Weeks 7 & 8, Science Fiction

What was does Dick (1995) himself theories about the I Ching?

As most people would know, the I Ching is an ancient Chinese divination text, it is commonly used by people who want to find out about their future. Firstly, the person asks a question, throws some coins and looks at the way in which they fall. Then the person reads the I Ching to decipher what the coins mean. However, Philip K. Dick had his personal opinion about the I Ching. Dick theorized that we can use the I Ching for anything except for fortunetelling in the future. He also added that it is not a fortunetelling device, despite what’s been believed by both China and by Richard Wilhelm for many centuries. Although Dick thinks that the book contained a vast amount about fortunetelling as it lays before your eyes, for your scrutiny. Indeed, he refers that “the book is analytical ad diagnostic, not predicted.” (Dick, 1995)

Dick also describes the I Ching, which is based on about synchronicity, as a device by which synchronicity. In addition, he can relate deeply to schizophrenic people because he was once diagnosed with schizophrenia. He emphasizes that it is vital to have a good idea about a thought process that people’s analyzed or suffering from the disease itself in the Schizophrenia & the book of changes.

Thus, Dick uses the I Ching to develop the direction of his novels. In the story, I Ching the ancient Chinese divination text have had a huge influence throughout the whole story, it connected each and every single plot together, even though some people say there is no “main plot” in this novel.

Dick has mentioned the I Ching several times through the book. For example, one of the characters, Hawthome Abendsen who was an author wrote a novel in the story, “The Grasshopper Lies Heavy”. He used the I Ching to write the novel, and even Dick himself used it to decide some important plots for “The Man in the High Castle”. Dick also wrote about the Japanese and Americans by using the I Ching to make any important decisions. In addition to that, Dick used the I Ching to decide whether a character should tell Abendsen that he was the target of the assassins. Dick even made the character himself to use the I Ching to decide if he should be in the story.  Therefore, you can tell that Dick likes to use the I Ching as an important literary device throughout his writing.

For Dick himself, he also uses the I Ching to get advice for his own life. He mentioned in an interview, “If you use the I Ching long enough and continually enough, it will begin to change and shape you as a person.” From this point, Dick obviously showed that he appreciates the influences of the I Ching. He also claims that the I Ching analyzes the situation for him more accurately than he does, and from there it gives out advice.

Reference 

 Dick, P.K. (1995). Schizophrenia and the I Ching. In Sutin, L. (Ed.), The Shifting Realities of Philip K. Dick (pp.175-182). New York: Vintage.

 The Yijing / I Ching oracle. (n.d.). Retrieved October 09, 2014, from http://www.eclecticenergies.com/iching/

Monique Porteous week 10 - Cult TV

What role does Hills (2004) suggest the fans play in the construction of cult TV? How is new media central to this?

Hills believes that the fans are what define cult TV. He suggests the role that fans play within this genre is that they control what happens within the show(s). Fans work within this role is varied. The fans all work together in helping the producers and writers to know what to do/write next. These fans produce magazines, online groups and organize real life events. Producers and writers look out for these events and activites; it helps them to find new ways to work with their fan base. Secondly, the fans play the role of having control in cult TV by giving a reason to have memorabilia - something which helps to keep a cult show going. "fans of cult TV create a market for memorabilia, merchandise and props that relates to their much-loved TV shows" (Hills, 2004, p.519). Buffy the Vampire Slayer has a cult following with some extremely devoted fans, even with the show ending back in 2003, websites related to the show still continue to have many views from these fans (such as buffyworld.com) Thirdly, the fans of cult TV are extremely active viewers. These fans will not just watch a show because it's 'the only thing on', they make time to watch the show be involved with it during and after. It could be said to be the 'highlight' of their day watching their cult show. Lastly the way these fans play their role in the construction of cult TV is through their sheer love for the creators work. "proper fandom exists when an enthusiasm for some cultural object or other takes on . . . a totalizing, defining role in people's lifestyles and identities" (Grispund, 2002, p.119).

