tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9050528436539921312.post5893496068100920797..comments2024-03-11T16:29:13.619-05:00Comments on Lingwë - Musings of a Fish: Lem and Le Guin — ‘Two mutually correlated opposites’Jason Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05809154870762268253noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9050528436539921312.post-9963665572483011692008-06-19T17:24:00.000-05:002008-06-19T17:24:00.000-05:00Hi Phil.I think you'd be surprised about the appea...Hi Phil.<BR/><BR/><I>I think you'd be surprised about the appeal to thingthrowers.</I><BR/><BR/>I guess so! My wife, Jennifer J., says I ought to be paying more attention to ‘Things’ around the time of the Spelling Bee — a perfect opportunity for synergy between our blogs. We all love words, don’t we? Especially <I><A HREF="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjzrNWPul9E" REL="nofollow">numnah</A>!</I><BR/><BR/><I>I will be back often, and not just to troll for suggestions about creative epithets to use in Age of Conan.</I><BR/><BR/>That’s just a side benefit, right? ;)<BR/><BR/><I>My favorites from Lem are His Master's Voice and A Perfect Vacuum, which are "hard" if not "stern", I think. Anyway, I find them playful in their own way.</I><BR/><BR/>I haven’t read either of these, but after a quick look at Wikipedia, I’ll definitely be putting them on my to-read list. <I>A Perfect Vacuum</I>, especially, sounds really clever. Thanks for stopping by and mentioning both of those.Jason Fisherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05809154870762268253noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9050528436539921312.post-50079335240491357412008-06-19T17:09:00.000-05:002008-06-19T17:09:00.000-05:00I think you'd be surprised about the appeal to thi...I think you'd be surprised about the appeal to thingthrowers. Where do I start loving this? How can I stop? I will be back often, and not just to troll for suggestions about creative epithets to use in Age of Conan.<BR/><BR/>My favorites from Lem are His Master's Voice and A Perfect Vacuum, which are "hard" if not "stern", I think. Anyway, I find them playful in their own way.<BR/><BR/>Thanks!Philhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13699554279457207877noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9050528436539921312.post-72412304683787772022008-06-19T09:34:00.000-05:002008-06-19T09:34:00.000-05:00Thanks for the comment, BobE. Jennifer speaks high...Thanks for the comment, BobE. Jennifer speaks highly of you from “Throwing Things”, so you’re most welcome here. I daresay most of my posts have little to interest the usual crowd at your blog, but then again, maybe I’m selling you guys short. Still, I know that many of my posts can be really arcane. You’re either into Latin enclitics or toponymic etymology, or you aren’t, hahae. :)<BR/><BR/>Do give Le Guin another try. I love her work. She’s one of the best writers still working today.Jason Fisherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05809154870762268253noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9050528436539921312.post-30747951867888477702008-06-18T19:17:00.000-05:002008-06-18T19:17:00.000-05:00Jason, this is a very thought provoking post. I L...Jason, this is a very thought provoking post. I LOVED Solaris, but have read very little LeGuin. I'll add your suggestions to my "to read" list.BobEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09602986387358093444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9050528436539921312.post-47792631409560483162008-06-13T17:49:00.000-05:002008-06-13T17:49:00.000-05:00No, you’re right, and your observation highlights ...No, you’re right, and your observation highlights the dangers of generalization. Thanks for taking the time to leave that comment. I should be more careful. :)<BR/><BR/><I>The Cyberiad</I> does have a lot of humor and absurdity. That’s also true of <I>Memoirs of a Space Traveler</I>; however, in both cases, we’re looking at short stories and not a sustained novel. Perhaps that’s an important point. A <I>novel</I> of Lem’s, <I>Peace On Earth</I>, with the same character from <I>Memoirs</I> (Ijon Tichy) becomes immediately more serious and full of social satire. But in any case, you are right to point to Lem’s sense of humor, though I would argue that even that is often cerebral and remote.<BR/><BR/>And it’s not solely a qusetion of the <I>length</I> of the story. It’s definitely possible to write science fiction novels full of humor. Just ask Douglas Adams. Err, well, you can’t actually ask him any longer, but you get my drift. :)Jason Fisherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05809154870762268253noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9050528436539921312.post-19706579863407126592008-06-12T21:39:00.000-05:002008-06-12T21:39:00.000-05:00I love Chain of Chance. What an incredible book.Bu...I love Chain of Chance. What an incredible book.<BR/><BR/>But Lem isn't always so hard and stern, have you tried The Cyberiad? It's one of my alltime top 5 and it's funny/silly/brilliant.Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09492841891625994218noreply@blogger.com