Bonfire of the Genres: Critical Looks Sci-Fi and Fantasy

The Something Awful Forums > Archives > Comedy Goldmine > The Goodmine > Bonfire of the Genres: Critical Looks Sci-Fi and Fantasy

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

Herodotus, Histories Book 5 posted:

According to the account which the Thracians give, the country beyond the Ister is possessed by bees, on account of which it is impossible to penetrate farther. But in this they seem to me to say what has no likelihood; for it is certain that those creatures are very impatient of cold. I rather believe that it is on account of the cold that the regions which lie under the Bear are without inhabitants. Such then are the accounts given of this country, the sea-coast whereof Megabazus was now employed in subjecting to the Persians.

King Darius had no sooner crossed the Hellespont and reached Sardis, than he bethought himself of the good deed of Histiaeus the Milesian, and the good counsel of the Mytilenean Coes. He therefore sent for both of them to Sardis, and bade them each crave a boon at his hands. Now Histiaeus, as he was already king of Miletus, did not make request for any government besides, but asked Darius to give him Myrcinus of the Edonians, where hewished to build him a city. Such was the choice that Histiaeus made. Coes, on the other hand, as he was a mere burgher, and not a king, requested the sovereignty of Mytilene. Both alike obtained their requests, and straight-way betook themselves to the places which they had chosen.

It chanced in the meantime that King Darius saw a sight which determined him to bid Megabazus remove the Paeonians from their seats in Europe and transport them to Asia. There were two Paeonians, Pigres and Mantyes, whose ambition it was to obtain the sovereignty over their countrymen. As soon therefore as ever Darius crossed into Asia, these men came to Sardis, andbrought with them their sister, who was a tall and beautiful woman. Having so done, they waited till a day came when the king sat in state in the suburb of the Lydians; and then dressing their sister in the richest gear they could, sent her to draw water for them. She bore a pitcher upon her head, and with one arm led a horse, while all the way as she went she span flax. Now as she passed by where the king was, Darius took notice of her; for it was neither like the Persians nor the Lydians, nor any of the dwellers in Asia, to do as she did. Darius accordingly noted her, and ordered some of his guard to follow her steps, and watch to see what she would do with the horse. So the spearmen went; and the woman, when she came to the river, first watered the horse, and then filling the pitcher, came back the same way she had gone, with the pitcher of water upon her head, and the horse dragging upon her arm, while she still kept twirling the spindle.

Seems pretty readable to me, and who doesn't love a land made impassable by bees?

# ¿ Nov 20, 2018 01:27

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# ¿ Apr 28, 2024 06:20

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

CountFosco posted:

Yeah, I know that you used the word backhandedly. I get that. What I'm saying is that you have to make a distinction between Wolfe and these other authors, because try as you might to poo poo on him, you know in your heart that he's not like these other authors you've critiqued. There's a part of you that liked it, and you're doing your best to expunge that part of you so as to not make any concessions to the "normies" but try as you might that spirit inside of you will not be crushed. If you silence yourself, "the very stones will speak" i.e. your unconscious will rebel and will resist your egoistic impulse to destroy that which is beautiful. Really, the only resort you have is to kill your very spirit itself, and you do that at your own peril.

We can all sense that reading Wolfe was a different experience for you than these other trash works; you're not fooling anyone. Your rhetoric is finely honed, and you can use it to make the bad argument sound the better, as any well trained sophist can, but at some point you need to ask yourself, am I blaspheming against truth itself?

nothing personnel kid

# ¿ Nov 29, 2018 03:41

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

The ten rules of posting:

Begin in medias res.

The setting has got to be vast, covering many nations, the world or the universe.

Begin with an invocation to a muse.

Begin with a statement of the theme.

Include the use of epithets, but not too racist.

Contain one or more long lists, called an epic catalogue.

Feature long and formal speeches.

Show mod intervention on human affairs.

Feature heroes that embody the values of the civilization.

It's recommended to feature the tragic hero's descent into a ban or probation.

