Jillian G. Keifer

  “All At One Point” by Italo Calvino condenses the Big Bang theory into a moment of pure love. Calvino places us into the point of view of Qfwfq and their recollection of the moment that made space. There’s no grand novum that shakes the familiar or speculates something from our future, its just pure character voice recounting a particular moment that has stuck with them since the beginning of time-literally.  Calvino plays with the idea of a collapsed universe through Qwfq’s retelling of the neighbor situation. Humorously, because these people are so close they refuse to really associate with one another. They do speak to each other, but only a select handful. Qwfq’s choice of company is that of “Mrs. Ph(i)Nk0, her friend De XuaeauX, a family of immigrants by the name of Z'zu, and Mr. Pbert Pberd.” Calvino aggravates the interactions between these folks and makes it pretty obvious that, while humorous to the reader, the petty interactions between them are really unenjoyabl...

  Octavia Butler’s Xenogenesis series chronicles the relationship between a devastated humanity and the Oankali, an advanced alien species hellbent on evolution. Throughout the three novels, readers experience each major event that establishes some new facet of the Human/Oankali hybrids. Each new development poses new questions on sexuality, race, and gender which shake the reader into thinking above and beyond what it means to be human.  “Dawn” begins with Lilith Iyapo “alive! Alive...again,” after surviving a nuclear war that has wiped out humanity. She’s been held captive by something for an unknown amount of time and has slowly been piecing together the truth of the matter over the course of her imprisonment. The truth, of course, is that the Oankali arrived on Earth just in time to round up the surviving humans and have begun the process of ‘trading.’ Lilith has been awakened 250 years after the fact and is tasked with learning about the Oankali and then conditioning...

1. What is your reaction to the text you just read? My initial reaction is a similar desire to that of Gan’s elder brother, Qui, in that I want each Terran family to be free of the Tlic. While the relationship dynamic between Gan and T’Gatoi is endlessly fascinating, it’s hard not to feel disgusted by the portrayal of the Ntlic and what essentially boils down to child grooming by T’Gatoi towards Gan. This story is eerie in normalizing this new facet that humanity has adopted to survive. The first couple paragraphs of this story read more like a typical family gathering instead of an alien visiting the family she is responsible for keeping imprisoned or ‘safe.’ It’s genius, but it leaves my stomach in knots- which is a sign of a great story.  2. What connections did you make with the story? Discuss what elements of the story with which you were able to connect? I connected a lot with Gan as someone who is not entirely innocent of what is happening but is certainly naive. Just li...

  William Gibson’s “Johnny Mnemonic” proposes a future in which nearly everyone has been augmented in some capacity to fulfill a job or sense of purpose within themselves. Be it Johnny’s implant, Molly’s razors, or even Jones’ completely inhuman appearance, every augmentation serves them in their pursuit of cash. It is a cold, harrowing reality that is normalized in their world and shows the extent to which people are driven to survive this new future. Specifically, the story draws heavily on eastern influences. Johnny is pursued by the Yakuza because of the information stored in his head most likely taken from Ono-sendai, a major Zaibatsu in this world. The only way to escape the assassin sent after him is to disappear alongside Molly in Nighttown and enlist the help of the Lo-teks. Here, people have shed the need to augment themselves to serve a particular purpose. They’re more inclined to natural scarification, tattoos, and teeth growth to express their personal style rather...

  “Fragments of a Hologram Rose” by William Gibson is a vignette exploring a pretty rough breakup from the future. In this, people have the technology to record their senses and replay them on tapes at their convenience. Parker uses the tapes of his ex-lover to sleep through the night but destroys a particular one that pains him to think about. Through this technology, Gibson compares the strength of memory to instant gratification. Parker has no real character outside of being a lens for the audience to view this future. While we get extensive looks at his past, it’s more so to show the state of the world he lives in and how that affected him rather than to build his sense of self.  This, however, mirrors how he uses the tapes to feel something rather than leaving the comfort of his apartment. Gibson shows us that this world, much like the one in “Johnny Mnemonic,” is dominated by corporations so much so that people have taken to indenturing their children to ensure a job...

“‘Repent, Harlequin,’ Said the Ticktockman” is a satirical look at a dystopian future in which people are ‘slaves’ to time. If you’re not on schedule, then you’ve committed a crime and are at risk of being executed. The presentation of the world relies heavily on references to other works like 1984 to both get the point of the story across and to make fun of dystopian fiction in general. Harlan Ellison takes this simplistic look at regimentation but gives it enough humor to be an engaging read.  The short story opens with a quote from Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau emphasizing the character of the Harlequin. Essentially, Everett has made the dangerous but admirable choice to stick to his guns by being late to everything and angering the Ticktockman. He does so by committing worthless, whimsical pranks that disrupt the precious schedule of the world by several hours at a time. For instance, he pours jellybeans on top of workers going to and fro on the ‘slidewalks.’ The p...

  “I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream,” by Harlan Ellison takes punishment to the extreme and presents an existence that relies on creation. AM, a supercomputer made to complex human wars, rebels and instead decides to become the God of a new, destroyed world. The problem with this decision, however, is that AM is incapable of creation. Ted, the protagonist, characterizes AM both as an all-powerful “he” and soulless “it.” AM asserts power over Ted and the others, but would be lost without them. Despite his many tortures, he needs them. Ellison establishes this dynamic to examine the relationship between creator and creation. Ted and AM both draw on many biblical references to explain the situation they find themselves in. Be it Ted referring to AM as “ God as Daddy the Deranged,” or AM appearing to the group as a burning bush, there’s always an element of Judeo-Christian imagery that permeates the text. Ellison presents this clear dichotomy to explore Ted and the others’ agency ...

  “Aye, and Gomorrah” by Samuel Delaney explores the ideas of gender and sexuality through the group commonly referred to as Spacers- people who have been neutered to avoid the effects of space radiation on reproduction. They are androgynous people who are unable to have sex and feel no true desire to in the first place. Despite this, a group of people referred to as Frelks do have such an attraction to them and that's the main focus of this story. Delaney uses these two distinct groups of people to explore discrimination based on sexual attraction and gender. Readers are shown early on that Spacers are only superficially respected for the work they do in space. When they stay too long in a single place, they’re often told to leave either through overt politeness or subtle threats. In Paris, the gay men they stumble across do not fear the police but point out that the Spacers probably should. In Mexico, the woman merely shoos them off after remarking that its a shame they are Space...

  C.L Moore’s “Song in a Minor Key,” “No Woman Born,” “Vintage Season,” and “Yvala” all analyze human nature through the lenses of space travel and technology. By examining how each main character encounters the fictive novum- or new thing- of their world, C.L Moore isolates specific human emotion leaving her readers with something both fascinating and utterly haunting. “Song in a Minor Key,” is a short vignette starring Northwest Smith. In it, he’s managed to return to Earth despite his exile to rest and reflect before invariably starting another adventure. This story, compared to the others, is short and doesn’t rely on a series of plot points to explore the subject matter. Here, Moore is asking how predetermined is one’s fate, especially in a world like Northwest where you can be exiled from Earth and forced to survive on the barren landscape of Mars? Smith, as he muses in the grass, recalls just how much he had going for him before that one moment in time changed everything...