Fans heavily rely on new media, causing it to be central in the construction of cult TV. "The concept that new methods of communicating in the digital world allow smaller groups of people to congregate online and share, sell and swap goods and information. It also allows more people to have a voice in their community and in the world in general" (PCmag, n.d). Fans function through new media. The writers and producers thrive off of this - it helps them to construct their shows. To expand on my first point in the previous paragraph, new media is counted as 'online groups' such as facebook pages, twitter and niche sites specified to a certain show. Shows become constructed from fans use of new media, especially twitter. Twitter enables the fans to project their opinions about a cult show on social media (New media) within seconds of the show airing and ending. (Chastine, 2012). To sum it up, new media is absolutely central to fans playing the role in the construction of cult TV.



References: 

Chastine, L. (2012, June 21). 5 TV Shows with Twitter Hashtag #wins. Otto Pilot Media. Retrieved from http://ottopilotmedia.com/social-media/5-tv-shows-with-twitter-hashtag-wins/

Hills, M. (2004). Defining Cult TV; Texts, Inter-texts and Fan Audiences, The Television Studies Reader, in R. C. Allen & A. Hill. London and New York: Routledge.

PCmag. (n.d). Encyolpedia; Definition of New Media. PCmag. Retrieved from http://www.pcmag.com/encyclopedia/term/47936/new-media

Cult Television

Wilcox and Lavery (2002) identify 9 defining characteristics of ‘quality TV’ – can you apply any of these to other television series that you have viewed recently? Are there any other characteristics that you could add to their list?

The fantasy/teen series titled 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' made its public break when it first aired back in 1997 and was created by Joss Whedon. The introduction text written by Wilcox and Lavery gives a greatly broad and sophisticated view on network television as well as delving into said TV show with specific detail. There is a numbered list of nine points which showcases the characteristics of quality TV and is mainly centred around Joss's ties with this particular medium. Joss has contributed to not only the world of television but also cinema in quite a vibrant way.  '..he has contributed, often as a highly paid-and sometimes uncredited-"script doctor" to a variety of films..' (Lavery & Wilcox, 2002, pg. xxi) Screenplay writing is clearly a strength and passion of his as it has paid off very positively with hit films of which he has been involved with.

Joss did have some rough patches when it came to developing Buffy and his ability to write up a decent script. This spans back very early in his career when Buffy was the project determining whether or not he had a place in this chosen field. Though he did not direct it, the film released back in 1992 received a very dismal response. This overall experience helped to perfect Joss's vision in which he then put towards further development in incorporating Buffy into a television series. The third point supports the idea of quality TV consisting of a large cast. Having a big family of characters with there own individual persona brings out conflict and therefore drama. Fourthly, memory - 'On Buffy, however, characters remember, and we remember with them.' (Lavery & Wilcox, 2002, pg. xxiii) Consistent continuity is very important as characters may make recollections from past episodes. The final point being realism sits firmly on top in my opinion. Joss's goal was to create a third dimensional character who is faced with challenges in her every day life. 'In the world of Buffy, by contrast, the problems that teenagers face become literal monsters.' (Lavery & Wilcox, 2002, pg. xix) The monsters Buffy battles against are meant to be a subtextual reflection of teenage issues.

Lavery, D. & Wilcox, R. (2002). Fighting the forces: what's at stake in Buffy the vampire slayer. (Introduction). Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield.

Week 9-10

What role does Hills (2004) suggest the fans play in the construction of cult TV? How is new media central to this?

Hills third definition of cult states “Cult TV can be defined through analysis of fan practices and depends on fan activities” (hill, 2004) and then follows shortly after by saying “This type of argument positions cult TV as a ‘grassroots’ phenomenon, assuming that it is created by fans rather than by media producers” (Hill, 2004). It is highly possible to say that cult TV is extremely dependent on fan base and even my personal experiences with cult TV appear to draw the exact same conclusion. For instance while I was growing up, Buffy the Vampire slayer was a household name and one could say that it’s because of the immense support of its dedicated fans that it was able to become so successful around the world. Had it never received the same kind of support then I most likely never would of heard of it before and it probably wouldn’t have continued on for as many seasons as it did. Without a strong fan base backing it, it’s arguable to assume that regardless of genre it’s doomed to fail and one of those reasons being that there are just too many TV shows to compete with in not only the cult genre, but every genre. Hill goes on to state that “The overwhelming majority of those series that evolve substantial creative fan cultures belongs to the fantastic genres of science fiction, fantasy, and horror (Hill, 2004)”. By saying that I think that it’s possible that the popularity of fan bases of those certain series were also due to the Cult genre appealing and including elements from those three different genres compiled into one which unifies everyone under one interest and furthers the Cult genre.

