, “Khrushchev understood quickly after rising to the power that the Soviet Union was dangerously backward compared to the technological and economic development of the West” (Csicsery-Ronay 339). Khrushchev’s new approach saw numerous accomplishments as seen in the space race with the launch of Sputnik and terms of the economy with greater production of consumer goods. While Stalin shut down the writer’s determination to achieve a sense of freedom of expression and honesty in their work Khrushchev saw how he can use this determination as an advantage. This allowed Khrushchev to gain the trust of the writers which was important for the regime. For example, “Even so, the regime needed the writers for popular support, and most writers were happy to compromise with rulers who valued their opinions so highly” (Csicsery-Ronay 341). Khrushchev used this support to form relationships with the writers themselves and listen to their ideas and provide his own input. Khrushchev’s openness allowed for a full expression of literature and allowed the Soviet Union’s creative minds to flourish. Istvan Csicsery-Ronay stated, “The undisciplined, personal character of his involvement is also shown in the fact that the fluctuating policy toward literature is expressed in occasional, and even extemporaneous, remarks and declarations-indicative not only of Khrushchev’s arbitrariness but also of his willingness to be persuaded, sometimes even by the liberal intelligent” (Csicsery-Ronay 342). From my interpretation, Khrushchev’s willingness to be open to ideas even foreign to his own ideologies represent the freedom of literature during the time period as a whole. Although there were still restrictions on what could and could not be published, Khrushchev was willing to accept ideas contrary to his opinions if a writer or intellectual debated and convinced him strongly. Sadly, the writers of the Soviet Union were held to the same restrictions and persecutions, and the period after the thaw was described as a “freeze”.