[ExI] emotional deficits in sci-fi

[William Flynn Wallace]

I read all of the Expanse books (anyone want them?) and have no complaint
about them except that I did not like the ending.  Philip Dick is pretty
much of an exception to anything.  I don't read dystopian or horror
fiction.  Downers.  bill

On Sat, Mar 26, 2022 at 10:10 PM Stuart LaForge via extropy-chat <
extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:

>
> Quoting William Flynn Wallace <foozler83 at gmail.com>:
>
> > I have been reading sci-fi for nearly 70 years (first book Farmer in the
> > Sky).  I have finally noticed something:
> >
> > The characters in the books are on the other end of the scale from
> > hypersensitivity.  They are dullards.
> >
>
> I think a lot depends upon the authors who write the stories. Some are
> bright Asperger's folks who write about the science, technology, and
> adventure really well, but then fall back on tropes and archetypes for
> the characters and relationships. A very rare few get it right
> emotionally. Some of the most emotionally intelligent and believable
> science fiction stories are the Blade Runner movies loosely based on
> "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" by Phillip K. Dick. For a
> science fiction writer, Phillip K. Dick was actually very good in most
> of his stories at the emotional aspects of character development and
> relationships.
>
> Incidentally, if science fiction books are seeming emotionally flat
> these days, you should check out some of the science fiction films
> that are out there. As much a fan I am of Phillip K. Dick, the
> combination of Dick and Ridley Scott is pure magic. I highly recommend
> both "Blade Runner" and "Blade Runner 2049" for their emotional
> content. Sensitive people will cry at either movie.
>
> > When contact is made with aliens or alien technology or artifacts, there
> is
> > some surprise, but very soon it's all matter of fact - highly interested,
> > still, but not afraid.
> >
> > Fear is our strongest emotion and it is tailor made for reacting to
> aliens
> > - which means strong fear and strong suspicions and so on.
>
> > When did you ever read of a character fainting?  Having a panic attack?
> > Running away?  Or any other sign of great fear?
>
> Well that pretty much describes much of the plot of the Alien movie
> Dan O'Bannon and directed by, you guessed it, Ridley Scott.
>
> > Apparently nearly all of the characters are heroes of some sort who just
> > don't show fear.  They do say it sometimes.  But don't act that way.
> > People in intense fear make mistakes, are clumsy, make poor decisions.
>
>
> Your complaint that heroes don't exhibit enough fear is a criticism
> not just of science fiction, but of all of literature. It is because
> courage is the defining hallmark of heroes and antiheroes throughout
> literature. In science fiction, there is also the added character
> trait and motivation of curiosity. So no, most science fiction heroes
> will not soil themselves when seeing an alien for the first time,
> instead, the average science fiction hero will be intent on trying to
> get ahold of the alien's technology or capture one for study or
> something similar.
>
> There is a subgenre of science fiction called survival-horror that
> seems to be better represented in cinema than in print. In these
> stories, the majority of the characters panic, and die because of it,
> while the few survivors keep their heads and become the de facto
> heroes because of it. Often times the hero survives their first
> encounter with the aliens or other unknown threat by sheer luck, but
> learns enough from the experience to keep from panicking the next
> encounter.
>
> > In other words:  the main problem with scifi is that it is unrealistic!
>
> Some good realistic science fiction survival-horror movies are "Europa
> Report" and "Pandorum". While more survival than horror, the books and
> TV series, "the Expanse", is also very realistic, in my opinion.
>
> Stuart LaForge
>
>
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