The new media is central to all of this because it plays a huge role in how the public views cult TV. Things like how and where cult TV is presented and advertised all contribute directly to the possible fan base. Without a driving force such as new media, shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer would quite possibly have never even amassed a fan base to start with. It’s so much easier for fans to gather and celebrate their shared interests thanks to new media. 

References

Hills, M. (2004). Defining Cult TV; Texts, Inter-texts and Fan Audiences, The Television Studies   Reader, in R. C. Allen & A. Hill. London and New York: Routledge.

Week 7-8

What is the difference in emphasis between the terms science fiction and speculative fiction? Which is The Man in the High Castle?

Speculative fiction is a broad genre which includes fantasy, horror/supernatural, and futuristic elements but science fiction is more of a main stream genre that focuses on things like imagined scientific future, time/space travel and life on other planets, but doesn’t encompass that same broad spectrum of genres that speculative fiction does. Even though speculative fiction could sometimes be similar to science fiction there are subtle differences which differentiate the two genres. Science fiction seems to be more space orientated placing emphasis on the unbelievable scientific possibilities beyond our world.

While it can be argued that The Man in the High Castle is a part of the Science Fiction genre, I believe that it more closely resembles the speculative fiction genre. “Meanwhile, Tagomi, with the conivance of Baynes (who represents a rival Nazi faction), has uncovered a Gestapo plot to destroy the Home Islands (Japan) and tip the post-war balance of power irrevocably in a favour of the Fatherland”(Mountfort, 2006). The book is about an alternate reality where the Allies lost WW2 to the Japanese and Nazi Germany which I attribute to speculative fiction as it seems more closely related to fantasy and it doesn’t have that scientific element that science fiction media consists of. “Nothing more. I am afraid, sir, you have been deceived. Perhaps by some unscrupulous churl. You must report this to the San Francisco police.' The man bowed’”(Dick, 1962). The book describes the mix of cultures and nationalities when different ethnicities cohabitate after the war and it really brings out that fantasy element in which to immerse in and consider the possibility of if the Allies really lost WW2. You can see that when the man bows, a trait uncommon to present day San Francisco so picturing a foreign man bowing in a Foreign controlled San Francisco is quite fantastic.

Dick, P.K. (2001; 1962). The Man in the High Castle. London: Penguin.

Mountfort, P. (2006). Oracle-text/Cybertext in Philip K. Dick’s The Man in the High Castle. Conference paper, Popular Culture Association/ American Culture Association annual joint conference, Atlanta, 2006.

Week 7 & 8 - Science Fiction

What does Brown (2001) identify as the central themes and concerns of the novel? 

What elements conform to the wider generic features of SF? 

The novel "The Man in the High Castle" is about the second World War (a.k.a. WWII). In the novel the United States remains stuck in a depression and this depression is what causes them to lose the War to the German's and Hilter. Due to this happening Japan and Germany join together to rule countries that were once independent. The central theme of the novel is war, that is where the whole novel started from. The theme creates the rest of the novel and the tone that Philip K. Dick wanted the reader to feel from reading it. As well as themes the novel has it also has concerns which create tension in the novel. The concerns in "The Man in the High Castle" are the difference of ruling; Japan ruling somewhat peacefully, sharing cultures and creating diversity. Ironically Germany rules with an iron-fist, doing whatever they want including killing the Jews, draining the Mediterranean Sea and exterminating portions of Africa. 

"And then he thought about Africa, and the Nazi experiment there. And his blood stopped in his veins, hesitated, at last went on. That huge empty ruin." (Chapter 1, pg. 11)

That huge empty ruin, this quote from the novel is demonstrating what has happened to Africa due to the Germans rule which is one of the main concerns in the novel. The difference between Japans and Germanys ruling.  

