After reading the short stories: The Golden Man, Roog, The Preserving Machine, and If there Were No Benny Cemoli, I have a few comments.
I don't think that I expected the reoccuring theme of evolution in PKD's writing. I know that it is science fiction, and I should have expected it to ome extent. But I am really suprised about how positive and pro-nature the stories tend to be!
In "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep", there is a comment that Deckard thinks to himself that sums this all up:
"The life force oozed out of her, as he had so often witnessed before with other androids. The classic resignation. Mechanical, intellectual acceptance of that which a genuine organism- with two billion years pressure to live and evolve hargriding it- could never have reconciled itself to."
In "The Preserving Machine", the entire story is simply about how creatures evolve and it is unavoidable and uncontrollable.
As a biologist, I really take heart to themes like this. I think life is important to think about. Another theme I enjoy is that humans in his story have evolved to some extent. And many times the humans have started to decline, evolutionarily and socially. It is sobering to think that one day humans will have the short nd of the evolutionary stick, and it will show with declining populations, increased government control and overall quality of life- decreasing.
I never thought of the stories as being pro-nature, but I totally agree with you! All the stories are about humans and nature surviving a world disaster and evolving.
ReplyDeleteI too noticed the evolution themes. It is kind of interesting to think about humans not being the dominant life form on the planet. I mean people are so used to being superior to other life forms, just imagine if humans were the endangered species. Would the "more superior" species make an effort to keep humans from going extinct?
ReplyDeleteSheri,
ReplyDeleteI don't think it is too far off to think that humans are already outdone by a species. Many pathogenic organisms seems to really have control over us! For now, I think the sheer number of humans is helping our survival as a species, but also hampering it.
and Chelsea,
I was pleasantly surprised about it too! I think after this class I am going to continue reading his short stories, maybe I will find some more nature-related stuff.