Once a driving force of political change, utopian visions – a community or society possessing highly desirable or perfect qualities – are now out of fashion… In SFF these days it’s all about dystopia – a community or society that is in some important way undesirable or frightening – such as The Hunger Games. But is this a lost opportunity or a new realism? Should we create new utopias and thereby impel social advance, or will we learn the lessons of history and remain sceptical of grand visions?
Well, that’s what a panel consisting of visionary novelist Kim Stanley Robinson, Alex Callinicos and Marina Benjamin will discuss in this excellent panel called Paradise… Lost?. Ian Johnson hosts.
Geoff Matthews
Julia Kitvaria Sarene
If utopias are out of fashion, and dystopias all the rage, then it will be interesting to see people’s reaction to Hollow World as it can be either dependent on your perception. For anyone who has read my other books you can probably already guess I’m more Hadrian than Royce…I do see progress as society evolves. Compare how women, homosexuals, and people of color were treated in the 1950’s as opposed to today. I may just b a rose-colored-glasses kind of guy but I like having hope for the future. As stated so eloquently in Second Hand Lions…
“Sometimes the things that may or may not be true are the things a man needs to believe in the most. That people are basically good; that honor, courage, and virtue mean everything; that power and money, money and power mean nothing; that good always triumphs over evil; and I want you to remember this, that love… true love never dies. You remember that, boy. You remember that. Doesn’t matter if it’s true or not. You see, a man should believe in those things, because those are the things worth believing in.”