"Still, it had taken two hundred years to dispose of the American aborigines, and Germany had almost done it in Africa in fifteen years." (Chapter 2, pg. 25)

The concerns in the novel affect the community because "The Man in the High Castle" is literally a mirror of what could have happened at the end of WWII, since the novel is the basis of a true event. In the novel even though both Germany and Japan won the different ways of rules causes concern when a threat of nuclear conflict between them is presented. The novel is alternately a different outcome to how WWII could have ended making the reader ever more engrossed. 

Brown refers to "The Man in the High Castle" having the central themes different to any other science fiction novel. That "while much Sci-Fi of the time extrapolated from the hard sciences, Dick used SF to explore his obsession with metaphysics, the nature of perceived reality, good and evil, and the abuse of power. He was obsessed with the idea that the universe was only apparently real, an illusion behind which the truth might dwell", the central themes of the novel were different to any other science fiction novel, they discuss the abuse of power and the outcome of that. Dick also wanted his novels to have "characters [that were] drawn from real life, composites of people he knew and versions of himself". 

Brown also states that the main concerns in the novel is that Germany is viewed as the true evil and that early in the novel we learn that Germany has already applied the final solution not only to the Jews but to the real of the countries the Germans rule. We learn that Hilter is insane and incarcerated in a psychiatric institution. Later on in the novel, Dick wants the reader to understand the extent of how evil the Nazis are, although he does "refrain from crudely showing us, via direct action, the terror of Nazi rule". The terror of the Nazi rule is one of the concerns in the novel, it isn't shown or describe in great detail, it is just the fact of the unknown and that they rule. 

Dick wrote his work to reflect on his life, although his most famous pieces of writing are science fiction based they relate to how chaotic his life was. His personal life was eventful, he suffered failure "In 1961, after a two year period in which he wrote three mainstream novels (which failed to sell) Dick returned to science fiction with what many critics regard as his finest novel, The Man in the High Castle." and personal problems "and yet, during the course of five failed marriages, psychiatric therapy and drug dependency, he continued to write some of the most strikingly original science fiction novels of the sixties and seventies."

Dick consulted "I, Ching" to predict the outcomes of his novel, which is as bizarre as it is incredible. Although the I Ching helped him write the novel he used his personal experience to complete it making "The Man in the High Castle" his best published work.

Reference:

Brown, Z. (2001). Introduction. In Dick, P. K.,The man in the high castle. (p.v-xii). London: Penguin. 

Sye - Week 7 - 8 Sci-Fi

What is the difference in emphasis between the terms science fiction and speculative fiction? Which is The Man in the High Castle? 

Science fiction is a genre of fiction in which the stories often tell about science and technology of the future.  This is a very simplistic definition of the sci-fi genre.  Science fiction is a broad genre in which many other sub-genres exist.  It usually contains advanced technology or sciences, aliens, space travel and/or the future or alternative realities.  Often compared to the fantasy genre, what sets it apart is that most of the fantastical elements in sci-fi are fundamentally plausable in the 'real' world.

Speculative fiction a term, attributed to novelist Robert Heinlein in 1941, is a sub-genre in which the basic principal of the novel is what if?  The novelist will start with a question of what if x happened? and will then seek out the answer in the piece of writing.  Speculative fiction is a sub-genre which exists in many of the major genre categories fantasy, science fiction or even horror.

One could justifiably say the "The Man in the High Castle" is either speculative fiction or science fiction or both.  Personally I would class it as both.  The man trust of the novel is the question what if the Nazis, Japanese and Italians won WW2 which would class it as a piece of the speculative fiction sub-genre.  The novel takes place in an alternate reality in which this question is answered.  Whilst it may not be set in the future or contain advanced tech or aliens it still fall into the science fiction genre through its use of alternate reality which maintains a level of realism.

References:

Dick, P.K. (2001; 1962). The Man in the High Castle. London: Penguin.

Lilly, N.E. (2002). What is Speculative Fiction? GreenTentacles.com. Retrieved October 7, 2014 from http://www.greententacles.com/articles/5/26