NP but LAST AND FIRST MEN

[Mark Kohut]

L&FM is told as if Mankind Itself is speaking!....And after a precis of WW1
and its effect on Europe, --remember published in 1930 or 31, it goes on to
narrate other wars....Italy w a Mussolini figure attacks France.......soon,
France bombs England and destroys 1/3rd of it......in weeks....

Had no idea anyone, much less Aldiss, held it THAT high in
esteem.....thought it was a wayward niche thing.....

On Wed, Jun 22, 2022 at 11:56 AM Paul Cray <pmcray at gmail.com> wrote:

> Brian W. Aldiss in "Trillion Year Spree" calls "Star Maker" "the one
> great, grey holy book of science fiction" and he is right.
>
> The whole of the history of humanity explicated in "Last and First Men" is
> reduced to a mere tick in the cosmic clock in "Star Maker". The sheer
> imaginative force and scope of both works though is breathtaking. That they
> have stayed in print indicates that Stapledon's obscurity is relative, It's
> very likely that TRP would be acquainted with his work, but Aldiss says
> that Stapledon neglect by the mainstream is "inexplicable".
>
> The early sections especially of "Last and First Men" might seem dated
> today, but this isn't an issue with "Star Maker". It's a lot shorter than
> "Last and First Men", but is presented on an exponentially bigger stage and
> is certainly worth anyone's time to peruse. It should be generally
> recognised as what it is, one of the very greatest novels of the C20th.
>
> Stapledon's "Odd John" and "Sirius" are also well worth reading.
>
> Paul
>
> On Wed, 22 Jun 2022 at 04:00, David Morris <fqmorris at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> For a speculative future historian, having a “Vision” would seem a
>> requirement. I read SciFi as light stuff between more “serious” stuff. But
>> really good SciFi can be very thought provoking. And reading stuff from
>> the
>> 30’s can be mind-blowing in how far-reaching and correct their vision can
>> be.
>>
>> Let me know if this one is worth reading
>>
>> On Wed, Jun 22, 2022 at 5:35 AM Mark Kohut <mark.kohut at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> > Olaf Stapledon wrote a couple famous SF novels
>> > before Tom was even born...but they have stayed
>> > in print because they are good and still read, it seems.
>> >
>> > I have wanted to read them but never have. I came across
>> > a copy of them and have opened the one in the subject header.
>> >
>> > I wanted to share this definition of "vision" from his intro
>> > to the original American edition because I often write
>> > of TRP's vision and ask myself if I could define vision
>> > if challenged since I too know detailing what Pynchon "believes"
>> > about real life things is a fool's game. But a vision is not that.
>> >
>> > "But visions, if they are to be permanently helpful, must embody
>> > the whole breadth and depth of experience. They must not be crude,
>> > extravagant, lopsided. They must be conceived not only with originality
>> > but with sanity, even if sanity has to take up a new orientation in
>> > consequence
>> > of the new vision."
>> >
>> > But I only decided to write and send this because of a later paragraph
>> from
>> > him in his
>> > earlier-written Preface. Will follow very soon.
>> > --
>> > Pynchon-L: https://waste.org/mailman/listinfo/pynchon-l
>> >
>> --
>> Pynchon-L: https://waste.org/mailman/listinfo/pynchon-l
>>
>