Not infrequently the choice of a futuristic context has allowed to highlight some distortions in human behavior, proposing notable reflections within an underestimated “escape literature”. This is the case of numerous science fiction works by the American writer Fredric Brown (1906-1972), in which the alien unexpectedly becomes the narrator: in Brown’s novels and short stories the voices of the non-human characters are often so good at sharing points of view, lifestyles and defects of the opposite (human) species that they are confused with it. This essay aims to answer at least two fundamental questions: what precise aspects does social criticism consist of in Brown’s stories? To what extent does it prove to be indebted to the adoption of non-human narrators? We will proceed through the analysis of novels (The Mind Thing and Rogue in Space) and selected short stories (Sentry and The Last Martian).
Sentient Asteroids and Too Human Aliens in Fredric Brown’s Fiction
Simone PettinePrimo
2022-01-01
Abstract
Not infrequently the choice of a futuristic context has allowed to highlight some distortions in human behavior, proposing notable reflections within an underestimated “escape literature”. This is the case of numerous science fiction works by the American writer Fredric Brown (1906-1972), in which the alien unexpectedly becomes the narrator: in Brown’s novels and short stories the voices of the non-human characters are often so good at sharing points of view, lifestyles and defects of the opposite (human) species that they are confused with it. This essay aims to answer at least two fundamental questions: what precise aspects does social criticism consist of in Brown’s stories? To what extent does it prove to be indebted to the adoption of non-human narrators? We will proceed through the analysis of novels (The Mind Thing and Rogue in Space) and selected short stories (Sentry and The Last Martian).I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
