In
the story "Burning Chrome" by William Gibson, it was really difficult
to into the story (at least for me) and because of that I probably missed
some grave details within the story to help give me that establishment of
everything going on. I didn't start getting into the groove of the story until
about the last five pages, and each and every time I read it, I just couldn't
seem to develop that imaginary world for this story, not because the story
wasn't descriptive, but because Mr. Gibson was able to make his story very
realistic-a little too realistic. Realistic in the sense of long banters of
computer and technological processes that took more effort for me to understand
and process- in order build it into my imagination. For example, “A freezer. A fermenter.
An incubator. An electrophoresis system with integrated agarose cell and
transilluminator. A tissue embedder. A high-performance liquid chromatograph…”
Ultimately, the over description and listing of technological processes killed
me in the end. However, the way the story is set up, the protagonist working
toward their goal and is usually the hero, Gibson did this-yes- however, in a
twisted way. The characters, You get attached to the characters and root for
them, hoping for their success and lament in their failures. However, he did
this in an anti-heroic manner. It primarily two guys (Bobby and Jack) in the
slums just trying to get rich, and most definitely not in the most legal manner.
However, the future Gibson displays for us seems to mirror a perfect,
complicated reflection of modern-day life. Also, this story to me, though the
characters may be in slums and aren’t living it up, doesn’t seem dystopian nor
does it seem utopian. However what really stood out to me within this story,
were the people’s need and almost-like addiction to, what I’d call, “plastic
surgery, despite the possible negative results overall. For example, when Rikki
wanted to get the cheaper set of eyes ( at least until she has the money to get
the expensive Iris) as a quick fix for her problem. For some reason, this just
reminded me of the hot story of when
Tiny (T.I.’s wife, well ex-wife---who knows anymore?) changed her eye colour with laser eye surgery
to like a greyish colour despite the negative possible outcomes. This story
just reflects our need to constantly fix ourselves. Overall, this story is a story
I appreciate, not so much like. However, I can say Gibson stylistically and
skillfully wrote this story like no other I’ve seen yet.
"Computer Friendly" by Eileen Gunn, I could most definitely say, was interesting and very like-able. First of all the fact that the story was written in the perspective of a seven year old girl which makes you questions even more how well will this story turn over because a child's mind is more simplistic. However, this story is amazing. The perfect system of technological system reminded me of the book The Giver where they would euthanize children who do meet the the requirements they have set. Same goes for this story where they are going to put Sheena to sleep because she doesn't reach the social standards they have set to become a part of the system. It is really scary thinking about the brainwash that occurs in this story because it reminds me the brainwash of culture. There's no escape and the more you try to revolt against cultural norms, or what they consider normal, the more shunned you are. Also, as a culture, there is an attempt to keep these revolts ts and abnormalities to a minimum because then there is a fear that people will convert and join the "timebombs" of society just as Elizabeth did when she became a "timebomb" in her technological system.
"Computer Friendly" by Eileen Gunn, I could most definitely say, was interesting and very like-able. First of all the fact that the story was written in the perspective of a seven year old girl which makes you questions even more how well will this story turn over because a child's mind is more simplistic. However, this story is amazing. The perfect system of technological system reminded me of the book The Giver where they would euthanize children who do meet the the requirements they have set. Same goes for this story where they are going to put Sheena to sleep because she doesn't reach the social standards they have set to become a part of the system. It is really scary thinking about the brainwash that occurs in this story because it reminds me the brainwash of culture. There's no escape and the more you try to revolt against cultural norms, or what they consider normal, the more shunned you are. Also, as a culture, there is an attempt to keep these revolts ts and abnormalities to a minimum because then there is a fear that people will convert and join the "timebombs" of society just as Elizabeth did when she became a "timebomb" in her technological system.
Update:
So last week I did my update on the blog post. I updated my blog post seven instead of this blog post. I just not on top of my game this week. Anyhow, I did like the fact that we sat in a circle in class it made the atmosphere different and open. It was like either a therapy session or a book reading club; I couldn't decide which one seemed more suiting. I also liked the exercise we did in class where we a had to pick a sentence to analyze. It made me develop a new appreciation for "Burning Chrome" by Gibson and his poetic language. It also lead to like "Computer Friendly" more than I already do.
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