Why Pern is so Unrealistic

[Sic Transit Gloria]

I doubt it. Scientific development does not always mean cultural "progress".

I'm just gonna let this thread die now. I have more exciting things to discuss, like hoverboards.

[Renee E]

Papaphilly wrote: "I have two of those APTB. I am very glad they don't fly or breath fire. :)"

If they get into the wrong grub the flammable stuff flies out the other end :o

[Papaphilly]

Renee wrote: "Papaphilly wrote: "I have two of those APTB. I am very glad they don't fly or breath fire. :)"

If they get into the wrong grub the flammable stuff flies out the other end :o"

And it doesn't smell like brimstone either. :)

[John (Taloni)]

Two thoughts:

* Dragons are what made it fantasy for me, even with the superscience in the back of the weyrs and the dawn sisters. Firebreathing dragons and a medieval society screams fantasy.

* For the religion aspect, check out Chasm City by Alastair Reynolds. He lifts practically the entire Christian iconography for one of the characters, and a dark view of religion makes up much of the book.

[drowningmermaid]

I think it's the difference between fallacies in scientific plausibility (which are sort of accepted in most science fiction) and fallacies in world building or character development or group psychology (whatever you want to call it.)

Whether you see this as a flaw or not, and whether you think it is plausible to build a society without religion or war... is a matter of debate.

Personally, I fall into the category of thinking that there will always be religion in some form or other. It's not simply cultural; it's an observable genetic quirk of the temporal lobe that does little to harm offspring who inherit the quirk, and offers some tangible benefits. (Note that there is also virtually no mental illness on Pern. Many who would now be classified as deranged would once have been mystics.)

The same with war... let's be absurdly optimistic and assume that we are evolving into a better, safer, happier race of human beings. It is BEYOND absurdly optimistic to assume that everyone else is going to be on the same page with you. That's just not how natural selection works. I really think that if you're writing about a society without any hint of war... you're not really writing about human beings.

[Scott]

drowningmermaid wrote: "Note that there is also virtually no mental illness on Pern."

Which explains why there is no religion.

[Renee E]

Scott wrote: "drowningmermaid wrote: "Note that there is also virtually no mental illness on Pern."

Which explains why there is no religion."

If I hadn't waited to take a drink of my coffee . . . my beloved little laptop would have been very, very sad.

[drowningmermaid]

Renee wrote: "Scott wrote: "drowningmermaid wrote: "Note that there is also virtually no mental illness on Pern."

Which explains why there is no religion."

If I hadn't waited to take a drink of my coffee . . ...."


Alas, poor laptop?

I was... kind of trying not to make that connection between religion and mental illness. But... if you compare the self-aggrandizing but sincere beliefs of the average schizophrenic with the occasionally self-contradictory but culturally rich and wildly popular beliefs of the average Evangelical or Catholic...

https://www.wordans.ca/wvc-1324217002...

Has anyone else read Snow Crash?

[Sic Transit Gloria]

Oh goodness. I could get into a lot of debate about why that's wrong, but this really isn't the place. (Actually, I'm not sure if there is place for this on Goodreads.)

No, I've never read "Snow Crash". Never heard of it, actually.

[Renee E]

@paradoxicalsiren

"Alas, poor laptop," as in I'd have choked — laughing — on the coffee and spewed it on said poor laptop (which is not named Yorick). :D

[drowningmermaid]

I am glad the laptop lives.

No worries if no one cares to debate the biology of spirituality. Overall, I'd agree, goodreads (and most forums) are not good places to discuss religion or politics.

[drowningmermaid]

I will say that I thought Barbara Hagerty's book "fingerprints of God" was a pretty good intro to the biology of belief.

[Mark]

Why is Pern so unrealistic??? Well it has Dragons, Flying fire breathing dragons. Most, Sci-fi/Fantasy is unrealistic, its part of our escapism, and that why we read it. If we wanted something realistic we wouldn't be reading about flying Dragons, breathing fire, oh and don't forget they teleport too.

[Peter]

Mark wrote: "Why is Pern so unrealistic??? Well it has Dragons, Flying fire breathing dragons. Most, Sci-fi/Fantasy is unrealistic, its part of our escapism, and that why we read it. If we wanted something real..."

But scientifically, not fantastically.