This is 2022. And 2022 is a Philip K Dick novel.

Discussion in 'Media & Commentators' started by (original)late, Mar 13, 2022.

  1. (original)late

    (original)late Banned

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    "Whether his visions were medical or supernatural, one thing is clear: Dick had a startling ability to foreshadow the modern world. Celebrated science-fiction and fantasy author Stan Nicholls suggests Dick's work is prescient because it explored the future through the then-present. "His stories posited the ubiquitousness of the internet, virtual reality, facial recognition software, driverless cars and 3D printing," Nicholls tells BBC Culture – while also pointing out that "it's a misconception that prediction is the primary purpose of science fiction; the genre's hit rate is actually not very good in that respect. Like all the best science fiction, his stories weren't really about the future, they were about the here and now." Indeed, Dick's incorporation of everyday aspects of post-War America into his futures has meant that his worlds possessed a surreal familiarity.

    Dick was altogether anti-establishment: his stories feature authorities and companies consistently abusing their power, especially when it comes to surveillance. His worlds are ultra-commodified and their citizens addicted to materialism, while celebrity, media and politics meld to create nightmarish, authoritarian scenarios, usually topped off with a heavy dose of technocracy and bureaucracy."

    To be honest, I read some of his books back then, but I was never a fan. His writing can be dark to the point of absurdity. But sometimes it works. I think a lot of our paranoid Rightys would like it.


    https://www.bbc.com/culture/article...witnessed-the-future?utm_source=pocket-newtab
     

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