# ¿ Nov 29, 2018 21:02

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

Mel Mudkiper posted:

glare denotes consistency while fireworks are brief

also:

Take it up with Francis Scott Key

# ¿ Dec 12, 2018 17:13

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

Mel Mudkiper posted:

rocket's red glare refers to the congrave rocket which had a pronounced red glare due to its method of projection, not the explosion itself

BITCH

Huh, learn something new every day.

# ¿ Dec 12, 2018 17:18

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

It's been a decade or more since I read Diamond Age, I should revisit it. I remember it being a really fascinating read.

# ¿ Jan 4, 2019 07:18

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

Reamde is the one that really put me off Stephenson, combining both the worst iteration of him taking a niche concept and becoming really enamored with it while taking it as a given that the reader will become just as enamored along the way and the most tiring, half baked Michael Mann plot

# ¿ Jan 5, 2019 04:05

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

"It really puts the 'foul' in Lord Foul's Bane!"
-Gene Shalit

# ¿ Jan 5, 2019 07:15

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

The sky above the port was black, with a big banner that said NO INPUT - HDMI 2

# ¿ Jan 8, 2019 16:12

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

All the bad Irish sports fans came to America and became Patriots fans.

# ¿ Jan 22, 2019 15:29

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

Mel Mudkiper posted:

Referring to the dregs of fantasy

I imagine the genre won't survive this century

It's a young century, there are a lot of things that may not survive it.

# ¿ Jan 24, 2019 20:05

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

Mel Mudkiper posted:

Also the only good video game writing is deadly premonition

I think you mean the first two thirds of Deadly Premonition before it just becomes a Resident Evil game

# ¿ Feb 2, 2019 03:51

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

idiotsavant posted:

mel and others argue that literature can and should serve to help us transcend our animal natures, to gain better insight and understanding of ourselves and our relationships with the Other instead of spastically tugging our sex organs in futile self-pleasure, and the general goon counter-argument is, "but tugging my sex organ feels good"

I mean it's possible to read literature and tug one's sex organ, as my absolutely ruined collection of Philip Roth novels can confirm.

# ¿ Feb 7, 2019 07:25

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

Personally I prefer 2d pixel art in my literature

# ¿ Feb 8, 2019 03:59

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

BravestOfTheLamps posted:

Barabbas the Rapper

# ¿ Feb 13, 2019 04:16

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

ulvir posted:

ah, yes, onscreen, the important aspect of literature

Kindles have screens

# ¿ Feb 15, 2019 10:40

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

idiotsavant posted:

so i checked out Titus Groan thanks to this thread and now I want to steal a book from the library also thanks to this thread, cause it’s a 1960 edition from the UK with beautiful almost onion-skin paper and a gorgeous font and the original library card from 1960 in it with stamps through 1978 (1. A fine of 35 cents is charged for each day overdue.)

I would recommend that instead you get the Gormenghast collected volume for yourself so someone else may in the future feel the same joy checking out that library copy

# ¿ Feb 16, 2019 09:43

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

chernobyl kinsman posted:

get the one from back when hipsters were still a thing that changes every instance of "friend of the family" to "hipster"

Is this real

# ¿ Feb 21, 2019 08:05

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

Personally I prefer Excel World, wherein a mild mannered accountant finds himself in the world of his favorite spreadsheet and gets to meet all the integers

# ¿ Feb 22, 2019 03:54

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

Milkfred E. Moore posted:

now, of course, the holy grail is isekai xianxia litrpg

that's when you know you've found something special. oh yes indeed

I Can't Believe My Dynasty Can Have This Much Of A Mandate From Heaven!

# ¿ Feb 22, 2019 04:09

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

porfiria posted:

I'm trying to think of a videogame with good writing but the best of it really does tap out around Rothfuss or GRRM levels.

Games should go the Dark Souls route and avoid text wherever possible.

It's probably cliché at this point to say New Vegas, but New Vegas.

# ¿ Feb 23, 2019 22:49

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# ¿ Apr 28, 2024 06:20

I Before E: Jul 2, 2012

Rothfuss is not thrash, he's clearly melodic sludge

# ¿ Mar 14, 2019 08:28

The Something Awful Forums > Archives > Comedy Goldmine > The Goodmine > Bonfire of the Genres: Critical Looks Sci-Fi and Fantasy