Quote:
|
Originally Posted by !@#$%!
ha ha, i hear what you're saying! grad school (in the humanities) got me off reading for a few years-- i couldn't look at a book without wanting to vomit. as a result i watched a lot of movies.
i was lucky to read nietzsche in an independent study so i wasn't encumbered by assholes-- "class" was usually talk and cigarettes in a bench. the thing is i got hooked since then and kept reading afterwards.
what i love about nietzsche is that he *truly* blows your mind. why? because even in the most far-fetched scifi story, in the end it all boils down to preserving the same ideology that everybody else repeats-- who is good, who is the villain, bla bla-- predictable. everybody evaluates the world the same way in our era.
but that little fucker goes to the core of things-- he makes you take a look at your values and proceeds to give them a thorough skewering. it doesn't matter if you agree with his morality or not, in the end-- the thing is that he makes you question the very core of your assumptions about the way you judge the word, and in that sense he is truly fucking mindblowing.
oh, the manchester united game started. anyway, your loss, i'm afraid, and i hope you can recover your health soon-- school can fuck you up in so many ways. don't let the bastards grind you down, etc.
--
i assume you've already read dune so i won't bother recommending it.
|
I like you.
I have a lot to say in response to this, but not a lot of time. I just want to ask one thing, regarding your understandable cynicism about SF:
Have you ever read Gene Wolfe? Specifically the "Book of the New Sun" (which is actually four books, plus a "coda" fifth volume, all of which lead into a second four part, distantly linked sequel (Book of the Long Sun) which itself leads to a three part finale, (Book of the Short Sun) ?
If you haven't, it's imperative that you do so immediately. I did a minor in philosophy for my undergrad, and I think New Sun should be required reading for any philosophy program. It's the greatest work of speculative fiction I've ever encountered.
(Ps, The only philosophy that I enjoyed in the presence of the dullards in my program, was religious philosophy. I loved it, and that plays a role in my interest in SF. More later, hopefully)